Nearly 40 Cats Expected to Arrive in Salem on January 25
Salem, Mass., Jan. 24, 2025 – The MSPCA at Northeast Animal Shelter is readying to take in an urgent transport of 37 cats impacted by near record-breaking snowfall in Louisiana. The animals are scheduled to arrive by van in Salem on Saturday, January 25—less than a week before the expected arrival of dogs impacted by wildfires in Los Angeles.
“A staggering number of animals across the country are being impacted by disasters right now,” said MSPCA-Angell Relocation Manager, Josie Waldron. “As a leader in animal welfare with an established Disaster Relief Program, we have a responsibility to help in any way we can.”
According to Waldron, the MSPCA-Angell has been in touch with Los Angeles-area and national groups for weeks about how the organization could help, but there were no transport opportunities until late January given the high costs and logistical challenges of coordinating such long distance trips for animals.
“In the interim, Louisiana was hit with 10-plus inches of snow, which may not sound like much to us in New England, but it’s close to record-breaking there,” she said.
“There’s a great amount of need in several parts of the country, and we’re going to do everything we can to help!”
Major Population Increase Coming
The 37 Louisiana cats range in age from three-months to three-years-old and are largely domestic shorthairs. They are coming from several shelters in Louisiana—Ouachita Parish Animal Shelter in Monroe, Jefferson Protection and Animal Welfare Services in Jefferson, and Iberia Parish Animal Shelter in New Iberia.
“There’s a large stray cat population in the South, given the usual warm weather that allows them to flourish outdoors,” explained Waldron. “But with the snow and these extremely low temperatures, they’re in danger.”
“That means more cats coming into shelters, some of which also rely on outdoor areas that aren’t accessible, which is why it’s really important that we help them free up space.”
The cats are expected to arrive in Salem on Saturday, January 25 on a transport arranged by the Bissell Pet Foundation. They will be available for adoption following their state-mandated 48-hour quarantine and after receiving any medical care they may need. Interested adopters are asked to visit the Northeast Animal Shelter during open hours (daily, 11:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.).
“We’re still finalizing plans, but it looks like we’ll be taking in 10-20 large sized dogs from the Los Angeles-area late next week,” Waldron expounded. “Given the distance, we expect the dogs to fly to a closer state, like Delaware, where we’ll pick them up and drive them back to Massachusetts.”
The MSPCA-Angell will release more information on the Los Angeles transport as it becomes available. Those interested in donating to support the MSPCA’s disaster relief efforts and help care for these new arrivals are asked to do so at mspca.org/disaster.