270,000 People and Their Pets Forced to Flee Manilla Due to Flooding

Torrential rains have submerged much of the Philippine capital of Manilla and surrounding areas forcing 270,000 people and their pets to flee their homes for higher ground. The flooding in the Philippines is from 10 days of steady rains with no end in the near future. The Philippines weather bureau said the rains are being fuelled by tropical storm “Haikui” in the Philippine Sea northeast of Taiwan.
 
On its Facebook account http://www.facebook.com/pawsphilippines, Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) said it does not have enough cages but at least it’s higher ground and the animals will not drown. Owners must leave ID and contact info, and if possible, roofed cages in order to keep the pets safe from each other and from the elements. The shelter is as maximum capacity because of all the rescues they have been called out on during flooding but they feel that it is better to be overcrowded where pets and their owners are out of danger of the flood zone then for the pets to be left at home.

 
For those that have to leave their pets behind here are some saftey tips. Never turn animals loose. Do not tie animals outside or keep them in a vehicle unattended. Leave them in a secure area outside your home. Leave out at least 10 days supply of water. Fill every sink, bowl, pan and container with water, then set them on the floor. Leaving mulitple containers will ensure that if one spills or evaporates from the sun there will still be others for your pet to drink from plus even after getting back home tap water might be contaminated and the supply you leave behind might be all there is. If your toilet bowl is free of chemical disinfectants, leave the toilet seat up to provide pets with one more source of water. Leave out at least 10 days’ supply of dry food a bit raised from the ground where your pet can still get to it but away from any water that might come in.

 
Donations of cages, tarps, towels, pet food, as well as human, ready-to-eat food, clothes and drinking water are highly appreciated. Please bring your contributions to the PAWS Animal Rehab Center http://paws.org.ph
 

We will continue to monitor the situation and have tried to contact some bloggers that we know in the Philippines to see if there is anything we can help with from here. As soon as we hear anything we will let you know if there is a way for us to help.