Tag: wildfires

Firefighters Rescue Lost Dog During Southern California Wildfire

This story has been updated with more information about the dog, Buck, and why he ran away.

As they battled the so-called Apple Fire in Southern California, firefighters from Orange County made an unusual discovery. A Queensland Heeler mix was wandering alone along a fire lane, far away from any houses but not far from the wildfire burning nearby.

The crew with OC Firefighters, Local 3631 gave the lost dog water and part of a sandwich. They called Riverside County Animal Services (RCAS) and then carried the dog down a hill to the waiting animal control officer.

“Lt. Luis Rosa of our Coachella Valley Animal Campus — and his colleagues — responded to the call and transported the very sweet, very loving dog to our San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus,” RCAS wrote on its Facebook page yesterday.

If no one claimed the Queensland Heeler, the firefighter seen carrying him in this video promised to give the dog a forever home.

Fortunately, that won’t have to be the case, KNBC reports. When animal control officer Sgt. Lesley Huennekens was checking in on Greg Skeens of Banning to see if he needed any supplies for his pets and livestock, Skeens told her his dog, Buck, had chased after a coyote and disappeared. With the fire burning in the hills surrounding his home, Skeens thought the worst and figured he’d never see Buck again.

Imagine Skeens’s surprise when Huennekens asked him if his missing dog happened to be a Queensland Heeler mix.

Thanks to the efforts of those firefighters, Skeens was reunited with his wayward dog. As you can see in the video, they were both delighted to see each other again. Not only did firefighters save Buck, but they had also saved Skeens’ home from being burned to the ground.

Meanwhile, those OC firefighters along with other crews are still bravely fighting the Apple Fire, which has destroyed four homes and burned over 32,000 acres as of August 8. Luckily no people or pets have died, including one Queensland Heeler whose life was likely saved thanks to the kindness of that OC Firefighters crew.

Photo: Riverside County Animal Services/Facebook

With Her Pit Bull in a Duffel Bag, Woman Escapes California Wildfire on a Bicycle

Natasha Wallace wasn’t about to flee from a devastating wildfire in Santa Rosa, Calif., without Bentley, her beloved 4-year-old Pit Bull.

“I would never part ways with my dog, ever,” she told FOX40. “That’s my ride or die — oh my God, literally.”

Wallace, a student at Santa Rosa Junior College, had been studying across town Monday night. As she drove home around 2 a.m., she could see the flames near her home and knew she’d have to evacuate.

She managed to put Bentley in her car and tried to drive away from the fast-moving fire, but got stuck in traffic. So she ran back to her house and grabbed her bicycle and a duffel bag, which became a sidecar for Bentley.

“I told him, ‘Hey man, this is serious, you need to just sit in the bag,'” Wallace told FOX40. “And he hopped right in.”

Carrying her 70-pound dog, she was able to ride her bike a few miles away from the fire. Fortunately, a good Samaritan named Paul Johnson stopped his pickup truck and gave Wallace and Bentley a lift to a safe evacuation area.

Unfortunately, Wallace — who turned 24 yesterday — lost her home and everything she owned, but thanks to her quick actions, she and her beloved Pittie survived.

“I don’t even know how to express how grateful I am,” she told FOX40.

Here’s how to help pets left homeless by the devastating wildfires in Northern California.

How to Help Pets Displaced by the Devastating Northern California Wildfires

The deadliest wildfires in state history continue to burn in California’s wine country, destroying more than 120,000 acres. Over 30 people have died so far, and hundreds remain missing.

Thousands of people have lost their houses, and shelters are taking in their pets until they have a place to call home. Here are some of the ways you can help them.

Sonoma Humane Society

The Sonoma Humane Society has been overwhelmed by the generosity of donations of pet food and other items, which are being distributed to displaced pet owners. It currently does not need additional supplies. “We are thankful for the outpouring of support we are receiving,” it stated on its website Oct. 12.

Veterinary care for burn victims is also being offered free of charge. “Owned or stray animals affected by the fires can come to Sonoma Humane for basic treatment,” its website states. “If the care required is greater than we can provide, we will recommend referral to a critical care facility.”

You can help by:

  • Adopting a dog from the shelter to make room for incoming strays and injured pets.
  • Making an online cash donation, which is especially needed and appreciated. “You can choose to restrict your gift to ‘NorCal Fire Relief’ or consider giving a gift to ‘Help where it’s needed most’ to ensure we have the resources to support our fire relief efforts as well as the animals who were already in our shelters,” Sonoma Humane said.

Napa Humane

“We are so proud of our community and the way that everyone has come together and the outpouring of love and support,” stated Napa Humane on its Facebook page Oct. 12. “So many have lost so much and many are still here to help their friends and neighbors. Please stay safe.”

The humane society is providing temporary housing for an evacuated pet hospital. “Several kitties have come to us with burned paws, but most of them are still purring and allowing us to love them up,” according to an update.

Napa Humane also has a mobile unit available at the Napa County Animal Shelter and Adoption Center that’s being used to house evacuated pets.

You can help by making an online cash donation.

Petaluma Animal Services

“Our employees are sleeping in their cars, rescuing in the fire area, staffing the evacuation center and handling the shelter,” Petaluma Animal Services reported on its Facebook page Oct. 12.

While it currently has enough supplies, what it needs most is “monetary donations for fuel and overtime costs plus supplies needed in the field (hardware). Any amount is helpful and we appreciate your support right now.”

You can help by making an online cash donation.

Marin Humane

Marin Humane has been offering emergency boarding for pets free of charge. To reduce the stress on this and other shelters in wine country, its animal control officers in fire zones are helping non-injured animals “shelter in place” in burned areas, “meaning we leave food and water for them and record the animal’s location,” according to the Marin Humane Facebook page Oct. 13. “Injured animals are brought to veterinary hospitals or shelters.”

As with the other animal shelters impacted, thanks to generous donations, Marin Humane currently has enough food and supplies.

You can help by making an online cash donation so Marin Humane can continue offering free emergency boarding.

Photo via Petaluma Animal Services/Facebook

Dog Runs from Burning House in California Wildfire and Leaps into Firefighter’s Arms

While areas of Louisiana have experienced devastating floods caused by historic amounts of rain, the severe drought here in Southern California has had a terrible impact on what one firefighter of 40 years called the worst wildfire he’d ever battled.

The so-called Blue Cut Fire, which began Tuesday in the San Bernardino Mountains, has burned more than 25,000 acres as of Thursday morning. More than 82,000 people have been evacuated, and, sadly,  hundreds of them may have no houses to return to.

One dog left behind in the West Cajon area is very lucky to be alive.

When he saw Cal Fire Battalion Chief Mike Mohler, the dog, who appears to possibly be a Rottweiler mix, ran to him from a burning structure and leaped into his arms, according to a post yesterday on Cal Fire San Bernardino/Inyo/Mono Unit’s Facebook page.

“Seeing that dog run out of those flames was pretty amazing,” Mohler told KCBS. “It sheltered in place until it actually saw help, but it just wanted help. It needed to get out of that area.”

The dog was treated for minor burns, given food and water, and taken to the Apple Valley Animal Shelter. Hopefully the lucky puppy will soon be reunited with his owners.

‘If People Are at Work, Their Pets Are at Home’

Although it’s not yet known why the dog was left behind, it’s likely because, according to some comments on the Cal Fire Facebook post, many residents weren’t home when the fire started.

“People are not leaving pets behind,” wrote Priscilla Jaynes. “If people are at work, their pets are at home, and sometimes you can’t get through to them in time. Once police close a road, there is no going past the blockade. I know someone who lost their dog this way. It was devastating.”

Debe Webb added a comment saying that’s exactly what happened to her. “My husband spent eight hours on the roads trying to get to Wrightwood to our pets,” she wrote. “We were both at work down the hill when the fire started. He also had to walk five miles because they would only let them get so close by car. He got all three dogs and himself out.”

My heart goes out to everyone affected by this terrible wildfire, and the heroic firefighters who are battling it.

How to Help Animals Displaced by the Blue Cut Fire

Three shelters are currently taking in evacuated animals evacuated due to the wildfire. Dogs and cats are being taken in by the Apple Valley and Devore animal shelters. Larger animals can stay at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds, which is also serving as an American Red Cross Shelter.

For these shelters’ latest donation needs, check their Facebook pages:

You can find more shelter information and make a monetary donation by visiting the American Red Cross website.

Photo via Facebook

Reporter Reunites Senior Lab with Elderly Dog Dad after California Wildfire

As the so-called Valley Fire wildfire raced toward his Lower Lake, Calif., home six days ago, 76-year-old Lawrence Ross had little time to evacuate.

He grabbed what he could, but had to leave behind his senior Black Lab, Thumper.

“I think my house is okay, but I don’t know, and my dog is there, and my goats and horses and alpacas,” Ross tearfully told Associated Press reporter Brian Skoloff yesterday at an evacuation center.

“My dog, my dog.”

Ross said he’d had a nightmare that his house was burning down, “and I could hear her screaming as she burned.”

Skoloff asked Ross to show him where his house was on a map. The reporter then drove 10 miles, past burned terrain and downed power lines, to the address. He couldn’t believe what he saw.

The grounds around the house were burned, but the house was still standing.

“Two horses grazed on hay in the yard. The alpacas stared at me from their pen. Goats scurried about like nothing had happened,” Skoloff wrote. “But there was no sign of Thumper.”

For an hour, Skoloff walked around the property, calling out Thumper’s name. The dog finally appeared, covered in soot and wagging her tail. She had been hiding in a crawlspace under the house.

“She leaped into my lap, licked my face, then rolled over on her back as I rubbed her belly and I cried,” Skoloff wrote.

“‘Good girl, Thumper!’ I kept telling her. ‘You made it!'”

There were more tears when the reporter called Ross to tell him the good news.

Skoloff drove Thumper to the evacuation center to be reunited with her dog dad.

“I barely had the back door open when Thumper pushed her way out and ran toward him, her entire body wagging now,” he wrote.

“I can’t believe it,” Ross kept saying.

Here are some ways you can help pets displaced by the devastating wildfires in Northern California.

Photo via Facebook

 

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