An urgent call for foster families in case metro-east animal shelter is flooded again
The “unprecedented” 7-plus inches of rainfall that inundated the metro-east last July spilled the banks of a nearby creek until dogs sheltered with St. Clair County Animal Services in Belleville were standing in water up to their chests.
Animal Control authorities aren’t willing to test Mother Nature again. With the creek already rising and rain predicted for the weekend, they’ve issued an “urgent call” for foster families to shelter the animals until the threat is over.
St. Clair County Animal Control has no fostering program of its own, so Gateway Pet Guardians in East St. Louis is assisting, as it did during the summer flood of 2022.
The heater also isn’t functioning at the county shelter, said Jill Henke, director of operations for Gateway Pet Guardians. Temperatures are expected to fall near or below freezing nightly through this weekend.
“We need people to step up to foster a dog for at least one to two weeks,” said Henke. “Our shelter is at maximum capacity currently, so the only way for us to help the dogs in danger of being flooded is to find foster homes for our current shelter dogs.
“With the water already being high and rain forecasted for the next 72 hours, we are working to get ahead of this.”
Those interested and able to shelter an animal can stop by Gateway Pet Guardians, 725 N. 15th Street, East St. Louis, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. beginning Thursday. Food and other supplies will be provided.
Ashley Jett, director of St. Clair County Animal Control, said the facility has space for about 120 dogs and cats. That’s more than Gateway Pet Guardians can accommodate, making the situation “more urgent by the minute,” Henke said.
“We have all types of dogs that are ready to leave for foster homes. Most are 40 pounds or larger,” said Amanda Loellke, foster and adoption manager at Gateway Pet Guardians. “We test all of our dogs with other dogs and cats, so we can match you with a dog that will be a good fit for your home.”
Jett said the severity of last summer’s flood was an uncommon occurrence, but was not the only time the creek spilled over into the facility. The creek flows within about 15 feet of the building, but the water begins to back up on lower ground, near the Belleville Humane Society, just a couple blocks northwest on 11th Street.
“We have sandbags to block off the kennels and a retaining wall was erected just a couple years ago,” Jett said. “That helps, but when the water starts coming over 11th Street, it has nowhere else to go. That’s usually when we know we have to move.
“I’ve been here 15 or 16 years and last summer was the only real detrimental flood. But it’s happened before where we’ve had a couple of inches of water in the office area that didn’t impact the dog kennels.”
Jett said plans to move the facility are “in the works” and that the funding is in place.
Donations can be made https://gatewaypets.org/donate/ or can be mailed or dropped off at the shelter. Those who are able to foster a pet must submit an application to https://gatewaypets.org/how-to-help/foster or in person at the shelter.
This story was originally published March 9, 2023 at 11:39 AM.
