Puppies arrive at Muskegon airport in Hurricane Harvey’s wake
MUSKEGON, MI – Puppies from shelters in Texas arrived in Muskegon this weekend in an effort to make room for dogs rescued from flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey.
“I couldn’t believe how happy they were, said Tamara Owen, executive director of the Noah Project.
The no-kill animal shelter located near Muskegon began sharing updates on Facebook about the operation on Thursday, Aug. 31. The dogs arrived at the Muskegon County Airport Sunday, Sept. 3.
“I don’t know if they were just happy because they were happy, if they were happy to be in Michigan, or happy because what they’ve been through,” Owen said.
Noah Project teamed up with nonprofit Pilots N Paws to transport about two dozens dogs in two planes from shelters on the Gulf Coast Sunday.
From Muskegon, they will find new homes in Michigan and nearby states, Noah Project board member Jane McGregor said.
Officials said 46 shelters from Michigan and more from nearby states have already contacted the Muskegon shelter saying that they are willing to assist in housing the animals. Another 40 foster volunteers and 30 transport-related volunteers have stepped up to help in the process.
Owen said she was surprised by the willingness of people to help.
“We knew we were going to have young dogs, so we wanted stuffs like Kongs, nylabones and peanut butter,” she said. “And as soon as we put it on the Facebook page, within four hours, we had all of them.”
McGreggor said the pets will be transported to the local shelter, where they can eat and rest before close examination.