By Jessica Scott-Reid
Jessica is a Canadian writer, animal advocate and plant-based food expert. Her work appears regularly in media across Canada and the US.
When natural disasters strike, stories of shock and tragedy are often followed by accounts of compassion and heroism. And in the case of recent wildfires plaguing regions of Canada and Hawaii, this is certainly true. As efforts to evacuate humans to safety naturally grab the headlines, reports of animals--those rescued, reunited and cared for during times of chaos—further pull at human heartstrings near and far. But while media often pays attention to the rescue of companion animals, the dogs and cats so many of us hold dear, advocates for other animals are asking that the plight of wild and farmed animals be considered too.
Volunteers with the Maui Humane Society in Lahaina have been arranging shelter and vet care for injured animals, and distributing pet supplies to people forced out of their homes who need help caring for their animals.
Maui continues to cope with the impact of the deadliest wildfire in US history, and reports are emerging of courageous animal rescuers working to get hundreds of companion animals off the devastated island. While some stories tell of animals being reunited with families, others focus on pets who have lost homes or who were already homeless. The Maui Humane Society and Greater Good Charities, for example, partnered with Southwest Airlines recently to transport 130 companion animals to awaiting mainland rescues.
Roman had burns on his paws, legs, back and body. Because he was microchipped, animal rescuers at the Maui Humane Society were able to call his guardians who came immediately to the shelter to take him home. Roman is now safe and doing well.
"It's best practices in disaster to clear the shelter of adoptable pets,” says Liz Baker, the CEO of Greater Good Charities, to People Magazine, “so that the shelter has the room to take in any pets that the disaster may have impacted, whether that be strays or pets waiting to reunify with their families or animals that need help short term."
Efforts are also being made by the BCSPCA in the Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada, where thousands of residents had to evacuate also due to wildfires. Animal protection officer Sarah Steves recently told Global News that going into the disaster zone has been “scary” and “sad,” but that the rescuers are committed to the difficult task. “Anything from us removing the animals from their property and doing compassionate boarding,” she says, “removing the animals from their property and bringing them back to them because they have somewhere for them to go, or even just like feeding and watering them if the animals are safe.”
Meanwhile, the challenge of aiding companion animals in the more remote Northwest Territories of Canada, where wildfires have placed 65 percent of the population under evacuation orders, has been met by a variety of rescue groups. Many residents were flown out of the capital, Yellowknife, at very short notice on military transport planes, and some companion animals had to be left behind.
Canadian group Veterinarians Without Borders, and U.S.-based Wings of Rescue have been organizing flights, according to a media release issued last week, to pick up pets from Yellowknife and Hay River, to transport them to Vancouver and Calgary, where families or advocates await them. According to CTV News, a plane with space to transport 100 animals will be flown by volunteer pilots.
But while stories of dogs and cats reuniting with displaced families can warm the heart in times of disaster, there are other animals far less likely to get that happy ending. BC-based wildlife protection group The Fur Bearers is working to draw attention to wild animals being impacted by wildfires, including the loss of their habitat, the disruption of predator-prey dynamics, and those who actually die in the flames.
In a recent blog post, the group provides ways the public can assist wildlife when and where fires hit, such as being extra cautious on roadways where animals could also be travelling or crossing to evacuate, as well as calling wildlife rehabilitators when an injured animal is spotted and supporting those groups financially. Further, the group adds that humans must help prevent forest fires, as well as implore local leaders to do more “to prioritise and fund the protection of our forests and waterways and halt the recreational killing of all animals (such as commercial trapping) to give wildlife a chance to recover.”
Firefighters offer food to Poomba the pig who miraculously survived the wildfire in West Kelowna, BC. She refused to be loaded onto a rescue trailer and was reluctantly left behind. Photo posted to Facebook by Broken Rail Ranch.
Animal Justice, another Canadian animal advocacy group, is also shining a spotlight on animals often ignored during times of natural disaster: farmed animals. “The vast majority of farmed animals in Canada are raised in factory farms, and are uniquely vulnerable to being left behind to suffer during emergencies, including wildfires, heat dome events, and floods,” writes Animal Justice’s Shannon Nickerson. “Documents obtained by Animal Justice revealed that at least 651,000 chickens and other birds died on farms during the 2021 British Columbia heat dome event. The same year, 640,000 chickens, pigs, and cows died due to catastrophic flooding in the province.”
Animal Justice executive director Camille Labchuk tells Planet Friendly News that farms in Canada aren’t legally required to have emergency plans to evacuate animals, even as extreme weather conditions fuelled by the climate crisis are becoming the norm. “Farmed animals are at extreme risk of perishing from BC wildfires this summer, and only time will tell what the death toll will be.”
Thankfully, in all areas of rescues from disasters there are animal advocates working to get the attention and protection that vulnerable animals of all species need and deserve.
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