As extreme weather ramps up, animal rescuers are struggling to save our pets

In 2022, a record-breaking wildfire scorched 341,471 acres in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of northern New Mexico, forcing the evacuation of pets at the City of Las Vegas Animal Care Center. In 2024, the same shelter was evacuated again after heavy rains on the burned area caused the nearby Gallinas River to overflow.

It’s a sobering example of how U.S. animal rescue organizations are feeling the pressure as climate change supercharges wildfires, hurricanes, storms, and other forms of extreme weather.

In the U.S., hurricanes create an increased demand for housing displaced dogs, and wildfires lead to higher cat euthanasia rates, according to 2022 research. There are roughly 50,000 animal welfare organizations in the country, many of which rescue—and attempt to reunite with their owners—dogs, cats, and other pets impacted by natural disasters. The National Animal Rescue and Sheltering Coalition has also saved thousands of pets from disaster-stricken areas since its founding in 2006. (Learn how extreme weather affects our pets—and how to help them.)

During the 2022 New Mexico wildfire—the state's largest in history—and 2024 flood, Santa Fe Animal Shelter took in a few dozen dogs and cats, as well as provided material support such as food and blankets to animals at emergency-evacuation camps, according to Dylan Moore, senior director of shelter operations for the nonprofit.

In his 13 years at the shelter, Moore says, he has seen “significant weather events that appear to be increasing in both frequency and intensity.” For instance, human-caused climate change is driving more frequent and intense heat waves in the U.S. 

Josh Cary agrees. He’s rescue operations director for American Humane, a U.S. animal-welfare organization that constantly monitors weather nationwide to anticipate needs of animal-care facilities.

“There used to be kind of an off season,” he says, noting that the group would use that down time for training.

“Now we pretty much have to monitor events year-round and potentially respond year-round as well. That's been a dramatic change." 

Changing climates

Extreme weather and natural disasters are also hitting states that aren’t equipped to handle them. For instance, in 2021, a heat wave gripped the Pacific Northwest—a region that Cary calls the least prepared for hot weather, with little to no air-conditioning units. Meanwhile, Tornado Alley, an area known for more frequent tornados that has traditionally been centered around the Great Plains, is shifting east and south. (Read how heat waves are getting worse—and how to prepare.)

“The challenge that has caused is now organizations have to begin preparing for things that they hadn't had to really prepare for in the past,” says Tim Rickey, vice president of national field response for ASPCA, another national organization involved in monitoring and supporting rescue groups.

For instance, some shelters in historically cooler areas may need to retrofit their buildings with air conditioning. 

“Especially animals that have a coat, when you start talking heat issues, that becomes more problematic for them because they can't quite cool off like we can,” Cary says.

Strapped for resources

While natural disasters ramp up, resources to help displaced animals have shrunk.

You May Also Like

ANIMALS

How extreme heat affects our pets—and how to help them

ANIMALS

How did wolves evolve into dogs? Ancient fossils provide intriguing clues

ANIMALS

What will the cats of the future look like?

Moore, of the New Mexico nonprofit, says facilities like his are already overcrowded and financially strapped. The shelter was only able to accommodate Las Vegas dogs during the Gallinas flood because the ASPCA transferred many of his organization’s animal tenants to a facility in another state, he says. 

The shelter’s predicament reflects nationwide post-COVID hurdles, according to Moore: In general, shelters are welcoming more animals in and adopting fewer out than before the pandemic.

“The biggest challenge we are facing at [the New Mexico shelter] is that our local intake is so high we don't have the emergency capacity to be as helpful as we want,” he says. 

Even when shelters can accommodate animals from other facilities, it puts an immense strain on resources, Moore adds, noting that this includes everything from staffing to extra blankets and toys for anxious pets. (See a dog locked in a hot car? Here’s what you can do.)

“And at every shelter I am aware of, resources are already in constant demand.”

Offering a helping hand

When disasters hit, both American Humane and ASPCA give boots-on-the-ground assistance, for instance providing emergency shelter and food to displaced animals. American Humane helped rescue stranded farm animals such as horses, cattle, and goats in DeSoto County, Florida, following flooding from Hurricane Ian in 2022. (Read why hurricanes are escalating more quickly than ever.)

ASPCA also offers capacity building and emergency response grants to help organizations deal with and prepare for climate-related disasters. These funds have helped shelters invest in emergency supplies, water-rescue boats, power generators, animal-transport units, and dry suits, among other things.

Rickey notes the importance of ensuring animals have a safe and healthy place to go following evacuation orders, and says there have been improvements in this area.

“One of the really positive kind of changes in recent times has been the American Red Cross beginning to open their shelters up either for co-located or cohabitated sheltering,” Rickey says, adding that many families will not evacuate without their pets.

Prepping pets for disaster

As natural disasters become more frequent, experts advise animal owners to be prepared. A ASPCA survey in 2021 found that 83 percent of pet owners live in an area that can be affected by natural disasters, yet less than half have an emergency plan in place.

This could mean packing a kit with essentials like food, a water bowl, tags, and a leash, and designing plans for evacuating a pet. Both ASPCA and American Humane have tips on their websites to help people navigate disaster preparedness.

Meanwhile, agencies should focus on gathering the supplies, equipment, and education necessary to tackle animal rescues, Rickey says, such as holding training for search-and-rescue operations.

“It's really not a matter of if a community is going to be impacted by a disaster,” he says, “it's really a matter of when and what that disaster will be.”