The Kuwait Society for the Protection of Animals and Their Habitat has deployed its Managing Direction, John Peaveler, in response to the January 12th earthquake that devastated the island nation of Haiti.  Mr. Peaveler was deployed as a first responder with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International (SPCAI), the organization made famous for it’s Operation Baghdad Pups program (www.spcai.org).

In a disaster like the Haitian tragedy, one of the major priorities for relief agencies is to distribute feed and veterinary care to peoples’ livestock and pet animals.  While at first glance this doesn’t always seem like the most pressing issue, but if animals do not receive the care they require, the suffering of people will be prolonged by loss of livelihood and the ability to feed themselves.  Uncared for animals also pose a health risk, as disease may begin to spread either among animal populations, or in extreme cases, among the human population.  In areas where people rely upon their animals either for food or for companionship, it is not unusual for people to make personal sacrifices to feed or to avoid abandoning animals.  In these cases, it becomes vital to ensure human health and safety by providing for the care of those animals.  

In addition to his background as an animal rescue specialist, K’S PATH director John Peaveler is also a certified Emergency Medical Technician Basic (EMT-B) and arrives in the midst of disasters ready to provide aid to both people and animals in cases where immediate human suffering takes priority over that of animals, which may be the case in the wake of severe destruction as is being reported from Haiti.  Mr. Peaveler is on an open-ended deployment where his initial assessment will dictate the nature and duration of the SPCA International intervention.

In the coming days and weeks, updates on Mr. Peaveler’s mission to Haiti may be available on either www.kspath.org and/or www.spcai.org.  You may also make a donation to either organization by visiting those web address, or, in the case of KSPATH by calling 6700-1622. Both organizations are non-government non-profit charities.