KERRVILLE, Texas — Volunteers have been scouring the flood ravaged Hill Country landscape in Texas looking for lost and frightened pets, sometimes whistling in the wasteland in the hopes of encouraging a timid dog or cat to come forward.
Rescue group Kerrville Pets Alive has already taken in 40 animals separated from their owners and received 100 reports of either lost or found pets since Friday’s hellish floods.
“We are seeing an influx of animals because the water is receding,” Karen Guerrero, founding member of the nonprofit, told The Post on Monday. “There are thousands of pets out there.”
Kerrville Pets Alive is looking to reunite pets with their owners, and find pets whose owners may have died in the tragic flooding.
Volunteers are also looking through wreckage to find the bodies of pets that didn’t survive the once-in-a generation flooding.
Sadly, the group is already handling about 20 dead pets.
But one that emerged from the devastation was a “brave” Whippet whose owners were killed in the floods.
“She’s by herself,” said Lauren Singleton, a 33-year-old Kerrville resident and teacher who is fostering the orphaned pooch.
“I have pets of my own so as soon as I saw they were needing help and support, the first thing I did was step up and foster.”
“She’s so sweet, too. She’s been giving me kisses,” Singelton said, adding the dog is skittish.
Eventually, the Whippet will head to a breeder.
“I’m happy she’s not going to be in the kennel,” Singleton said. “She will have a safe space to go lay down and have a good night’s rest.”
Volunteers expect there will be about 50 dogs and 50 cats up for adoption. There have been about 15 reunions so far.
“It’s just incredible,” Guerrero said.
The death toll from the catastrophic Texas floods surpassed 100 on Monday as rescue workers continue to sort through the destruction looking for survivors.
Meanwhile, the volunteers from the Kerrville Pets Alive have been on the hunt for beloved pets.
One of those volunteers, Kelly Kirby, 50, came from San Antonio to help look for lost animals.
“This was somebody’s baby,” she said holding a dead Cockatiel after coming back from her search near the river. “It’s heartbreaking.”
Kirby, whose family lives in the area, said she’s been hoping she can reunite pets with their owners.
“We have just been whistling and calling them out and seeing if we can see any pets that are alive or deceased,” she said.
Looking for human victims of the flood, she said, was too much.
“I didn’t think I had the heart to help on the human side, Kirby said. “I just don’t know if I can do that. But I know I can help on this side.”
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