A group of lucky pups, dogs and kittens were bound for Canada this week to join their ‘fur-ever’ homes for Christmas.
They are the latest animals to be rescued by the Noah’s Ark project started by Canadian woman Nikole Poirier earlier this year.
Four previous flights transported 380 animals from the Cayman Islands to Toronto, with 30 on this week’s plane.
The dogs and cats are a mixture of pets being reunited with their owners who left the island due to the COVID-19 crisis, and animals from Cayman’s rescue centres. A few were also travelling with their owners.
COVID RESTRICTIONS
Due to coronavirus restrictions, animals cannot travel in the cargo hold of the aircraft so have been sitting in the main cabin, with their escorts.
“… I was putting the dogs in the crates and kissed each one of their noses and wish them a better life, with big fields and lakes to splash around in,” says Nikole, who lives in Cayman.
She began the rescue mission because she couldn’t bear the thought of being parted from
her own beloved kittens, or as she calls them, her ‘fur-babies’.
The Noah’s Ark project is working with the Humane Society, One Dog at a Time, PAWS, Canine Friends, and Must Love Dogs to help animals-in-need find
a home off-island.
The team at Travel Cayman, Aimee McKie from Must Love Dogs and Dara Flowers Burke of Flowers Air Dispatch Services (FADS) helped coordinate arrangements to get the animals on the Sunwing charter flight to Toronto, which was due to fly on Monday (7 Dec).
Partner rescue charities in Canada have been working with Nikole and team to re-home the animals from the island’s rescue centres.
A private plane was also made available to the Noah’s Ark project for one of the missions, courtesy of Island Air and the Lobster Pot.
GREAT NEED
“While we made a huge impact (with previous rescue flights), there is still a great need,” says Nikole, who paid tribute to the many volunteers who have made the flights possible, including the animal ‘escort’ passengers on the flights.
“During COVID, the vets that normally offer spay and neuters of the wild cat and dog populations were forced to halt these services. Now we are seeing a huge number of litters across the island. In addition, many people repatriated and abandoned their pets,” she says.
“Usually, as the plane turns north, I start to bawl, because I was always supposed to be on one of these planes. But there is clearly a need for me to stay and continue helping.”
Another rescue flight has been scheduled for 4 Jan. For information and details on how to help sponsor the Noah’s Ark mission or travel as an animal escort, contact Nikole on [email protected].
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