BINGHAMTON, NY (WIVT/WBGH) – The aftermath of Hurricane Ian has left thousands of residents displaced, and looking for shelter, but not just people.
The Bissell Pet Foundation is a national animal welfare organization that is making space in Florida animal shelters by transporting more than 100 cats and dogs to New York State.
A flight landed at the Greater Binghamton Airport yesterday afternoon that was filled with only animals, and was met on the ground by several participating shelters from Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Ontario, Canada.
The Broome County Humane Society was one of the participating organizations, and welcomed 19 dogs from the Bissel Flight.
Executive Director of the Broome County Humane Society Karen Matson said, “The animals that are being transported, to the best of my knowledge, are going on to their final leg of any destination, the next step for these animals is to go into their homes. Basically the shelters in Florida are very full now, their taxed on a regular basis, so, we’ve got space, so we’re just taking them off their hands. Their ownership has been transferred to the organizations that are participating today, and we will just put them through our adoption processes and find them their forever homes.”
Upon landing, representatives from each organization began unloading the animals and re-loading them into their designated vans.
Matson said that after adding another 19 dogs, extra volunteers would be greatly appreciated.
If you are interested in lending a hand and walking dogs, visit bchumanesoc.com and click on volunteer.