Hurricane “party animals” enjoyed the attention at Flagler Humane Society during the storm

The staff at the Flagler Humane Society didn’t have time off during the storm.

By Jacque Estes
| 2:15 p.m. October 17, 2016

Flagler Humane Society Director Amy Carotenuto visits two loost cats brought in my caring residents after the storm. Photo by Jacque Estes

Boo, 33513421, is a 3-year-old female cat, available at Flagler Humane Society. Courtesy photo

Kylo, 33601896, is an 8-month-old male coonhound mix, available at Flagler Humane Society. Courtesy photo

Vance, 33268790, is a 5-month old orange male cat, available at Flagler Humane Society. Courtesy photo s old

Palm Coast Observer
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I stopped by the Flagler Humane Society on Monday (Oct. 17), to check in on them, and to see how they fared the storm.

“The animals actually, probably liked it,” FHS Director Amy Carotenuto said. “We had staff here during the storm, 24-hours a day, and the animals got a lot of extra attention.”

Carotenuto walked me outside to see some of the landscaping damage – trees that had fallen – but volunteers beat us to it, and had already cut up the trees and hauled them away.

So there was no damage right? Wrong. Like many businesses the humane society’s damage is financial. They lost income for the three and a half days their thrift store, at 224 St. Joe Plaza Dr. in Palm Coast, was closed. Unlike most businesses, many of the FHS employees worked through the storm.

“We have overtime pay for the employees who stayed with the animals at the humane society, and for those at the (evacuation) shelter at Bunnell Elementary,” Carotenuto said. “Employees did not get paid when they slept.”

Both shelters were filled to capacity.

“We had 230 animals at the evacuation shelter, and 237 here at the humane society,” she told me.

The staff cared for 66 dogs, 170 cats and one Guinea pig; a number I know has increased since things got back to normal. As I walked through the lobby of the humane society a grey cockatiel and blue parakeet tweeted hello.

Then there are the stray animals.

Two black and white cats, from two different sections of Palm Coast, were brought into the shelter after the storm. They were in the stray holding section waiting patiently for their owners to claim them.

What can you do to help?

There are so many ways to help. Financial donations of course, but also donations of day to day items like laundry soap and cleaning supplies, old towels and blankets and more. Shop and donate at the thrift store; volunteer, attend, their fundraising events – or even better -- adopt a pet.