Home Page
Many animals that were lucky enough to survive the flood are now becoming sick. Pet owners are struggling to care for them and finances are already so tight for flood victims that unfortunately with many it is a matter of their own survival first. They don't have the money or resources to care for them on their own. Vets in our area have been VERY generous helping animals at no charge. Many veterinarians in our area have donated care for animals who have illnesses related to the flood. This is not a problem that is going to go away anytime soon. As long as there is standing water and sludge on the ground that animals can get into, flood related illnesses are going to pop up.
Donations can be made into the medical fund
Click here to donate
Call Patty Kaija at 360-508-0151 or e-mail pattyk@folcas.org for more information
Fundraising is under way for:
Almost Home
A No-Kill Pet Adoption
Center
click here for more information
Click here to make a donation online In December, Lewis County suffered from a catastrophic flooding event and was declared a disaster area. Neighbors helped each other escape from houses that had 6-8 feet of water in them. Helicopters rescued families off the tops of their houses. Farmers lost herds of animals as the water rose at record breaking rates that gave people barely enough time to get out of their houses with the clothes on their backs. We attempted to rescue as many animals as possible, getting livestock to higher ground only to have them go back to the barn and drown. As the waters receded and we saw the animal mortality we had to come to grips with the fact that much of our work was going to be not rescue but recovery. People who managed to swim horses out had no place to go and nothing to feed them. Dairy farmers stood and wept at the loss of their "girls". Terrified cats hid under houses and perished. Dogs were rescued from trees. We arranged foster care and hay for the surviving animals driving through water 2-3 feet deep to get supplies to any animals that survived the flood. It is now 3 months since the flooding began, and our community is still devastated but it is recovering. Many people are still struggling to make their homes habitable again. Any money received from FEMA is being used for drywall and insulation. Many who had lived in their homes for 40 or 50 years and never flooded had no flood insurance. Our group continues to provide food to the animals that survived the flood so they can survive the winter. In order for the animals that survived the catastrophic flood in Lewis County to survive the winter, donations of hay or money to purchase hay are needed. While the Dairy Federation and The Farm Bureau have provided hay for the dairy farmers and others who depend on their animals for their livelihood, many people who purchased hay for their animals lost all their hay and other belongings in the flood. These families are struggling to remove the mud and debris from their property and rebuild their homes. While these families don't depend on their remaining animals for livelihood, they care for these animals and in many cases went to extreme measures to save them from drowning.
These families had already purchased hay to feed their animals through the winter. They lost all their hay in the flood and they don't have the resources to purchase it again. These families have lost so much that we are trying to help them with this one thing. We have distributed hay to families in Lewis, Thurston and Grays Harbor Counties. Each semi we bring in is costing about $7500.00 for about 30 tons and the cost and the need for hay is increasing every month. While we received monetary donations and donations of hay in December, the help is drying up. Fundraising to continue to provide hay have been exhausting.
We would appreciate any help available, either hay or the money to purchase hay. We have been distributing it as fast as it is coming in, but we do have a barn to store it if we get ahead of the need at all.
All monetary donations will go to purchase feed to help these animals. We are an all volunteer group. There are no administrative costs, salaries or overhead costs. If you would like to make a credit card donation to help the animals, please go to www.folcas.org or contact Patty Kaija at 360-508-0151 or pattyk@folcas.org . Donations can be mailed to FOLCAS, PO Box 1421, Chehalis, WA 98532. Donations can also be made at any Security State Bank. United Way donations may also be directed to Friends of Lewis County Animal Shelter. United Way is not charging any administrative fees for any donations that are flood related.
Lewis County Animal Shelter, 560 Centralia-Alpha Rd., Chehalis, WA 98532
or
Kaija's, 623 NW State Ave., Chehalis, WA 98532
For donations of hay, grain or other large animal donations, please call for drop off points.
Welcome to F.O.L.C.A.S.
Friends of Lewis County Animal Shelter (FOLCAS) is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to making the lives of pets in Lewis County better by educating the community on responsible pet ownershp and promoting spay and neuter for pets. We support the Lewis County Animal Shelter in any way we can. We are an all volunteer organization located in Chehalis, Washington with volunteers coming from throughout the state. We appreciate you visiting our website and hope you can join us in helping the animals of Lewis County.
Click on the LCAS logo for hours and directions to the shelter
Click here to see pets available for adoption in your area
Engraved Pet tags available for only $6.00
Click here for order forms
Cash for Critters is a recycling program that helps turn trash into cash. Click logo for more information
