ASPCA Assists Over 5,400 Animals in North Carolina Through Pet Food Distribution, Search and Rescue, Emergency Evacuations and Temporary Sheltering in Response to Hurricane Helene

BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N.C. – As part of its statewide Hurricane Helene disaster response efforts, the ASPCA^® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals^®) is operating an emergency shelter in Conover, N.C., to provide temporary housing and much-needed care for displaced homeless and stray animals and to reunite missing pets with their families. These efforts expand the services the ASPCA is offering through its North Carolina Animal Assistance Hotline (888-808-0810 or aspca.org/ncanimalhelp), which also includes pet food and supply distribution, temporary pet boarding, and other resources. The ASPCA is also supporting the Western North Carolina Agricultural Center co-located shelter in Fletcher, N.C. Working alongside our National Animal Rescue and Sheltering Coalition (NARSC) partners and state and local emergency management and animal welfare groups, the ASPCA has assisted more than 5,400 animals impacted by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina

Residents in Western North Carolina who are missing a family pet, have found a stray or lost animal, are in need of temporary pet boarding, or need to surrender a pet are encouraged to first contact their local animal shelter before calling the ASPCA hotline, as each animal shelter’s operations and services vary depending on direct impact to their facilities and staff. To reach the ASPCA’s animal assistance hotline, please call 888-808-0810 or submit a request form at aspca.org/ncanimalhelp. The hotline is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET, seven days a week, and assistance is available in English and Spanish.

"Over the last several weeks, the ASPCA has seen the power of collaboration and compassion as the communities of Western North Carolina come together to recover and rebuild,” said Tim Rickey, vice president of ASPCA National Field Response. “Through these collaborative efforts, we’ve been able to offer critical hurricane relief services that reduce the burden on directly impacted animal shelters while reuniting missing pets with their families and ensuring community members have the resources they need to continue to care for their pets.”

Animals who were homeless and in shelters before the storm, stray animals who are unclaimed after a 30-day hold period, and surrendered animals will be placed within the ASPCA’s network of shelter partners across the country to be made available for adoption.

The ASPCA’s pet food distribution efforts are made possible in part by generous in-kind donations from Hill’s Pet Nutrition, along with in-kind food and supplies from Open Farm and Greater Good. Subaru provided support for the ASPCA’s emergency shelter for animals displaced by Hurricane Helene, and many other generous supporters have helped to make this relief work possible, including The Silberstein Foundation, and FedEx.

For more information about the ASPCA’s response to Hurricane Helene, please visit www.aspca.org/helene.