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East St. Louis animal shelter finds fosters for pets after flooding

Gateway Pet Guardians is taking in dogs and cats from St. Clair County Animal Shelter, which experienced flooding Tuesday, causing animals to be evacuated.
Credit: Gateway Pet Guardians

EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — An East St. Louis animal shelter is asking for help taking in fosters from a flooded animal shelter in St. Clair County.

A Facebook video posted by Gateway Pet Guardians shows dogs standing in water in their kennels at St. Clair County Animal Shelter, with workers trying to get dogs out of the kennels. 

Updated to include volunteer info! 🆘🆘🆘🆘 We need our community of animal lovers now more than ever! Our municipal shelter, St. Clair County Illinois Animal Care amd Control, is flooded and it is still raining! As you can see in the video, dogs are standing in water and desperately need out. Our shelter is currently full. We are looking for fosters to come get dogs or cats from our shelter TODAY so that we can help take in as many dogs as possible! The biggest need is medium to large size dogs (45-65 lbs) and most are friendly with other dogs. We also need donations so that we can purchase large crates and other supplies. Sign up to foster here 👉 gatewaypets.org/foster If you want to help take care of the dogs/cats and set up crates, you can come to our facility at 725 N. 15th St. East St. Louis, IL 62205 from 10am-7pm.

Posted by Gateway Pet Guardians on Tuesday, July 26, 2022

A post accompanying the video from the shelter requests anyone who can take dogs and cats from Gateway Pet Guardians, so Gateway Pet Guardians can help intake dogs and cats from St. Clair County Animal Shelter. 

"We are looking for fosters to come get dogs or cats from our shelter TODAY so that we can help take in as many dogs as possible!" the post said. 

The post said the shelter specifically needs people to take medium to large dogs, weighing 45 to 65 pounds.

Later in the day, the organization announced all the dogs have been placed with foster homes.

Donations for supplies are still requested so that crates and other supplies could be purchased to help the pets. They are also looking for the following supplies.

  • Large dog crates
  • Stainless steel food/water bowls
  • Cat carriers
  • Potty pads
  • Cat litter
  • Dog toys
  • Cat toys
  • Nylabones/benebones
  • Training treats
  • Easy cheese
  • Canned chicken
  • Peanut butter
  • Hot dogs
  • Deli meat

In a news release sent out by Gateway Pet Guardians, Director of Community programming, Jill Henke said, 

“We are waiting for the pet stores to open so we can purchase much-needed supplies, so donations are desperately needed to help us cover the cost of these supplies,” said Henke.

Needed supplies are large wire crates, litter boxes, soft treats and metals bowls.

"We need people to step up to foster a dog or cat for at least 1 week," Henke said in the release.

“Our shelter was at maximum capacity prior to this flooding, so the only way for us to help these animals is to find foster homes for them," Henke said in the release. 

In an update Tuesday evening, Gateway Pet Guardians said they have received $45,000 in donations and more than 1,000 foster applications. They said donations are still greatly appreciated as they work to figure out the cost of the damage.

We have never been so happy to sit down and bury our heads in a ton of paperwork 😆 Whew, what a day 😮‍💨 We can't say...

Posted by Gateway Pet Guardians on Tuesday, July 26, 2022

The release said emergency shelters were being set up in Gateway Pet's library, and fosters could come pick up dogs and cats from Gateway Pet Guardians from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. or to volunteer.

To donate to Gateway Pet Guardians, click here. 

To apply to become a foster, click here. No experience is needed to foster. 

St. Louis and East St. Louis has experience historic rainfall Tuesday, causing flash flooding in many areas in St. Louis and Illinois. 

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