The Brandywine Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, SPCA, of Chester County has been helping animals from around the community for many years. They take in dogs and cats from local shelters and provide care for animals in need. Due to the recent hurricanes, the SPCA decided to extend their outreach.
After the devastation of Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida, the shelter discussed what they wanted to do to assist animals in those areas. A team traveled to Texas after Hurricane Harvey to gather animals from shelters that had been damaged or were overflowing. They ended up bringing 150 animals to West Chester and are still waiting on more.
The only animals being brought to West Chester are ones who were already in a shelter before the storm. A smaller team of 10 is still in Houston where they set up a temporary shelter for the local animals who were harmed or lost. These team members will remain there for a month before returning to West Chester with the animals who were not retrieved.
All local animals who were lost will remain in Texas so their owners can find them.
Currently, 50 of the dogs and cats brought to West Chester are available for adoption with more coming in soon. SPCA worker Mathias Polhemus said, “all the Texas ones are amazing and they are just really happy to be here.” According to the staff, all of the animals are very friendly and will do great once they find homes. Animals currently unavailable for adoption due to medical issues will be made available once they’re healthy again.
The SPCA is hoping that animals from both Texas and local areas will be adopted quickly so that they have room for more. Just this week, dogs and cats were being brought to West Chester from St. Thomas after the devastation of Hurricane Maria. They are expecting a great deal more of both cats and dogs due to the severity of that hurricane. Volunteers explained that the sooner the animals get adopted, the faster they can bring in more animals in need. Brandywine SPCA Director of Marketing and Projects, Linda Torelli, said, “the best way for people to help is to either come and adopt or spread the word that animals are up for adoption.”
Their Delaware location is currently housing the animals rescued from Hurricane Irma. The Brandywine Valley SPCA can be contacted at 610-693-6113 and is located at 1212 Phoenixville Pike, West Chester, Pennsylvania 19380.
Chelsey Edwards is a first-year student majoring in communication studies. She can be reached at CE897118@wcupa.edu or on Twitter @ChelseyEdwards5.