DailyMail.com photographer Ruaridh Connellan was taking pictures in Victoria, Texas during Hurricane Harvey when he came across a dog tied to a telephone pole.
Water surrounded the scared dog, and Connellan knew he couldn’t just leave her to drown.
Connellan quickly took a photo of the dog. Then, he released the dog. The pup wagged her tail and ran off to higher ground. Connellan thinks that the dog’s owners panicked and accidentally left her behind when they fled their home. Luckily, Connellan found her before the worst could happen.
That night, Connellan couldn’t stop worrying about the dog. The next morning, he went back to check on her. When she saw Connellan coming, she ran up to him with her tail wagging, wanting to play.
Connellan pet the dog and gave her a new name: Lucky!
Lucky led Connellan to a neighbor’s house, where he found a pit-bull tied to a tree.
There were also two cats and a small pony with the pit-bull. All of the animals had been left behind by their fleeing owners. The nervous animals were on a hill, so they were safe from flooding. Connellan untied the pit-bull and called a local animal control agency to let them know about the animals.
After saving Lucky’s friends, Connellan spent some more time with Lucky. During their time together, he bonded with her, and he’s hoping to adopt her. He told the DailyMail.com:
“I’d love to take Lucky to live with me in New York, but sadly I’ll have to wait and go through the proper channels. I’m disappointed in people who abandon their animals. I feel good about what I did. There is no doubt in my mind, if I didn’t unleash Lucky from the tree, she would have drowned.”
This is one of many stories of people going out of their way to help animals trapped in Hurricane Harvey’s path.
On Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, people are sharing stories of good Samaritans helping out animals during the storm. One reporter helped save two dogs that were abandoned on a boat in Dickinson, Texas.
On Twitter, a reporter from 12 News Now shared a video of a man pulling a swimming dog into his boat.
A dog was saved from the flooded streets of the sun chase neighborhood in Hamshire. pic.twitter.com/AXzEWzdZes
— Jacque Masse (@jmasse12news) August 28, 2017
ABC News also shared an amazing video of a man rescuing a horse from its flooding stable.
Incredible video shows two men on horseback rescuing a horse trapped in rising floodwaters in Cleveland, Texas. https://t.co/8Vc8S8au1m pic.twitter.com/ydThwuNOVK
— ABC News (@ABC) August 29, 2017
Throughout the hard-hit regions of Texas, animal rescue organizations are working hard to save animals.
Organizations like the Humane Society, Best Friends, and the SPCA are rescuing dogs, cats, and other animals from flooded buildings and homes. These organizations are also taking in displaced pets.
These animal rescue organizations have done an amazing job saving vulnerable animals from dangerous flooded areas. If you’d like to help these organizations, consider donating or sending in food or toys. You can find a list of many organizations that need donations here.
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