Artwork for podcast Animal Posse
Disaster Preparedness: A Conversation with Ashley Gardenier of Southern Paws Inc.
Episode 58 • 6th March 2026 • Animal Posse • Unwanted Feline Organization
00:00:00 00:53:14

Share Episode

Transcripts

Dixie:

Welcome to Animal Posse, the podcast dedicated to the

2

:

people and rescues making a

difference in the lives of animals.

3

:

Welcome back to Animal Posse.

4

:

Today we are catching up with a

guest that we had on last year,

5

:

Ashley, with Southern Paws.

6

:

As we all know, when disaster strikes,

our four legged family members

7

:

are often the most vulnerable.

8

:

Ashley has been on the front lines of

animal rescue and pet safety for years

9

:

ashley, it is so good to have you back.

10

:

Thanks for joining us to help

our listeners get their go bags

11

:

in order and we're gonna talk

about disaster preparedness.

12

:

Ashley: Hello.

13

:

How are you?

14

:

Dixie: I'm good.

15

:

I wanted to say thank you for coming

on the show last time and then reaching

16

:

back out to me about coming on the

show again today so we can talk about

17

:

animals in emergencies and disasters.

18

:

Ashley: Yeah.

19

:

Yeah.

20

:

And people and rescues

and all of the things.

21

:

Dixie: I looked on your website

for Southern Paw and it looks

22

:

like you have extensive knowledge

of doing disaster response and

23

:

disaster preparedness for pets.

24

:

Ashley: It all started before

I actually did animal rescue.

25

:

I used to do human rescue.

26

:

I was in emergency services, and when I

started to get into animal rescue, , I

27

:

didn't have time to do everything.

28

:

So I had to pick and choose.

29

:

And obviously as you can tell I chose

animal rescue mainly 'cause I just

30

:

the real truth of the matter is I

just like animals better than people.

31

:

So it came to a head in 2016

with the, there was severe

32

:

flooding in Louisiana actually.

33

:

And I think you're from

Louisiana, aren't you Dixie?

34

:

Dixie: I am, yeah.

35

:

I remember that.

36

:

Yeah.

37

:

That was up near like Gonzalez

towards the Baton Rouge area

38

:

Ashley: Yeah.

39

:

Livingston.

40

:

Yep.

41

:

Yeah.

42

:

Yep.

43

:

Livingston.

44

:

So we had the 2016 floods.

45

:

So my sister organization which is

technically Tylertown, Mississippi,

46

:

but we work with a lot of people

in the Livingston area and, they

47

:

were on their way back from a

transport and could barely get home.

48

:

And I remember calling them and

being , Hey is everything okay?

49

:

And she was , I need help.

50

:

And I was like, okay.

51

:

What do you need?

52

:

And she was like, I need

boots on the ground.

53

:

Can you get here?

54

:

And I was like yeah.

55

:

Okay.

56

:

So we packed up a truck with a

ton of supplies and we just left.

57

:

We just went down, we rented a van.

58

:

I brought down an entire truck of

supplies and we got in and I got there

59

:

and she said what do you wanna do?

60

:

And I was like, I wanna

be out in the field.

61

:

I said, it would be a waste

to put me in a kennel.

62

:

And she said, okay.

63

:

She said here's a grid.

64

:

This is where I need you to go.

65

:

These are where the calls are.

66

:

Like, go out there.

67

:

And it was like these two

passions of mine collided.

68

:

And I loved it.

69

:

And I've been obsessed

with doing it ever since.

70

:

So it's cool 'cause I have

all these specialties, ? I

71

:

have different certifications.

72

:

So I'm a hazmat technician, I have

a Swift Water Rescue certification.

73

:

I used to be an EMT, I let it lapse.

74

:

But over the years, all of those

different certifications have really.

75

:

Come together in doing this really

amazing search and rescue work which is

76

:

helping animals, but it's also helping

people too in different disasters.

77

:

Since 2016, I have worked almost

every storm that we've had in the

78

:

United States except for California.

79

:

Mainly I would say Texas

East is what I've done.

80

:

We have, built this network.

81

:

I've worked with other organizations

under them, but really for us

82

:

specifically, our team is really made up.

83

:

More like a coalition.

84

:

We work with a lot of different rescues.

85

:

We partner up and we all feel, we all work

on the same level, which is really nice.

86

:

So nobody really works underneath

one another unless there's a an MOU

87

:

involved, which is like a contract

with the county or the state or the

88

:

town, whatever area you're working in.

89

:

But I love a good collab within, every

single element of my life in my work.

90

:

So this really gives us an opportunity.

91

:

, Every rescuer that we work with, in

every organization we work with kind of

92

:

brings something different to the table.

93

:

And when we all work together, we

really come up with these really

94

:

beautiful, amazing accomplishments,

95

:

I worked the floods.

96

:

I did Hurricane Harvey.

97

:

I worked hurricane Michael.

98

:

That was a really bad one.

99

:

Hurricane Sally.

100

:

Hurricane Laura.

101

:

Hurricane Irene.

102

:

Hurricane Ida.

103

:

All the I's.

104

:

I chased Dorian all the way to Florida

and then all the way up the East Coast.

105

:

But I never actually worked it.

106

:

And then we just did hurricane Helene.

107

:

We actually did 17 days for

Helene, and it was crazy because

108

:

we actually did human rescue.

109

:

We didn't even end up doing animal rescue.

110

:

We did more human rescue

during Helene than animal.

111

:

And yeah it's become we can

do it on this large scale,

112

:

? Where we go and we assist during

natural disasters or we can

113

:

do it on a really small scale.

114

:

An example of that would be, we

had this rescue up here Oscar, it's

115

:

called One Step Closer Animal Rescue.

116

:

And they just had a

fire that it was awful.

117

:

They lost their entire kennel

and just had no idea what to do.

118

:

It happened to be local to me

and I was able to run out and.

119

:

I self deployed, which you're not supposed

to do, but considering their neighbors for

120

:

me, they're about an hour from my home.

121

:

I just showed up and was like,

hi, this is what I can do.

122

:

And they were like, oh

my God, we need you.

123

:

Please sit down.

124

:

So we were able to really help

get them organized and implement

125

:

some of our protocols there.

126

:

We also are able to do it with

hoarding cases, that's a big one.

127

:

I'm on the cart team which is a

animal response team for my county.

128

:

We also have a couple other ones

in the area that I'm a part of.

129

:

And one of my things there is I'm

usually their transport coordinator

130

:

where, I'll figure out which animals

are gonna go where, how they're gonna

131

:

get there how long they're gonna

stay there, and making sure all the

132

:

paperwork and stuff is in place for that.

133

:

But it, natural disasters happen.

134

:

A bad day happens, a fire happens.

135

:

These are all things that

are out of our control.

136

:

And being able to have somebody who

can assist you through it, I think is

137

:

really something that's super valuable.

138

:

And that's what I love.

139

:

That's what we do and

that's how I love to do it.

140

:

Dixie: Yeah.

141

:

I know pets are very resilient

in the natural disasters.

142

:

The way that I help when we have

natural disasters is I actually

143

:

will set up lost and found pet

pages for the actual disaster.

144

:

And there's a group of us that do that.

145

:

We almost mobilize ourselves to do that.

146

:

And it's really amazing

how resilient animals are.

147

:

I'm not saying that they don't need

to be rescued because they do, there

148

:

are situations, but I know a lot

of people give up hope easily with

149

:

their animals, and a lot of 'em are

so resilient where you might not see

150

:

'em and they'll end up showing up.

151

:

Now, I know in Louisiana when

we had that flood in:

152

:

was a very unexpected thing.

153

:

We are used to floods here, but.

154

:

That kind of flood was insane.

155

:

Yeah.

156

:

And the rate at which the water came

up and we are , honestly here, we're

157

:

not used to that type of flooding.

158

:

The type of flooding that we're

used to is, we'll hear, okay, we're

159

:

gonna get a lot of rain and the

water comes up and we will flood.

160

:

But it's usually slow.

161

:

It's not really fast moving.

162

:

It's same thing when we have

a hurricane and at least for a

163

:

hurricane we have time to get out.

164

:

But I know for the 2016 flood it came

up so fast that people were actually at

165

:

work and their pets were in their houses.

166

:

Yeah.

167

:

And they couldn't get home.

168

:

I'd like to hear you know more about that.

169

:

What is the difference in approaches

that you take to a disaster like

170

:

that versus a hurricane that

people can actually plan for.

171

:

And then you also have to plan for

coming to be boots on the ground after

172

:

the disaster because you've gotta know

what roads to take and things like that.

173

:

Ashley: Yeah, so I think there's

a lot of elements to that, ? The

174

:

first thing I would say is, it's

funny that's how you describe it.

175

:

'cause there are a lot of the floods,

the situations that I've worked.

176

:

We did the Kentucky floods and

then there was the crazy flooding

177

:

in landslides during Helene.

178

:

Every single one of these situations

were situations where they were like,

179

:

either oh, we're used to it, and then

all of a sudden it's just the flash flood

180

:

happens and it's just comes so fast.

181

:

But we had flooding in Kentucky that

we worked at was really like that.

182

:

And they have a lot of what

they call hollers up there.

183

:

So it's all these houses in I don't

even know how to explain a holler.

184

:

It was the first time I've ever

experienced that in the heart of Kentucky.

185

:

But they're these little groves it's

literally the bottom of a mountain and

186

:

there's a whole bunch of houses in there,?

187

:

And honestly the best thing you can

do, and I tell everybody this, get out.

188

:

If you even think there's

a question, just leave

189

:

, if you get evacuation orders.

190

:

Just leave.

191

:

Okay.

192

:

The worst thing that's gonna happen

is you're wasting money on a hotel

193

:

room for a night or a day, or

you're staying at friends for a day.

194

:

The worst case that happens

is your house is gone.

195

:

So when you're looking at your pros and

cons I promise you your pros of leaving

196

:

are a lot higher than your cons are.

197

:

That's the first thing I say, because

90% of the victims that we meet in these

198

:

situations, animals and humans are because

they were , oh, we thought we could stay.

199

:

Like we've always stayed before.

200

:

And it was never a big deal.

201

:

And trust me when I tell you, we've

seen the awful disaster and the

202

:

tragedies that go along with that,

the second one for you guys preparing

203

:

when you have time ahead of time.

204

:

Like I said, if you can leave, great.

205

:

Leave ? If you can't leave, okay.

206

:

First of all, don't ever

go into your attic,?

207

:

This is a big one, and I know you

know this from Katrina, but you'd be

208

:

amazed how many people still do that.

209

:

They go into their attics and you never

wanna do that because in a situation

210

:

where you have severe flash flooding

you're gonna drown in your attic.

211

:

There's no way out.

212

:

And we've seen that in, in multiple

scenarios and it's horrific.

213

:

Number two is if that water

is rising, take what you can

214

:

and just get to high land.

215

:

We have a rule if it's wind

hunker down, if it's water run.

216

:

And that's exactly what

it is, ? Because water.

217

:

You are not gonna be able

to stay where you are.

218

:

You're gonna have to get out.

219

:

Another big one, always have

a go bag for your animals.

220

:

This is a big one that I feel like

a lot of people don't have your go

221

:

bag, especially during storm season

or if I know something's coming in,

222

:

I have my dogs tags.

223

:

I have at least a day

or two of their food.

224

:

I have a week of their medication.

225

:

I have their medical records.

226

:

A lot of the states in the United States

have really been great recently about

227

:

putting together these shelters that

are human animal shelters where people

228

:

can stay with their pets, but you still

have to have their supplies, ? If your

229

:

dog is in congenital heart failure, make

sure you have your meds, for at least

230

:

a week or two until we can get more.

231

:

Same thing with their food.

232

:

A lot of dogs are on prescription diets

or they're on sensitive skin and stomach.

233

:

I have a dog that has IBD,

if I give him something other

234

:

than his food, he's gonna die.

235

:

There's things that we can do as

humans to prepare ourselves, ? Make

236

:

sure you have a leash, you have

a collar, you have that go bag.

237

:

So if you need to go, you just up and go.

238

:

You're not scrambling last minute.

239

:

Another big one.

240

:

, It's such a silly thing and it's

scary when you think about it.

241

:

But one of the best things you guys can

do is take a sharpie marker and write

242

:

your name and phone number on your dog.

243

:

Coming from somebody who I

really love reunification.

244

:

There's a lot of organizations

out there that aren't for that.

245

:

I am all for reunification.

246

:

And we actually work ahead of a storm

to try and empty shelters to be able

247

:

to make space for those lost animals

so that people can find their pets.

248

:

But.

249

:

In that same sense okay, we get them back.

250

:

Now nobody has the internet.

251

:

Nobody really has phone.

252

:

Nobody's seeing the lost pet pages.

253

:

So how do you connect

with your animals now?

254

:

And nobody knows where to go.

255

:

People in the us in animal rescue, we

know, go to your local shelter, call

256

:

the police department and find out where

their staging location is for animals.

257

:

Find out.

258

:

You can call the vet's offices,

they might say, Hey, there's a

259

:

location here and a location there.

260

:

Or maybe your animal control

is big enough, but I'll use

261

:

the floods as an example.

262

:

During the floods, we

were staged at Livingston,

263

:

? And we had animals from four

or five different parishes.

264

:

now you're dealing with people

lost their cars, i'll tell you

265

:

what, what works really well is

if you've written your, name and

266

:

number in Sharpie, on their belly.

267

:

'Cause chances are eventually they're

gonna get to somebody, that's got a phone.

268

:

Or most of us are gonna

take our phones with us.

269

:

So if we at least have that number, we

can call and say, Hey, we have your dog.

270

:

This is where he is.

271

:

And then they can say,

oh, we don't have a car.

272

:

And we can say, okay, no problem.

273

:

We're gonna send a volunteer

to bring you your pet.

274

:

And just being able to provide that.

275

:

Now when it comes to us, ? Storm

season for me, the best way to

276

:

describe it is storm chasing.

277

:

I'm usually glued to my television

if there's a storm coming.

278

:

Don't even talk to me the we are

watching the weather Channel 24 7.

279

:

It's on in the background.

280

:

I am already.

281

:

Making plans three days in advance.

282

:

I'm talking to people, I am

trying to figure out who can

283

:

go how are we gonna get there?

284

:

Do we need to rent vehicles?

285

:

Because the last thing I wanna ever do

is take, my vehicle into a disaster area.

286

:

I usually will get a rental vehicle.

287

:

The enterprise people up

here know me real well.

288

:

'cause usually I'm calling

them and I'm like, hi.

289

:

And they're like, Ashley, it's

seven o'clock on a Friday.

290

:

And I'm like, I know, but I

need a lifted pickup truck and

291

:

I need it tomorrow morning.

292

:

And they're like, we're not even open.

293

:

And I'm like, can you just figure

this out, but I need it for this.

294

:

And they know me so well at this point

that they're like yeah, we got you.

295

:

We'll figure this out.

296

:

So they've been really great.

297

:

And it just at the end of

the day, ends up being.

298

:

A lot of support from a lot of

different people coming together.

299

:

We wanna be there as soon as

the storm leaves, and we like to

300

:

be there for at least 72 hours.

301

:

My rule of thumb is usually seven days.

302

:

I try to go two days, travel,

five days on the ground.

303

:

By the end of that time, usually the

national organizations have gotten in and

304

:

they're then able to kinda set up MOUs and

they are able to really provide much more.

305

:

Than we can.

306

:

Our goal is to be there , as things

are just happening so that we can

307

:

do the emergency setup until the

cavalry can come, if that makes sense.

308

:

'Cause it sometimes it'll take them

a little bit longer to mobilize.

309

:

Or if they have especially those spur

of the moment things a lot of the

310

:

national organizations get MOUs, I keep

talking about this, they're , these

311

:

contracts that they have that allow

you to work in different areas.

312

:

And those contracts by the time, like

OEM, office of Emergency Management

313

:

and everybody gets done with the

human rescue, all of a sudden it

314

:

then pivots and they're like, okay,

now we can also focus on animals.

315

:

And that's around the time that the more

national organization comes in, your

316

:

A-S-P-C-A, your best friends, your aha,

all these different amazing national

317

:

organizations that come at that point.

318

:

But we like to try and do that

in between time and to hold

319

:

everybody over before that happens.

320

:

Dixie: The MOUI was

gonna ask you about that.

321

:

That's just basically a

contract for you to go in or

322

:

Ashley: Yeah.

323

:

So it's a contract for you to go into

and you can have a standing contract,

324

:

like a standing MOE with different areas.

325

:

I know some of the national

organizations have standing MOUs

326

:

with different organizations.

327

:

And usually what it is office

of Emergency Management will

328

:

usually have a list of approved

organizations that they'll bring in.

329

:

And that's what that MOU is.

330

:

It pretty much gives you the

ability to operate in in whatever

331

:

area it is that you're working in.

332

:

And that can come from

multiple different places.

333

:

So for instance, during Hurricane Ida,

I was working under A DRC and animal

334

:

Disaster Relief Coalition, and they

had an MOU alongside Terrebonne Parish.

335

:

So we had permission to

operate and work in Terrebonne

336

:

Parish during the Livingston.

337

:

Floods we had, or the Louisiana floods

of:

338

:

HSL who had an MOU for that area

for that parish or whatever it was.

339

:

I know during Harvey we had one,

we were working under somebody,

340

:

I don't even remember who.

341

:

But typically we do in it is we usually

are teamed up because we do a coalition.

342

:

And if that county says Hey, you

have to have an MOU to work here,

343

:

we can't work in that county.

344

:

So if we can't, if assuming we

don't have the MOU or we're not

345

:

teamed up with somebody who has the

MOU, ? That can get a little sticky.

346

:

And it's like the, I'm

not gonna lie to you.

347

:

There are certain places in

Louisiana that we won't work.

348

:

I will not work west of the Lafayette

line if you a state or straight line

349

:

of Louisiana, because the certain

national organizations in that

350

:

area, or even state organizations

have made it so difficult to work.

351

:

We've been threatened.

352

:

People have come out and been

, we're gonna have you arrested.

353

:

There's some crazy stuff

that goes on out there.

354

:

So after Hurricane Laura.

355

:

We won't even work in that area.

356

:

And I understand the MOUs, , I respect

and love working under an MOU when we

357

:

can, we don't work somewhere if we don't

have, if we're told to leave and we're

358

:

told we don't have permission to be

somewhere we leave, we don't do that.

359

:

There is a problem in the field

with what we call cowboys,?

360

:

And they're organizations that

are not necessarily trained

361

:

in disaster relief officially.

362

:

And they come in gun slinging not with

physical guns, but they'll come in and

363

:

they take a whole bunch of animals.

364

:

They don't categorize them, they don't

document where they got them from.

365

:

They don't bring them to the appropriate

staging locations for people to find them.

366

:

And then those animals get moved out of

state, or they get moved out of, the area

367

:

and then people can't find their pets,

368

:

? Or they're messing up the current

operations that are there.

369

:

And this has been a big problem for

many years with many organizations.

370

:

And it is important that wherever you

are, if you're on one of these teams and

371

:

you haven't physically been invited in,

that really should be your first step.

372

:

So anytime we have a storm, we'll

stage outside the storm and then

373

:

we'll call ahead of the storm and say

Hey, it looks like it's gonna hit.

374

:

Say, I don't know Charleston

say it's gonna hit Charleston.

375

:

We'll be calling everybody

in Charleston going Hey.

376

:

Do you guys have somebody?

377

:

Are you we'll call emergency

management and say, Hey, do you

378

:

have something lined up for your

your animals in this situation?

379

:

And sometimes they're like, Hey, listen,

we don't care about animals right now.

380

:

We care about people.

381

:

And I'm like, okay, that's great, but

then that's gonna come in a day or two.

382

:

And then at that point we, we do a lot of

scrambling and a lot of conversations to

383

:

get people to say, Hey, yay, we need you.

384

:

Or, yay, we don't.

385

:

Or we go in and we just team up with

whatever their animal control is.

386

:

We just go in, we go to the animal

shelters and we say, are you guys good?

387

:

And sometimes everybody's

yeah, we're good.

388

:

But we heard that, two

counties over got slammed.

389

:

You guys might want to go over there.

390

:

And then we'll go over there and

we'll talk to their animal control.

391

:

We'll say, Hey, are you guys good?

392

:

Do you need anything?

393

:

And sometimes they're like,

oh my God, please help us.

394

:

And sometimes they're like no,

we're good, but this one needs it,

395

:

? So it's hard because those first

couple of days you're doing a lot

396

:

of ping ponging, ? Trying to figure

out where the actual need is.

397

:

And you go in and you do

recon to figure it out.

398

:

But you have some states Florida.

399

:

Florida has disaster relief.

400

:

So down pat they don't even need us.

401

:

We say all the time, we're not going

to Florida unless we get invited in.

402

:

But then we turn around and we look

at Hurricane Helene in the Carolinas.

403

:

They had no infrastructure

for disaster relief.

404

:

Where we were in, in Western

North Carolina, they had no idea.

405

:

So we worked there for days.

406

:

I didn't even see national

organizations out there.

407

:

Every storm I think is different

and every disaster is different.

408

:

And I think like there are certain

places like Louisiana is real strict.

409

:

Like you have to have an MOU if you're

gonna go to Louisiana, ? Or you have to

410

:

be working under an organization there.

411

:

So like we might work under, say.

412

:

Livington Parish, or we might

work under dog friends or we might

413

:

work under Louisiana Humane, say

Louisiana, like whoever is working

414

:

there, we may work under them.

415

:

But like I said, there's other

areas where it's not like that.

416

:

, It all depends on who and where.

417

:

I love working with some of these

national organizations, they don't

418

:

necessarily always love working with

smaller organizations that are your

419

:

newer organizations that are not

big enough to really sustain MOUs.

420

:

'Cause when you go and you

get your MOU, you have.

421

:

All of this that you can offer them.

422

:

For me, I'm like, listen, I can offer

you strategy, I can offer you field

423

:

work, I can offer you organization,

I can offer you setting up tip

424

:

lines and hotlines and email chains

and all these different things.

425

:

I can offer you a star link, ? I

can offer you donations, but

426

:

my team is relatively small.

427

:

These national organizations are huge.

428

:

So what typically happens is we go down

and find out , okay, who needs help?

429

:

And then if it's something that we

think we can't handle because it is too

430

:

small, then I'll reach out to some of my

contacts at the national organizations

431

:

and say okay, hey guys, we're gonna need

way more that I can offer these people.

432

:

Can you come in?

433

:

And then depending on whether

they see the need is there

434

:

or not, then they'll come in.

435

:

So that's been how we've operated

in the last, however many years.

436

:

But most of the time when

we do go, we've been.

437

:

Talking to somebody whose boots

on the grounds there that's

438

:

Hey, this is where we are.

439

:

This is where we need you.

440

:

This is how you get here.

441

:

That kind of thing.

442

:

Dixie: Yeah.

443

:

See, I was wondering how that works

because me being from Louisiana,

444

:

I know how strict Louisiana is.

445

:

I know if you evacuate for

a hurricane, you can't even

446

:

get back in most of the time.

447

:

And especially if it's a bad hurricane.

448

:

If it's a bad hurricane and you

evacuate, you might be out of town

449

:

for two weeks, until they clear the

roads and let us in and and they will

450

:

check to make sure where are you going.

451

:

They only allow certain people in, so

that's why I was wondering about that.

452

:

Now, do you have an have to have

any kind of special certifications

453

:

to work with any of these people?

454

:

Ashley: Yeah, so we typically have,

my whole team is FEMA certified.

455

:

So there's a whole bunch of certifications

that you should get through FEMA if

456

:

you're looking to do disaster relief work.

457

:

They have a whole animal

disaster certification thing.

458

:

And so we require everybody on

our team , especially if they're

459

:

gonna go do field work, they have

to have those certifications.

460

:

And then honestly, the more certifications

you have, the better usually we're

461

:

teamed up with somebody who has access.

462

:

So when we worked in Terrebonne,

they had access to everything.

463

:

So all we had to do was say

like, this is who we're with.

464

:

Each storm is different,

each area is different.

465

:

Sometimes it's the credentialing

is , you have to have, there's

466

:

not an everywhere certification.

467

:

I wish there was 'cause it

would make things a lot easier.

468

:

But I could tell you guys

this is a great story.

469

:

So when I was, we were

working in Terrebonne Parish

470

:

with their animal control.

471

:

And the animal staff there, there

were, these ladies were phenomenal and.

472

:

I like to go with people in my pickup

truck when I do this because as we're

473

:

doing calls, I like to bring food

out with me and give food out to

474

:

the community, ? Hey, you guys, you

have no electric, you have no power.

475

:

You don't nothing's open.

476

:

Do you need dog food?

477

:

Everybody's walking around with hot

meals, but nobody's thinking oh, hey, what

478

:

about food for my dog, food for my cat.

479

:

People run low on that stuff.

480

:

So I always like to do that.

481

:

So all week I kept saying, 'cause they

were in these, the animal control trucks

482

:

and there's no room for stuff like that.

483

:

So I kept saying let me take my truck.

484

:

Let me take my truck.

485

:

Let me take my truck.

486

:

So finally one of the head girls from

animal control says to me, all right,

487

:

listen, there's one lady, , she found

this dog, she's gonna foster the dog.

488

:

I have all the information, but she

needs a crate and she needs dog food.

489

:

Can you bring it?

490

:

And the whole reason they kept saying

to me like, you cannot just go off in

491

:

your pickup truck and do this because

you're gonna get stopped by police.

492

:

They're gonna ask you a million

questions this way you're with the

493

:

vehicles that are the animal control

vehicles, and all these things.

494

:

But obviously we didn't have any

insurance to be able to drive the

495

:

animal control vehicles and stuff.

496

:

So we were paired up with the ACOs

and the animal control officers.

497

:

, She's just go.

498

:

All you have to do is give them

food, give them this, so it's just

499

:

me and I have no idea this area.

500

:

I don't know anything about this area.

501

:

All I know is I am in the bayou..

502

:

Yeah.

503

:

You are in Cajun country.

504

:

Oh yeah.

505

:

Straight up.

506

:

Straight up Cajun country.

507

:

It was great.

508

:

So I get in the, I get in

the car and, I'm all excited.

509

:

I'm gonna go do this call, whatever I'm

gonna be so helpful and I am listening

510

:

to my music and I pull into this it's

not even a trailer park, it's a camper

511

:

park is the best way to describe it.

512

:

And I pull in and there's this girl,

and I see her and she's raking her dirt.

513

:

There's no grass.

514

:

So she's just raking dirt.

515

:

And I'm like, okay.

516

:

So I pull in and as I pull

in, there's this weird noise.

517

:

And I had heard it and I

was like, what was that?

518

:

Because again, I'm in a rented

truck, so I'm like, I don't

519

:

even know what that noise was.

520

:

I was like, what was that?

521

:

And so I turn the car off and I go

to step outta the car and come face

522

:

to face with two police officers.

523

:

, and I realized in that moment

that the weird noise I had heard

524

:

was the whoop of a cop car.

525

:

They had followed me all the way

down into this driveway and they're

526

:

like, what are you doing here?

527

:

And I'm like, oh, hi.

528

:

My name's Ashley.

529

:

I'm from, Southern Paw.

530

:

, I am doing disaster relief for working

with, Terrebonne Parish Animal Control.

531

:

And I'm telling I this whole story,

? And literally all that's in my car

532

:

right now in the bed or two massive

bags of dog food and a huge crate.

533

:

He looks at me and he is

you have Jersey plates?

534

:

And I was like yeah, I know.

535

:

That's where I'm from.

536

:

We're just here helping after the storm.

537

:

And he is okay, can I see

your license and registration?

538

:

And I'm like sure, no problem.

539

:

So I pull out the license and registration

and I'm so flustered because, like,

540

:

when you get pulled over by the

cops, you're automatically flustered.

541

:

But I didn't even have that

split second moment of oh

542

:

crap, I'm getting pulled over.

543

:

And the lights are flashing

and now the cop is at my door.

544

:

I had none of that, literally

face-to-face license or registration.

545

:

I'm like, oh God.

546

:

So I'm super flustered.

547

:

And so I give him my license

and he looks at me and he is

548

:

huh, and what are you here for?

549

:

And I tell him again, and I'm like,

yeah, see, there's a dog food.

550

:

And this lady, you would think she would

be like, oh yeah, she's here to deliver.

551

:

No, this lady's still out

there just raking her dirt.

552

:

So I'm sitting there and he

looks at me and he is you Yeah.

553

:

But like you're from New Jersey?

554

:

And I'm like yeah.

555

:

Yep.

556

:

. We've established this.

557

:

Yep.

558

:

I am.

559

:

I'm from New Jersey.

560

:

Yep.

561

:

I'm here.

562

:

Just helping.

563

:

So he asked me like three more questions.

564

:

And literally at this point, I'm

showing him the bag of dog food.

565

:

I'm like, what is this?

566

:

And he looks at me one more time and

he is but you're from New Jersey.

567

:

And I was like yes, I am from New Jersey.

568

:

He lets me go.

569

:

I give the lady my stuff, I go back to

the animal control and Leanne's there

570

:

and I walk in and I'm like, I get it.

571

:

And she was like, what?

572

:

And I was like, you are never gonna

believe what just happened to me.

573

:

So I tell her this whole crazy

story and she goes, oh, they

574

:

thought you were selling drugs.

575

:

She was like, oh yeah.

576

:

She's people come in there all the

time from outta the area to buy drugs.

577

:

. Dixie: See now.

578

:

Being from Louisiana, I

totally understand this.

579

:

Because there are small towns

in Louisiana, and when you

580

:

get into that small town, it's

like you check everything.

581

:

Make sure you go on a speed

limit, putting your blinkers on,

582

:

make sure your lights are on.

583

:

It's just how it is

especially the small towns.

584

:

Ashley: Oh man, I gotta tell you,

there were some crazy things.

585

:

My chihuahua came out of that storm.

586

:

My personal chihuahua, I joke all

the time and say I trauma bonded him.

587

:

The day after the hurricane, we were

driving through trying to figure out

588

:

who had the MOU in the area to try

and link up with them and, my partner

589

:

saw this this little chihuahua and

sitting on this stairway to nowhere,

590

:

? Like literally, there was a trailer

there at some point, but now it's

591

:

in pieces somewhere else, and

it's just this stairway to nowhere

592

:

and there's this little dog.

593

:

He was three pounds and

I thought he was a cat.

594

:

And he popped his head up and

his ears popped out and we went,

595

:

oh my God, he's a chihuahua.

596

:

And so we ended up taking him with

us and we reported him as loss.

597

:

We did all the right steps,

nobody ever claimed him.

598

:

He was three pounds.

599

:

But he was this little three

pound chihuahua at six months old

600

:

outrode, a cat five hurricane under

a set of stairs in a trailer park.

601

:

He came from outta that storm.

602

:

And then we also had one of my other

favorite stories that we ran into.

603

:

So Leanne calls us out to another area.

604

:

, It was a neighborhood.

605

:

And we get out there , I pull into this

area and they said, there are two dogs.

606

:

. I wanna say it was like two large German

shepherds, that were supposedly in

607

:

a pen in the backyard of a property.

608

:

We were tasked out to go make sure

they were okay, that they had food and

609

:

water, this, that, and the other thing.

610

:

Obviously if they're not, or if

they're sick or if they need something,

611

:

bring 'em into animal control.

612

:

And I'm like, okay, fine.

613

:

So me and one of the animal control

officers that was from Lafayette, or maybe

614

:

Baton Rouge, he was down substituting

his name was Demetrius and he was so much

615

:

fun to ride with him and I had a blast.

616

:

And we get out here and we're expecting

to find two I don't remember what it

617

:

was, but it was something ridiculous.

618

:

I roll up and, Demetrius

is just go check it.

619

:

I'm like, I'm sure it's fine.

620

:

I'm like, somebody's

probably feeding them.

621

:

So I go out and I get there and

there's a poodle in this cage.

622

:

And I'm like, what the,

I'm like, wait a second.

623

:

So I go back and I'm like, are you

sure we're in like the right place?

624

:

. He's yeah he's like, why, what?

625

:

What's out there?

626

:

And I, so I tell him,

and he is wait a second.

627

:

He is that doesn't sound right.

628

:

So we call Leanne over at

dispatch, and I'm like, Leanne.

629

:

I'm like, are you sure that

these, she's yeah, I just talked

630

:

to, the owner of the property.

631

:

He said they're out there and he can't get

back to them, and blah, blah, blah, blah,

632

:

blah, and this, that, and the other thing.

633

:

And I'm like, Leanne there's no lab in

here and there's definitely whatever.

634

:

I was like, that's not what's here.

635

:

And she's what do you mean?

636

:

And I'm like.

637

:

There's a dachshund and

a poodle in this cage.

638

:

I'm like, so then this guy comes

up and he, and this family member

639

:

comes up and she sees this,

and she's comes up real quick.

640

:

What are you guys doing?

641

:

And we're like hey, we're

here with animal control.

642

:

We just got called out to check

on, let's say a German shepherd.

643

:

I got called out for a German

Shepherd that's supposed to be in

644

:

the pen back here just to, to check

on him and make sure he is okay.

645

:

She goes, oh yeah, he's fine.

646

:

And I said no there's no

German Shepherd back here.

647

:

She's what do you mean?

648

:

So I called Leanne and , we had a real

sugar rule, Leanne was like, listen,

649

:

unless it's sick or broken or needs

immediate medical do not bring it back.

650

:

We don't have anywhere to put it.

651

:

So I called Leanne and I'm.

652

:

Hey.

653

:

, I know we're supposed to

have a German Shepherd.

654

:

She's yeah.

655

:

I'm like, yeah we don't.

656

:

She's what do you mean?

657

:

I'm like, I don't know who put these

dogs here, but these are not his dogs.

658

:

And this is not a German Shepherd.

659

:

And we just talked to the owner and

these dogs don't belong to them,

660

:

so I have no idea how they ended

up in the pen in his backyard.

661

:

I said, but they're sick, and

I'm gonna have to bring 'em in.

662

:

And she's are you kidding me?

663

:

So now we bring these dogs in, and

by the way, there's this cat it was a

664

:

little Calico coming up and brushing on.

665

:

And I was like, Dmitri.

666

:

Put him in the truck..

667

:

So we put her in the

truck and bring her back.

668

:

But yeah, it was one of those things

where we were so tired and I was like

669

:

none of this is making sense at all.

670

:

You wanna be teamed up with somebody

because of stuff like those situations,

671

:

? You wanna be dispatched, you wanna have

some sort of an organization to it.

672

:

We do a lot of dropping food.

673

:

That's another thing.

674

:

And then what we'll do is we'll

collect those addresses and then

675

:

give them to whoever the animal

control is that's in charge.

676

:

So they can do sheltering in

place and stuff like that.

677

:

But yeah, there's been some great stories

awful disasters that we've worked and

678

:

some really sad moments and really

just devastating, heartbreaking stuff.

679

:

But it's the people that make it,

we meet new people, we work with all

680

:

kinds of people from all walks of

life, and it's just, it's really cool.

681

:

Dixie: Did you ever find

out about the two dogs?

682

:

Ashley: I never found out

who owned those two dogs.

683

:

Nope.

684

:

That's crazy.

685

:

I don't know what happened to

the German Shepherd that was

686

:

supposed to be there either.

687

:

No idea.

688

:

Dixie: I wanted to backtrack a little

bit when you were talking to about

689

:

the Go bag because there is a tip

that I wanna give everybody as well.

690

:

Yeah.

691

:

You were talking about make

sure you have all your paperwork

692

:

and , photos of your animals.

693

:

What I started doing since Katrina,

'cause I did go through Katrina.

694

:

And even people who evacuated

our phone lines were down.

695

:

We had no access to our phones.

696

:

But one thing that I always tell people

to do is get all your important documents

697

:

and email them to yourself because

698

:

If your phones go down, you

can't access your phone.

699

:

You can go to a library and access

your email through a computer.

700

:

Ashley: Yeah.

701

:

Yeah.

702

:

That's smart.

703

:

Really smart.

704

:

Yeah.

705

:

Yeah.

706

:

I do that with my certification, so I have

a booklet of all of my certifications.

707

:

'cause that's obviously the first

thing that emergency management

708

:

wants to know when I talk to them.

709

:

And.

710

:

They had all said one of the things

is I put it all in a Google drive.

711

:

'cause I'm like, at least

this way I have access to it.

712

:

I can find it.

713

:

It's accessible, all those things.

714

:

Dixie: You mentioned that you did

this fire two at one step closer.

715

:

So you went over the go bags

for disaster preparedness.

716

:

So what would you tell people to do for

something that's unexpected like that?

717

:

Like a fire, because that's

one of my biggest fears too,

718

:

especially with animals.

719

:

Ashley: One of the best things that

we have are those little stickers that

720

:

they put in the windows for the firemen.

721

:

It's a sticker and it says please find

my animals, so that the fire departments

722

:

know that hey, there's animals in the

building and please try and find them.

723

:

A fire is nasty I did

a hoarding case fire.

724

:

56 cats and the house went up in flames.

725

:

Luckily the fire was really

contained to the upper levels

726

:

of the house and the cats hid.

727

:

And I think there was

only two that they lost.

728

:

And then there was three that

had pretty substantial burns.

729

:

But.

730

:

Fire is so difficult.

731

:

One of the best things, and I think this

goes for humans too, ? Especially if you

732

:

have children, plan your escape route.

733

:

Yes.

734

:

Everybody's gonna argue with

me and say oh in a fire you

735

:

never, everything goes sideways.

736

:

But my big argument here is if

you've done it multiple times.

737

:

It becomes real second nature to you.

738

:

And you can be very calm in the situation,

739

:

? So for us, in my household, we keep

our crates in a central location,

740

:

? And if I have to get out, this is

the door we're gonna go out of.

741

:

And we'll even set up simulations in

my house especially if you have kids,

742

:

this is a great one to do with kids.

743

:

There's a fire in this room.

744

:

What do we do?

745

:

And help let the kids help you

work it out, ? So that if God

746

:

forbid something like this ever

happens, you can just grab and go.

747

:

Now obviously a fire is something that.

748

:

I hate fire.

749

:

I'd rather have a flood

any day of the week.

750

:

Fire is just, it's so

destructive, it's so fast.

751

:

And all of the planning, I feel like

with a fire really doesn't go great.

752

:

A big one.

753

:

Microchipping your pets is huge.

754

:

Not only microchipping them, but making

sure that you're registering them.

755

:

That's another one.

756

:

A lot of people I would say

five outta 10 microchips that

757

:

we find are not registered.

758

:

So make sure your pets are microchipped.

759

:

Make sure that they always have

collars on, that have tags on them.

760

:

They don't have to be super tight.

761

:

They can be loose.

762

:

They don't have to be super big.

763

:

But a lot of people that I know

don't have collars on their

764

:

dogs, and I'm like, you're crazy.

765

:

My dogs always have tags on them.

766

:

The easier you can make it, the better.

767

:

Knowing and being prepared.

768

:

My crates for my dogs are

in a shed on my property.

769

:

God forbid, my house burnt

down, the shed's over there.

770

:

The other thing is keep your

animals up to date on vaccinations,

771

:

? Nobody ever thinks about this.

772

:

We really live in a culture of not me.

773

:

It's not gonna happen to me.

774

:

And then it does, and you're

unprepared, ? I say to people all

775

:

the time, 'cause they're like, oh,

my, my dog doesn't leave the house

776

:

so we don't vaccinate him anymore.

777

:

And I'm like, yeah, but

what if you had a fire?

778

:

What if there was a flood?

779

:

What if there was an emergency?

780

:

What if we had a hurricane and

you had to go to a shelter?

781

:

Your animal needs to be

up to date on vaccines.

782

:

So that's another one.

783

:

That's how you protect your animals

in one of these crazy situations.

784

:

And it's something

nobody ever thinks about.

785

:

'cause they're like, oh, it's a house cat.

786

:

Yeah, what happens during a disaster?

787

:

I didn't work the California fires, but

my friend Nikki with paws of War did.

788

:

And one of the big things was they were

not allowing families back into the

789

:

area to go get their animals because

it was still such a volatile area.

790

:

So animals were stuck in their house,

just like you were saying, days

791

:

and days with no food and water.

792

:

So , what she was doing was she would

have them send a picture of their license.

793

:

They had to fill out a form with a

legal signature stating that they had

794

:

the ability to go to this property

and get the animals, and then they

795

:

were bringing them out of the danger

zone and giving them to the owners.

796

:

If you were in, I don't know, New York

and on vacation, and you have a wildfire

797

:

in California and everybody evacuates.

798

:

How do you get your dogs?

799

:

You don't, those dogs are now going

to probably go to a shelter and if

800

:

they're not vaccinated, they're gonna

get whatever is in that shelter.

801

:

And now we're looking at a disaster,

which means you're gonna have 10 times

802

:

the normal amount of animals that are

coming in, which means you've got all

803

:

these different petri dishes happening,

which means chances are they're gonna

804

:

be upper respiratory infections, you're

gonna have kennel cough, you're gonna

805

:

have, all these different things.

806

:

So having your animals be vaccinated

is really important for their

807

:

protection in those situations.

808

:

Dixie: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.

809

:

And I've never thought about that either.

810

:

I vaccinate, so I'm not worried

about that for my own pets.

811

:

But there are a lot of people, like you

said, that'll say, , my animal doesn't

812

:

go outside and so I don't vaccinate.

813

:

And, but that makes

perfect sense actually.

814

:

Ashley: Yeah.

815

:

And we see a lot of that so with our

adoption process, I'm super strict

816

:

about vetting, with our approvals

and with the approval process.

817

:

For me, vetting is just so important.

818

:

Keeping your dogs up to date on vaccines.

819

:

People criticize me and say I over

vaccinate and things like that.

820

:

But you know what I've

seen we see the worst.

821

:

So it's important.

822

:

The other thing I would say too is if

you're somebody that's listening that's

823

:

part of a shelter or an organization.

824

:

This can happen to you.

825

:

Okay.

826

:

We just had a situation where in Newark

which is one of our inner city shelters

827

:

here the snow collapsed a portion of

their kennel, ? So what do you do?

828

:

Where do we put the animals?

829

:

Where do we go?

830

:

Like, how does it happen?

831

:

We have this Oscar fire,

832

:

? They had 40 animals.

833

:

They lost six dogs in the fire.

834

:

It was awful and heartbreaking.

835

:

But at the end of the day these heroes

were running into burning buildings,

836

:

pulling animals out, and they were able to

say, , I wanna say 37 was what they saved.

837

:

I wanna say I don't quote

me on these numbers.

838

:

I could be wrong, but , by the time I

got to them, they're sitting there on

839

:

pen and paper trying to figure out.

840

:

Where are the animals?

841

:

Who was the animals?

842

:

How many do we have?

843

:

There was no accountability.

844

:

This was an organization

that was very old school.

845

:

A lot of their documentation was

not kept in shelter software.

846

:

So accountability for

them was a huge challenge.

847

:

So it wasn't even a matter

of just figuring out.

848

:

Who went where?

849

:

It was, how many animals are

actually missing, ? It wasn't

850

:

until we had those final counts,

851

:

by the end of that night, we knew there

were five that were at unaccounted for.

852

:

We didn't know if they had perished

in the fire or if they were lost.

853

:

There were two that ended up being lost.

854

:

We actually brought in Buddha Dog

Rescue and Recovery, who's phenomenal.

855

:

They trap lost dogs, and the

dogs actually showed up the next

856

:

morning at the property next door.

857

:

So that was a big one.

858

:

But if you are one of these smaller,

rural shelters where you're not

859

:

really technologically savvy.

860

:

You do a lot of your stuff on Excel,

I'm not saying that's a bad thing,

861

:

but , if you have a catastrophe.

862

:

You need a way to track your animals.

863

:

So at least make sure

your stuff is in a cloud.

864

:

Make sure that if you don't have one, but

you can afford it to do shelter software.

865

:

There's a couple of shelter softwares out

there that are really on the inexpensive

866

:

side as well as ones that are almost free.

867

:

There's a lot of companies so

definitely do that because if

868

:

you ever do have a disaster, the

accountability is a massive problem.

869

:

If you can't figure out how many animals

you have, you don't know what you

870

:

lost, ? So that's a big portion of it.

871

:

Have a emergency response plan.

872

:

If, God forbid, something happened

and we had to evacuate this shelter.

873

:

What is my plan, ? , Where

are we taking the dogs?

874

:

What organizations are taking the dogs?

875

:

Who do we work with that can place dogs?

876

:

We're lucky here where we have our

cart team, which is it's pretty much a

877

:

certified animal response team, ? We're

all, we went through a certification

878

:

class and we have this, so we're

really lucky that we have that here.

879

:

So if, God forbid I ever had an

emergency and we needed to empty out

880

:

a shelter or whatever, I could call

animal control and my contacts over

881

:

there which also is the head of my cart

team and say Hey Carol we need help.

882

:

Same thing if you have a farm.

883

:

These wild fires are crazy.

884

:

Okay.

885

:

If you have a farm, you

need an escape plan.

886

:

Okay?

887

:

You need a plan if there is a

flood, ? And don't give me this

888

:

oh, that doesn't happen here.

889

:

'cause it does.

890

:

And there's always that small chance.

891

:

So it doesn't hinder you at all to

have some sort of a plan in place.

892

:

So the more prepared you

can be, utilize that plan.

893

:

My animals are gonna go where,

what is the plan for this?

894

:

How do I do this?

895

:

, Where do I escape to if this there's all

these different things that we can do

896

:

to prepare ourselves for these things,

but you just don't wanna get caught in

897

:

that emergency and not have that plan

because that is when things get bad,

898

:

? And then, and that's where we

come in and I can say that night

899

:

I sat down and I literally looked

at Cassie and I said, Cassie.

900

:

Who, she's the director over there.

901

:

And I said, Hey, or the president.

902

:

And I said, Hey, like, how

many animals do you have?

903

:

And she was like, I don't know.

904

:

And I was like, okay, take a breath.

905

:

And again, they're all panicking,

emotions are high, so , I'm able to

906

:

come in with a level head and say

okay, do you have a shelter software?

907

:

No.

908

:

How do you track your animals?

909

:

We use Excel.

910

:

Okay.

911

:

Is there a cloud?

912

:

No.

913

:

Okay.

914

:

Is there a hard drive?

915

:

Yes.

916

:

Okay.

917

:

Were you able to get Yes.

918

:

We brought the, somebody

brought the hard drive here.

919

:

Okay, great.

920

:

Pull the hard drive up there.

921

:

Boom.

922

:

That's done.

923

:

Okay, great.

924

:

I have my laptop.

925

:

I'm starting to Google Drive.

926

:

All right.

927

:

Who, which dogs went to Happy Hounds?

928

:

Which dogs went to, Newton Vet,

which dogs went to Southern Paws?

929

:

Which dogs went here?

930

:

And then you start to get organized,

but if you don't have somebody

931

:

coming in with that level head

and then acknowledgement and.

932

:

I almost didn't go.

933

:

This property the Oscar property

is a little over an hour from us.

934

:

And I had to go to the facility to get my

van, which is a half hour from me before

935

:

I rode up there, because I was like if

they're gonna need us to move animals,

936

:

I don't wanna go up without the van.

937

:

So I immediately ran to my facility.

938

:

I threw a whole bunch of stuff

in the truck that was emergency,

939

:

like things that they might need.

940

:

And then I started going up with

the van and I had four people

941

:

that called me and said, don't go.

942

:

They're putting out on the internet

that they don't need any more help.

943

:

Please don't go.

944

:

It's a mob scene.

945

:

Nobody wants you there.

946

:

And everybody kept saying that to me.

947

:

Even the head, even my chief

of my cart team was like,

948

:

Ashley, we don't self deploy.

949

:

And I was like, Carol,

I'm not going as cart.

950

:

I'm going to Southern Paws.

951

:

I'll see you later.

952

:

Worst case scenario, they don't need me.

953

:

I'm 15 minutes from there.

954

:

I've been in the car now

for almost two hours.

955

:

I'm like, I'm gonna at least

give them my card because if

956

:

they don't need me tonight.

957

:

Over the next couple of days,

they are going to need me.

958

:

I have a very certain set of

skills that are not, yes, they

959

:

don't need average person's help.

960

:

And that's I think, one of the things

that gets lost in the sauce, ? In this

961

:

scenario, this is what I'm good at, this

is one of the things that I specialize in.

962

:

So I can come in and

help you get organized.

963

:

I can help you navigate the outpouring

of support that's gonna come in.

964

:

I can help you with phone lines and emails

and all these different things, but.

965

:

I even doubted myself.

966

:

I was like, maybe I shouldn't go.

967

:

And I was like, you know what

I've almost driven two hours.

968

:

Just go give 'em your card.

969

:

And when I walked in, I was

like, Hey, listen, I'm not

970

:

here to move dogs, take dogs.

971

:

I don't wanna do this.

972

:

These are the things I can help you with.

973

:

If you want me to leave, I can leave and

I'll just give you my card and then if

974

:

you need anything, please just reach out.

975

:

And they were like no, please stay.

976

:

And I ended up working with them

for a week to get them organized.

977

:

It was huge.

978

:

It was great.

979

:

It was a wonderful success.

980

:

They actually raised over $600,000

that from a GoFundMe that my

981

:

social media person put together.

982

:

Oh my God.

983

:

Yeah, you have to go online

and you have to look it out.

984

:

It's called Oscar Animal Rescue.

985

:

It's located in Andover, New Jersey.

986

:

They're resilient and they're beautiful

and they're wonderful, and they now

987

:

officially are getting shelter software.

988

:

We laugh about this and we do and I

say this, don't criticize them because

989

:

you have no idea how many shelters

I've worked in , all over this country

990

:

and people are back in the times

991

:

there are a lot of them, especially in

these more rural areas that are not.

992

:

Technologically up with the times.

993

:

And I was one of them.

994

:

, My team had to pull me kicking

and screaming into this century.

995

:

I was very much a paper and

pencil kind of person, and

996

:

they were like, this is insane.

997

:

We gotta get you digital.

998

:

So I know what they were going

through, but we've developed

999

:

some really great friendships.

:

00:46:31,969 --> 00:46:36,789

I had them at my rescue this last weekend

because we had a transport and they came

:

00:46:36,789 --> 00:46:38,829

in to see what our protocols looked like.

:

00:46:39,189 --> 00:46:41,879

And then, we also teamed up with them.

:

00:46:42,049 --> 00:46:45,339

They're really giving us a whole

bunch of stuff for a tricky tray

:

00:46:45,339 --> 00:46:47,109

event that we're doing in June.

:

00:46:47,479 --> 00:46:48,199

And it was really cute.

:

00:46:48,199 --> 00:46:51,349

Cassie actually said to me today,

she's you supported us so much.

:

00:46:51,659 --> 00:46:52,469

'Cause I was like, stop.

:

00:46:52,469 --> 00:46:53,369

I was like, this is too much.

:

00:46:53,369 --> 00:46:54,749

You don't need to give us all this stuff.

:

00:46:54,749 --> 00:46:55,259

Stop it.

:

00:46:55,739 --> 00:46:57,119

And she was like, no.

:

00:46:57,119 --> 00:47:00,269

She's you supported us so much

through this such a difficult time.

:

00:47:00,319 --> 00:47:01,579

Let us help you now.

:

00:47:01,639 --> 00:47:02,899

I can help you with this.

:

00:47:03,259 --> 00:47:06,979

And so it's really beautiful,

these relationships we build too.

:

00:47:07,059 --> 00:47:11,729

But yeah, I would absolutely say that

having a plan is half the battle.

:

00:47:12,179 --> 00:47:16,889

Even if everything goes sideways, at

least you have that plan to bring it back

:

00:47:16,889 --> 00:47:20,529

to, you might lose out on a couple of

steps, but the that saying the best laid

:

00:47:20,529 --> 00:47:24,369

plans, but you might lose out on some

of it, but it's a way to keep yourself

:

00:47:24,369 --> 00:47:26,489

calm when everything is going haywire.

:

00:47:27,959 --> 00:47:28,979

Dixie: Yeah, absolutely.

:

00:47:28,979 --> 00:47:29,969

I couldn't agree more.

:

00:47:31,169 --> 00:47:32,129

. Ashley: It's springtime.

:

00:47:32,129 --> 00:47:33,869

We're going into disaster season.

:

00:47:33,999 --> 00:47:34,279

Dixie: Yeah.

:

00:47:34,364 --> 00:47:36,074

Hurricane season fun,

:

00:47:36,124 --> 00:47:36,994

? Ashley: So fun.

:

00:47:37,214 --> 00:47:38,684

We got off real easy.

:

00:47:38,684 --> 00:47:41,934

Last year I didn't have to

deploy out at all last year.

:

00:47:41,934 --> 00:47:45,204

So I'm a little scared about this year

because usually if there's a year that

:

00:47:45,204 --> 00:47:49,194

I don't have to deploy out, it means

the following year is gonna be bad.

:

00:47:49,384 --> 00:47:51,514

This last year we didn't

really go anywhere.

:

00:47:51,564 --> 00:47:55,074

I don't have the appropriate

certifications to do fire work.

:

00:47:55,264 --> 00:47:59,524

And honestly, fires for

me are really awful.

:

00:47:59,714 --> 00:48:01,544

For some reason I don't

like to work fires.

:

00:48:01,824 --> 00:48:06,134

So it was really nice to be

able to, support paws of war in

:

00:48:06,134 --> 00:48:07,304

what they were doing out there.

:

00:48:07,304 --> 00:48:07,724

But.

:

00:48:08,144 --> 00:48:10,174

Yeah, , that was the only

thing that we had last year.

:

00:48:10,174 --> 00:48:11,044

It was awful.

:

00:48:11,044 --> 00:48:14,254

I'm just a little nervous about

this year because this last

:

00:48:14,284 --> 00:48:15,814

hurricane season was quiet.

:

00:48:17,044 --> 00:48:17,194

Dixie: Yeah.

:

00:48:17,194 --> 00:48:23,194

I know we had some, but it hit areas

that were very low populated areas.

:

00:48:24,064 --> 00:48:24,514

Ashley: Yeah.

:

00:48:24,724 --> 00:48:25,024

Yeah.

:

00:48:25,024 --> 00:48:29,044

So we had those weird curves, ? On

the East Coast, everything would come

:

00:48:29,044 --> 00:48:32,164

in like it was gonna hit, and then it

would immediately bounce back out to

:

00:48:32,164 --> 00:48:34,024

sea and then just end up in nowhere.

:

00:48:35,189 --> 00:48:38,549

Dixie: Fingers crossed we

don't have a busy season, so

:

00:48:38,759 --> 00:48:40,109

Ashley: No, I hope we don't.

:

00:48:40,109 --> 00:48:40,949

I really don't.

:

00:48:41,039 --> 00:48:45,179

But yeah, and if anybody out there

listening to this podcast wants help on

:

00:48:45,179 --> 00:48:50,279

this or needs help coming up with a plan

or wants to talk or, needs some direction

:

00:48:50,339 --> 00:48:54,329

or wants to make friends, so that next

hurricane you have a team that you can

:

00:48:54,329 --> 00:48:57,879

call that will come in and help you,

if you need it, please don't hesitate.

:

00:48:57,879 --> 00:48:58,989

It's Southern paws Inc.

:

00:48:58,989 --> 00:49:01,149

You can go right on our website,

which is southernpawsinc.org.

:

00:49:02,229 --> 00:49:05,469

Send us an email just put

attention, Ashley on it.

:

00:49:05,499 --> 00:49:12,299

Or you could put attention, disaster

preparedness team, and that way,

:

00:49:12,299 --> 00:49:13,829

let's build some more relationships.

:

00:49:13,829 --> 00:49:16,289

So if you guys do need us,

you have relationships already

:

00:49:16,289 --> 00:49:17,699

established for us to come out.

:

00:49:18,569 --> 00:49:21,209

Dixie: Yeah, and I'll drop that

in the show notes too, so that way

:

00:49:21,209 --> 00:49:22,919

people can access your page too.

:

00:49:24,104 --> 00:49:24,824

Ashley: Awesome.

:

00:49:24,824 --> 00:49:25,274

Awesome.

:

00:49:25,274 --> 00:49:26,504

Dixie, thanks so much.

:

00:49:26,504 --> 00:49:27,854

I love coming on this show.

:

00:49:27,854 --> 00:49:29,114

I love talking to you.

:

00:49:29,304 --> 00:49:29,724

Dixie: Good.

:

00:49:29,724 --> 00:49:31,074

I'll have you back another time.

:

00:49:31,824 --> 00:49:34,374

And hopefully I won't be seeing

you for hurricane season,

:

00:49:34,424 --> 00:49:34,934

Ashley: No.

:

00:49:35,119 --> 00:49:35,409

Nope.

:

00:49:35,409 --> 00:49:36,049

Hopefully not.

:

00:49:36,629 --> 00:49:37,409

So nope.

:

00:49:37,829 --> 00:49:38,669

Any other time.

:

00:49:39,069 --> 00:49:40,539

Dixie: That's it for today's episode.

:

00:49:40,539 --> 00:49:44,439

I wanna thank everybody for

listening and supporting us.

:

00:49:44,529 --> 00:49:48,639

If you wanna take that an extra

step, consider becoming a member.

:

00:49:48,879 --> 00:49:53,079

We just added this to our

website, animalposse.com,

:

00:49:53,319 --> 00:49:55,389

scroll down, look for the support tab.

:

00:49:55,439 --> 00:50:01,769

Our membership program is going to

help us directly support animals

:

00:50:01,799 --> 00:50:08,999

in need, whether that be through

vaccinations, food or spay neuter efforts.

Chapters

Video

More from YouTube