Bill would direct state to help with pet evacuation plans

AUSTIN — Pooches and kitties may have a better chance of making it to safety next time a hurricane threatens the Texas coast.

The House and Senate have approved a bill directing the Governor’s Division of Emergency Management to help cities and counties develop plans to transport, evacuate and give temporary shelter to pets and service animals in a disaster.

Rep. Dan Branch, R-Dallas, and Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, the senate sponsor of the bill, both had longtime canine companions that died recently.

The bill is called Simba’s Law after the Branch family's 12-year-old Labrador that died in April while Branch was spending most of his time in Austin.

“I told the kids that we had this bill going to try to save pets and it might be some sort of consolation for Dad being gone all the time, so we tried to name the law after Simba,” Branch said.

On the Senate floor, Hinojosa recounted how he used to lounge by the pool with a glass of wine, with Skyler, his Labrador retriever. He would put a bit of wine into the dog’s water dish, and the dog would howl with gratitude. Hinojosa mimicked the dog’s howl.

Skyler died in 2006 at the age of 13. Hinojosa still has two Labrador retrievers.

“Sometimes man’s best friend is his dog,” Hinojosa said. “They don’t talk back, they follow orders and they’re with you all the time.”

The bill drew sarcastic amendments in the Senate, including one that added the names of every pet of each of the 30 senators. An amendment by Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr., D-Brownsville, would have given preference in evacuations to Mexican Chihuahuas who are in the country legally.

Hinojosa said he and Branch planned to strip the joke amendments from the bill when they write the final version.

Evacuating pets is a serious matter, they said.

During Hurricane Katrina, many pet owners refused to leave New Orleans because they couldn’t take their furry friends on the evacuation buses. Congress later appropriated money for local governments that make plans for pet evacuation.

The bill would also prevent the spread of disease caused by animal carcasses in a disaster and make federal grant funds available to Texas, Hinojosa said.

It comes as welcome news to Johnny Cavazos, emergency coordinator for Cameron County, who has formed an animal advisory committee to develop a pet-evacuation plan before hurricane season begins June 1.

The bill should help bring more money to the county for things like muzzles, pet carriers and possibly specialized vehicles to evacuate pets, he said.

“I’m going to have Chihuahuas and parakeets and goldfish, and some kid’s going to show up with his boa constrictor, and I’m going to have someone who’s allergic to cats, and all these animals are going to poop, and they’re going to travel up to several hours to San Antonio on a bus,” Cavazos said. “You tell me how that’s going to work.”

Cavazos calls himself “a big animal-rights guy” and said he insists the county’s plan include pet evacuations, because any family with pets knows they are part of the family. He has two Chihuahuas, a Jack Russell and three cats of his own.

He might have to evacuate up to 80,000 people who can’t leave on their own, many of whom will have pets. The tentative plan is to allow pets on the buses with their owners and give the pet and owner corresponding arm bands with bar codes so they can be united if separated.

Details have yet to be determined, he said.

The bill must be signed by the governor before it becomes law.

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Elizabeth Hernandez covers the state capital for Valley Freedom Newspapers. She is based in Austin and can be reached at (512) 323-0622.