Heart helps evacuate flood-hit shelter
Published on: Monday, January 25, 2021
By: Dr Roslee bin Haji Abbas
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UNFORTUNATELY, extreme weather has caused animals at Shelter of Hope in Penampang to be trapped in waist-high water. The torrential flooding had affected more than 150 rescued animals at the shelter.
We don’t leave disabled animals behind when the going gets tough. We refused to let the floodwaters stand in the way of animal rescue.
We did not think much other than wanting to save the disabled dogs because the water was rising at Shelter of Hope. The disabled dogs which were aware of our effort to rescue them were calm and cooperative but buggered.
The annual rainy monsoon season has led to major floods across the state and Shelter of Hope in Penampang is no exception. Unfortunately, extreme weather that lasted for three consecutive days last week had caused animals at Shelter of Hope in Penampang to be trapped in waist-high water. The shelter had to make an emergency evacuation Saturday after torrential rain flooded the property. All animals were forced to evacuate their submerged shelter.
Devastating floods had hit Shelter of Hope as the monsoon season has brought extremely heavy rains. Heart rushed to help rescue stranded of disabled dogs from a flooded Shelter of Hope in Penampang. Heart was at the scene of one heartbreaking animal rescue from the swirling soup of contaminated murky floodwaters as we risked our lives to save disabled dogs.
The water was hard to walk through because our feet get stuck in the mud. While walking in the contaminated murky floodwaters, all that was going on in our mind was that saving an animal is only for the pleasure of Allah, not for the sake of wow and praise of anyone.
The dogs were wet, cold and scared. The rescue transfer helps the Shelter of Hope’s disabled dogs out of the flood zone. A caged paralysed dog and a caged blind dog placed on a higher platform were stranded in their cages surrounded by murky floodwater. We could see “fear and exhaustion” in the dogs’ eyes as we ended their horrible ordeal by carrying them from the muddy flood water and brought them to safety in our truck. Samaria the paralysed dog and Sky the blind dog will be cared for by Heart until the flood water subsides.
The area on the property was flooded with water to four deep and dogs in Zone A of the shelter were released from their enclosure. Within hours the most vulnerable animals (cats, puppies and dogs) were picked up and moved to higher ground.
Water level was constantly rising for three days and the situation was really bad but the Heart team will continue in our efforts to help Shelter of Hope’s animals as much as possible.
Make a difference! Your donations today will help save an animal’s life. We rely on donations from people like you.
Please be as generous as you can to help us give them the care they need and the love they deserve. Shelter of Hope will need monetary donations to help clean up and to take care of the animals impacted by the flash floodwaters.
Shelter of Hope shelter is in urgent need of help to repair the damage to its premises caused by flash floods early Friday morning January 16 and lasted for three days. Much damage was done to the quarantine zone as well as other parts of the shelter’s structures. Even the dogs’ kibbles that were stored at the shelter were not spared.
We receive no government funding and rely on the support and kindness from our community, private donations and charity bazaar to complete our mission.
Heart does not euthanise animals to make space to house others. We are a no-kill animal welfare group and work to preserve life whenever possible.
At Heart, we attempt to keep all animals alive because we value life and believe even the most neglected among us, deserve a chance at life. Everyone deserves a second chance, especially animals suffering from conditions they have no control over.
We rely on donations from people like you who are willing to spend their hard-earned money to help animals in dire needs. If you would like to donate please send your money to:
CIMB BANK BERHAD
Account no.
70 3762569 4
Rosli @ Roslee Bin Abbas
And every ringgit helps! Thank you in advance for your generous, big and small (and no donation is too small).
Have a heart. Donate.
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