Over the last two weeks, Animal Place has been hit with a historic winter storm.
Over 70 miles of our local interstate 80 closed down due to treacherous conditions. A shelter in place warning was issued for many local Nevada and Placer County residents. We held our breath as the snow began to come down steadily over the course of several days.
Thousands of people were left without power in their homes. This included some Animal Place staff! Whiteout conditions made driving incredibly dangerous.
To put things in perspective, California’s Sierra Mountain range broke its all-time December snowfall record. Nearly 200 inches fell!
Despite the extreme conditions, the animals still needed care.
Animal caregivers braved long shifts in limited daylight, ice, snow, rain and freezing temperatures. They worked over the holidays and through the storm. Power at the sanctuary was lost for several days.
Our selfless staff showed up because the animals needed them. The snow-covered sanctuary may have looked like a winter wonderland. But behind the scenes were chapped lips, dry hands, freezing cold feet, and exhausted humans.
This is one of the less-than-glamorous truths about sanctuary work. Animals don’t take holidays or snow days.
In even the worst of conditions, bedding needs to be changed, life-saving medications need to be administered, food needs to be delivered, and waters need to be cleaned. The hundreds of animals in our care depend on us and it’s our responsibility to keep them safe.
We are eternally grateful to our animal care staff for always being there when they’re needed the most.
Without the boots-on-the-ground work, we could not continue to rescue animals. Because of the selflessness and compassion of these incredible people, our rescued animals will always know warmth, safety, security and love. And that is what this work is all about!
