AUSTIN, Texas — A call for a helping hand is coming from the Gulf Coast Humane Society to the Austin Humane Society. Shelter Manager Charlotte O'Banion got a request from the shelter to get the animals out of Beryl's path.
"The main fear would just be kind of flooding the shelter, getting lots of damage. And then, afterwards, if there's no power or water, it's hard to help keep up with the animals to help clean their kennels and get them food and water and everything like that," O'Banion said.
O'Banion said the Austin Humane Society took in nearly 100 animals, relying on foster homes to clear up the kennel space to make room for them.
"It's definitely a challenge for our staff and volunteers, just with an extra influx of animals to take care of them and make sure their needs are all met here at the shelter," O'Banion said.
Now that the animals are safe, O'Banion wants the focus on their adoption.
"We do need to, hopefully, get them out fairly quickly so that we can free up some of our staff members and our volunteers from that extra strain and extra effort we're putting in right now for it," O'Banion said.
To provide some relief, Brianna Lopez decided to adopt kittens. She was inspired after hearing about the storm's impact.
"I am very emotional, and it's very hard for me to not feel really down about it. But there is a lot of empathy for the animals because, at the end of the day, they are sentient beings that are living and are being taken from their moms and their dads and their brothers and sisters," Lopez said. "They are struggling just as much as we are, and they don't know how to voice that or ask for help."
Now she is helping provide an answer to that call for help.
Check out a list of the animals up for adoption that were impacted by Beryl.