Updates Nov. 28: The cats have been placed with our shelter and rescue partners to find loving homes. We are happy to hear that many of the cats have been adopted and are enjoying life in their new homes! Nov. 7: After almost a month of care and veterinary treatment, the cats are ready to look for...

In January 2023, our Animal Rescue Team responded to an alleged cruelty and neglect case in Crystal Springs, Mississippi, where more than 170 cats were trapped in horrific conditions.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Senate just passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act (H.R. 263, Senate companion bill S. 1210) by unanimous consent. This follows the bill’s passage by the U.S. House of Representatives on July 29. The legislation prohibits keeping tigers, lions and other big cat species as pets, and...

INDIANAPOLIS—Indiana’s law prohibiting direct public contact with big cats and bears goes into effect on July 1. Implementation of this law brings much needed protection for some of the animals who have been subjected to public handling and forced to live in abysmal facilities in the state...

WASHINGTON—The U.S. House of Representatives just passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act (H.R. 263) by a vote of 278 to 134. The bill would prohibit keeping tigers, lions and other big cat species as pets, and ban direct public contact like cub petting. Sponsored and championed by Rep. Michael Quigley...

Our Animal Rescue Team deployed to Muncie, Indiana, in October 2021 ready to rescue dozens of cats living in filthy conditions inside a residential property. As rescuers entered the house, they encountered an unexpected obstacle: A black-and-white cat approached them and began rubbing against their...

The first time Tim Harrison rescued privately owned big cats was back in 1982. A public safety officer at the time, Harrison and other responders found a male lion pacing around a small enclosure, a lion cub who appeared severely ill, bears, snakes and other animals on an Ohio property. It was rare...

Just as a historic freeze sent temperatures plummeting in Texas in February, overwhelming the state’s power grid, breaking pipes and leaving roads slick with ice, a strange call came into the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office near San Antonio. Someone said they heard an animal crying outside their...

Contents Plan for your pets Make a disaster kit for pets If you evacuate, take your pet If you stay home, do it safely Pets and wildfires After the emergency Additional resources for equines, livestock and community cats

Our Animal Rescue Team responded to an alleged neglect case in Topeka, KS where 48 cats and more than 20 dogs were living in filthy conditions, with waste and debris covering most surfaces.

The disaster responders could tell when they were getting close to their destination. Driving south to Antakya—a city revered for its cultural history and home to 400,000 people—they saw a few damaged buildings. But as they approached the city, almost every building was crumbling. Once inside...

The numbers don’t tell the whole story of how HSUS disaster responders helped Florida residents after Hurricane Idalia pounded the region in late August. Before the storm hit, we coordinated and funded the transport of 75 adoptable shelter animals (60 dogs and 15 cats) to safer lodgings out of the...

BOSTON—Today the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development heard testimony on bills prohibiting the use of elephants, big cats, primates, giraffes and bears in traveling exhibits and shows (H.3245 and S.2197/S.2189). This critical, bipartisan legislation serves to...

Extreme weather events like wildfires can kill wild animals, either from the fire itself, through smoke inhalation or through loss of habitat. Animals who are very young, old or otherwise unable to move away quickly are particularly vulnerable. Wild animals cope with wildfires in a variety of ways...

In September 2022, our responders assisted with rescue calls and community outreach in the wake of devastating flooding and destruction in Charlotte County, Florida, after Hurricane Ian.

About our volunteers Animal rescue volunteers (ARVs) work with our Animal Rescue Team to help save animals who are victims of illegal animal cruelty and disasters. When we respond—whether to a hurricane, large-scale neglect case, dogfighting or commercial breeding operation—animal rescue volunteers...

During the summer of 2022, our Animal Rescue Team, with the support of our shelter and rescue partners, removed nearly 4,000 beagles from a mass breeding facility

Contents Plan for your equines Evacuating without your equines Equines and floodwater Equines and barn fires

FORT MYERS, Fla.—The Humane Society of the United States is on the ground helping animals and communities impacted by the deadly Hurricane Ian. Responders from the HSUS deployed to Charlotte County, Florida, to assist with rescue calls and community outreach in the days following the storm...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—The Humane Society of the United States is on the ground in Florida helping animals and communities impacted by the deadly Hurricane Idalia. The assistance of the HSUS was requested by Florida emergency management officials. Responders from the HSUS deployed to Madison County...