Hundreds of Animals Dying While Groups Await Permission to
Administer Urgently Needed Aid

Sorry about the OT but this situation is dire; please help by just
making a call or sending an email - see details below.

Thanks,

Steve Sikes-Nova
Live365.com Music Webcaster

Project Hope, a project of the international animal protection
organization, In Defense of Animals (IDA), is calling on state
officials to allow animal protection groups permission to enter
disaster stricken areas of Mississippi. The group, which has set up
a rescue and recovery effort at the County Fairgrounds in Jackson
along with Mississippi Emergency Response for Animals (MEPA) and the
Disaster Animal Response Team (DART) to help animals affected by
Hurricane Katrina, is prepared to venture into areas affected by the
storm and deliver medical assistance and supplies, yet is being
halted by the Emergency Operations Center (EOC).

"We understand we could be facing dangerous situations and that
precautions need to be taken. We appreciate measures being taken to
ensure our safety," says Project Hope Director, Doll Stanley. "But
we are sitting here in a parking lot with a truckload of supplies
waiting for permission to utilize our resources while animals are
dying for lack of food and water."

The Project Hope team secured a generous donation of supplies for
the rescue operation from PETsMART charities including food,
carriers and crates to house animals at the rescue center, as well
as to transport animals to shelters and foster homes. While the
group awaits permission to use the highway to help animals in need,
news media outlets are reporting distraught evacuees being forced to
leave their beloved animal companions behind and some even having
animals euthanized for fear of their welfare once turned over to
authorities.

Please contact the following state officials and politely urge them
to allow IDA and other animal protection organizations into stricken
areas and administer their much-needed assistance. Be sure to thank
them for taking necessary precautions, but let them know that it is
time to allow rescue workers who are willing to risk their safety do
what they came to do.

Congressman Chip Pickering
110-D Airport Rd
Pearl, MS 39208
Tel.: (601) 932-2410
Online comment form: http://www.house.gov/pickering/Form.htm

James Watson, D.V.M., Director
Mississippi State Board of Animal Health
P.O. Box 3889
Jackson, MS 39207
Tel.: (601) 359-1160
Fax: (601) 359-1177
Email: JimW@...

Governor Haley Barbour
P.O. Box 139
Jackson, MS 39205
Tel.: (601) 359-3150
Fax: (601) 359-3741

IDA has established a Hurricane Katrina Animal Relief Fund to
finance transportation, food for animals and volunteers, and to
repair the damage done by the storm at the Project Hope sanctuary.
Any funds exceeding the Project Hope team's expenses will be donated
directly to the Louisiana SPCA in New Orleans, which has been hit
hard by the storm. IDA is accepting donations to support its relief
efforts on its web site or by mail. Send checks to: Hurricane
Relief, c/o In Defense of Animals, 131 Camino Alto, Mill Valley, CA
94941.