WATCH: PETA’s Animal Rescue Team Returns From Puerto Rico, With a Few Friends in Tow

Published by PETA.

The Big Picture:

  • While in Puerto Rico, which was devastated by Hurricane Maria, PETA’s Animal Rescue Team cleared debris, supplied food and clean water, scrubbed and repaired pens and enclosures, collected distressed and injured animals from the streets, drove animals to veterinary clinics for care, and more.
  • Now, our team has returned home, although the impact of its assistance lives on.
  • Our team brought back some of the dogs who survived the hurricane but are homeless. Please help us by supporting all PETA’s emergency work, follow us on Instagram and Twitter for updates, and e-mail us at [email protected] if you can offer any of these special dogs a loving home!
  • PETA remains in contact with other rescuers we worked with in Puerto Rico, and we’ll continue to help.

Updates:

Posted at October 16, 2017, at 11:47 a.m. 

Watch the video below and click here to meet Coco, a senior dog who was living at a struggling animal shelter in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico, when Hurricane Maria struck.

Posted at October 13, 2017, at 2:13 p.m. 

E-mail us at [email protected] if you can offer any of these special dogs a loving home!

Posted at October 12, 2017, at 1:59 p.m. 

Hurricane Maria has devastated Puerto Rico—and PETA got there early to help animals who had weathered the huge and hideous storm. Watch this video to meet some of the ones the team brought back to the mainland, and click here to learn how you can help them, too.

Posted at October 12, 2017, at 11:46 a.m. 

Posted at October 12, 2017, at 11:41 a.m. 

Posted at October 9, 2017, at 6:46 p.m. 

Posted at October 6, 2017, at 1:25 p.m. 

This dog had a severe case of mange and scratched her skin raw. Our rescue team comforted her as they headed for help.

Posted at October 6, 2017, at 12:33 p.m. 

We rushed Roquero (aka Rocker) to the veterinarian where he received a dewormer, had his nails clipped, and had blood work done.We also gave him a medicated bath to help his skin. Rocker suffers from a jaw birth defect he’s had for years, but despite his hardships, he’s still such a sweet dog and loves being held.

Posted at October 5, 2017, at 3:16 p.m. 

A PETA volunteer comforted a dying dog who was found like this.

https://twitter.com/peta/status/916063704092938241

Posted at October 5, 2017, at 9:55 a.m. 

We are transporting this dog to the vet. She was scratching herself because of a severe case of mange and needed medical care.

Posted at October 5, 2017, at 9:47 a.m. 

Animals at the shelter who endured Hurricane Maria had been through hell & back. PETA helped comfort those desperate for human affection.

Posted at October 5, 2017, at 9:42 a.m. 

The entire area was destroyed by the hurricane, and the shelter is surrounded by fallen trees and other debris. We helped clean up the mess.

Posted at October 5, 2017, at 9:38 a.m. 

These dogs were burning up in the sun, so PETA’s team helped cover outside pens with tin panels for shade.

Posted at October 5, 2017, at 9:33 a.m. 

The PETA team helped provide relief at a shelter working to house 650 dogs.

Posted at October 5, 2017, at 6:02 a.m. 

Meet some of the desperately hungry, traumatized dogs and cats PETA has been helping in hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico.

Meet some of the desperately hungry, traumatized dogs and cats PETA has been helping in hurricane-ravaged #PuertoRico.

Posted by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) on Thursday, October 5, 2017

Posted at October 4, 2017, at 11:58 a.m. 

Watch the video below to find out how PETA’s Animal Rescue Team is making a difference for dogs and cats displaced by tragedies like Hurricane Maria. Click here to learn how you can help animals in times of crisis, too.

Posted at October 4, 2017, at 11:31 a.m. 

There are few signs of life here. Nature has been uprooted, roads are blocked, and everything is gone, including the animals.

https://twitter.com/peta/status/915645211937792007

Posted at October 4, 2017, at 11:09 a.m. 

We counseled this dog’s guardians and left food for him and the other surviving dogs on the property.

Posted at October 4, 2017, at 11:07 a.m.

Imagine what it must have been like for these chained dogs to live through the hurricane while everything around him was crashing down in the raging wind.

Posted at October 4, 2017, at 10:45 a.m.

A woman on this property was anxious to get some food for all the starving cats and dogs she’s trying to care for now, as she cleans up all the debris.

Posted at October 4, 2017, at 10:11 a.m.

These dogs’ guardians fled, their house and everything in it destroyed, including eight Chihuahuas whose bodies are buried under the rubble. Two other little dogs survived, and neighbors who are feeding and watching over them were happy to receive dog food for them.

Posted at October 3, 2017, at 8:56 a.m.

The PETA team joined a queue of folks desperate for gasoline. While waiting in line—in temperatures soaring above 90 degrees—they spotted a puppy, a pregnant dog, and her “husband,” whose feet were bloody and raw. Members of our Animal Rescue Team provided the inseparable trio with much-needed food and water and brought them to a veterinarian for additional care.

Posted at October 3, 2017, at 8:17 a.m.

PETA’s Animal Rescue Team continues to offer help and support in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. Click here to help support PETA’s Animal Emergency Fund, which makes it possible for us to respond quickly when disasters like the one in Puerto Rico put animals in danger.

Posted at October 2, 2017, at 8:40 a.m.

In Puerto Rico, a PETA volunteer provided desperately needed comfort to this traumatized, blind dog.

Posted at September 30, 2017, at 12:36 p.m.

There are roughly 200 dogs and cats in need at this facility in Cabo Rojo. Our Animal Rescue Team members rolled up their sleeves and cleaned up flood damage, fed, watered, and walked animals—giving them some attention and comfort at long last. This dog named Roxy was all smiles when we took her outdoors for fresh air.

Posted at September 30, 2017, at 12:31 p.m.

PETA rescue team member Jenny held this confused blind dog in a quiet corner and calmed her down.

Posted at September 29, 2017, at 9:10 a.m.

A huge thank you to Sam’s Club for their generous donations.

Posted at September 29, 2017, at 9:07 a.m.

The team had a busy first day on the ground. We helped establish order at a Stray Dog agency by assisting with cleaning and providing water to the dogs.

Posted at September 29, 2017, at 9:05 a.m.

The team assisted a dog and cat rescuer who currently has more than 350 animal refugees.

Posted at September 29, 2017, at 9:00 a.m.

Animals in Puerto Rico are traumatized by what they’ve endured. Our team leader, Jess, provides some much-needed human reassurance.

Posted at September 29, 2017, at 7:15 a.m.

Beatriz Rossello, the first lady of Puerto Rico, took to Twitter to thank PETA for helping with rescue efforts, and urged others to donate food and other supplies to animals in need.

https://twitter.com/BeatrizRossello/status/913757978976751616

https://twitter.com/BeatrizRossello/status/913758362130673664

Posted at September 28, 2017, at 4:10 p.m.

The PETA Rescue Team spent much of Thursday helping about 200 cats and 150 dogs, providing food and water and cleaning out cages.

Posted at September 28, 2017, at 11:00 a.m.

The team was up early Thursday morning to try to get gas—not an easy task in Puerto Rico right now—and get to a supermarket to stock up on supplies. Upon the PETA team’s arrival, a local activist joined them and kindly provided a van for them to use. A local Sam’s Club also lent a hand by donating much-needed dog and cat food as well as other supplies.

Continue to check back for additional updates, and click here to support this critically important work by making an urgent gift to PETA’s Animal Emergency Fund today. 

PETA’s Animal Rescue Team in Action 

PETA’s Animal Rescue Team has just returned from Texas, where its members waded through the floodwaters to find abandoned, lost, and injured animals. They helped save over 100 animals—including dogs, cats, chickens, and an armadillo—from areas of Texas and Louisiana hit hard by Hurricane Harvey, and they brought back 67 homeless companion animals to PETA’s Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters when overwhelmed local shelters needed to make room for incoming victims.

What You Can Do

You can support all our vital work for animals threatened by disasters, from hurricanes to human negligence, by giving to PETA’s Animal Emergency Fund through the button below. The fund makes it possible for us to respond quickly when disaster strikes and when humans fail the animals who depend on them.

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Ingrid E. Newkirk

“Almost all of us grew up eating meat, wearing leather, and going to circuses and zoos. We never considered the impact of these actions on the animals involved. For whatever reason, you are now asking the question: Why should animals have rights?” READ MORE

— Ingrid E. Newkirk, PETA President and co-author of Animalkind

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