From pigs stranded in a hurricane to abandoned puppies found on the side of the road, here
are 10 of the most inspiring animal rescues….
10.
Manatees
Manatees are one of the most popular species of animal in Florida, and are loved by both
locals and tourists.
Their populations are at risk, though, and there was concern when Hurricane Irma hit
the region and the effect it would have on the sea cows.
Two of them from Manatee County, Florida, became stranded in an unusually low tide when
the storm pulled the waters out.
They were stuck in knee deep mud, and had no way of freeing themselves.
They were spotted by a group of people that were passing by, who waded out through the
mud to see if they could help.
They began digging the mud away from the creatures, but unfortunately there weren’t enough people
to manage to lift them to safety.
They, instead, poured water over them to make them more comfortable, and at the same time
tried to call the local wildlife commission and authorities.
Because everyone was preparing for the hurricane, they weren’t able to get through.
So instead, people turned to social media and posted images of what was happening.
Soon enough, people began turning up at the bay to help out, and within a few hours they
were able to roll the Manatees onto large tarps, and carry them 100 yards to safety,
where the water was deep enough for them to swim off.
The quick thinking of the group saved the two manatees in the face of the impending
storm, and once they were returned to the water they went off quite happily, not showing
any sign of distress after what had happened.
9.
Penny the Pig
When hurricane Harvey hit Texas in 2017, there were mass evacuations of the areas most at
risk, and this left animals in precarious situations.
One family, though, refused to evacuate unless they could take their pet pig with them.
By the time firefighters arrived in a boat to rescue the family, they had already moved
Penny the pig to the garage because her pen had started to fill up with water.
Unfortunately, the garage doors stopped working, and it became a race against time to free
Penny before the water level rose up and she drowned.
Luckily they managed to pry open the back door and, with the family and their three
legged dog waiting in the rescue boat, the pig bravely swam out to them, and was hauled
aboard.
The family was then taken to the nearest safe ground, at a gas station, where they were
able to wait out the torrential storm and return to their home once the waters had rescinded.
8.
Peanut the Cat
Cats are inquisitive creatures and will spend a lot of time exploring your neighbourhood.
This means that they occasionally go missing- whether because of an accident, getting lost,
or even becoming trapped inside places like a garage when doors get closed.
In October of 2017, Peanut the Cat disappeared in Northampton, England, and his owner was
devastated.
This could happen to anyone.
Pets disappear all the time and people never know what happened to them.
Not wanting to do the usual technique of sticking posters up, though, she came up with an ingenious
solution- she set up a Tinder account for Peanut, with a 6.5 mile match radius, and
featured an image asking for information about his whereabouts.
Within half an hour, there had been more than 400 people who promised to keep a watch out
for Peanut, and later that day she received a message from one user who had seen the cat
outside his window!
She quickly went to the house and, sure enough, found Peanut- good thing that ended well and
he wasn’t a serial killer.
Peanut of course ran immediately ran, because you know, cats.
He eventually returned back home after she had left a trail of food and treats from where
she had spotted him, and later that night she heard him meowing outside her door.
Turns out dating apps are good for something!
My cat Punkin, used to go around to all the neighbors and take a tour through their house
then meow to get let back out.
One time she went missing.
We called all the neighbors and it turns out a new family had moved in 3 streets over and
had decided to adopt her.
Luckily we got her back but the family was sad to see her go.
But hey, if something happens to your cat, now you know that Tinder can be a useful tool
for more than what you think!
7.
Benny the Horse
Benny’s owners had completely abandoned him in their backyard and were starving him
to death.
It’s not entirely clear why- maybe he was no longer strong enough to work on the farm,
or never lived up to the racing dreams they had, but when a Horse rescue organization
in Maine discovered him, he was in really bad shape.
His ribs were protruding from his body, and he hadn’t been fed for a long time.
It was a wonder that he was still alive at all.
The rescue organisation soon leapt into action, and moved him to their 21 acre farm.
Here, they brought him back to health and socialized with him to bring him back from
the brink.
Over the next six months the once timid and emaciated horse was brought back to full health-
even surprising those who worked for the charity.
Benny’s story is testament to those who spend their lives caring for mistreated animals,
and shows that with a dose of tender loving care, poor animals can be given a new lease
of life.
6.
Thirsty Cobra
It’s not just cute or friendly animals that need to be saved- those that we are afraid
of can also find themselves in dire straights, and it takes a particularly brave soul to
help them out.
Southern India often experiences severe droughts, and this means that the local wildlife struggles
to get the water that it needs to survive.
This leads to some scary scenes, because King Cobras, that usually avoid human contact,
begin to venture into local villages to get some water and food.
It’s the longest venomous snake in the world, and this one that entered a village in Kaiga
was 12 feet long.
When these snakes approach, the locals already have a good idea why they are there.
The first thing they tend to do in these situations is offer the Cobra a drink.
The snake is obviously thankful for quenching its thirst, but it still needs to be treated
with great caution.
The villagers keep their distance, and have a hook to stop it from getting too close.
Seeing a snake drinking from a bottle of water is strange, to say the least, but it’s proof
that locals want to live in harmony with the environment around them, and that means helping
animals that aren’t looked upon so fondly at other times of the year.
All living things appreciate kindness!
And now for number 6, but first be sure to subscribe!
5.
Flamingos
In 2017, Hurricane Irma struck the Florida panhandle, and caused widespread devastation.
While the people who lived in the area had plenty of warning and were able to take precautions
to protect themselves, the local animals weren’t as lucky.
Many people are forced to abandon their pets or get separated during evacuation.
And very rarely do people think of animals that are kept in zoos and what happens to
them during a hurricane.
Employees of Busch Gardens in Tampa had to move the animals into more secure surroundings,
because their display enclosures wouldn’t have provided any security whatsoever.
This led to these amazing scenes, where a flamboyance of flamingos follow a staff member,
who led them from their outdoor enclosure to a indoor facility.
The park was then closed for a few days to allow all of the other animals to be relocated
and kept in the warm, away from the storm, as the 135 mile per hour winds passed over.
4.
Thorn the Baby Squirrel
Visitors travel to the Kruger national park in South Africa to see a wide variety of animals
that aren’t seen anywhere else on earth, but it was an all too common creature that
became the focus of attention for one group of tourists.
They were near the Timbavati picnic site, and thought they had heard an unusual call
of a bird.
They looked around to see where it was coming from, but instead of seeing a feathery friend
up in a tree they saw a baby squirrel hanging off it, stuck on a thorn.
The site of the baby squirrel was horrifying, and it was crying out.
The tourists didn’t know what to do.
Luckily, though, one of them climbed on top of his car, and was able to release it into
a blanket.
Now safely down on the ground, the baby squirrel snuggled into the warmth, and could eventually
go on to start foraging for food.
Tragedy avoided!
3.
Trapped Horse
Floodwaters following Hurricane Harvey in Texas in 2017 caused a lot of difficulties
for people and animals alike.
The waters came in so fast that it caught people off guard, and farm animals were still
in their pens.
This meant that the farmers had to wade through the waters to help rescue them, or in the
case of Chance and Rowdy Ward, ride through the water.
They spent the entire day going from enclosure to enclosure to rescue all of their animals.
There is a video on the news where you can see they dangerous situation this horse had
found itself in.
It was lucky Rowdy got there when he did, because the rate at which the water was rising
would surely have meant this horse would have been in severe difficulties, potentially even
having drowned.
2.
Alaska the Polar Bear
Polar bears are some of the largest and most powerful creatures on earth, but when they
are trapped and mistreated by people, they need as much help as anything else.
This is what happened to Alaska, a polar bear who was one of seven that were forced to perform
for the Suarez Bros.
Circus.
The bears were kept in outdoor cages, in 113-degree temperatures, which is extremely higher than
their natural environment.
The cages were rarely cleaned, were covered in faeces.
Luckily for Alaska, PETA found out about these awful conditions and petitioned the authorities.
Polar Bears should be large creatures with bundles of energy and fluffy coats, but these
ones were skinny, lethargic, and missing clumps of hair.
As a result of the petition, the bears were all confiscated from the circus and relocated
to zoos with more suitable climates.
Unfortunately one of the seven died in transit.
The others went on to live healthy and happier lives.
1.
Duct Taped Dog
While most people are incredibly loving and caring towards their pets, there are some
who are capable of unimaginable acts of cruelty.
Texas plumber Carlos Carrillo was on his way to a job on a Friday in 2017, when he noticed
a strange shape moving in a ditch off the side of the road.
He and his co-worker stopped and went to investigate.
What they found horrified them- it was a dog who had had his legs bound and his mouth duct
taped shut- clearly left there to die.
Whoever had done this to the poor dog didn’t even want to give him the chance to fight
for survival.
.
They immediately cut the dog free, and allowed it to stretch its legs and open its mouth.
It straight away showed love and affection to the men who rescued it, and was clearly
grateful for being rescued.
The plumbers took it to the local pet rescue center, where he was found to be in pretty
good health- especially considering the way he had been treated.
The whole thing was extremely strange and sad.
The people who left him in the ditch, however, were never found.
Let’s just hope that they never are around animals again, because they clearly aren’t
capable to treating them with the respect and care that they deserve.
This was just plain evil.
Thanks for watching and remember that acts of kindness don’t go unnoticed!
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