SPCA secretly returned to Fort McMurray to save animals

The SPCA in Fort McMurray has been rescuing pets, but they’ve been doing it in secret.

On Sunday, when the wildfire was ripping through the city the SPCA decided to evacuate the animals at the shelter. Even though it was only a voluntary evacuation at the time, the local shelter felt that it would be best for the animals to be put into temporary foster care.

Animals were placed in areas of the community where the fire threat was low.

It all began to change however when the whole city went under a mandatory evacuation on Tuesday.

In a Facebook post the local SPCA stated that they asked authorities if employees could return to the burning city to help save the animals that were left behind.

“In spite of some of our homes and belongings also being consumed by the wildfire, we asked for permission to return to Fort McMurray to help our community pets on Thursday, which was subsequently granted.”

When employees arrived in the city two other animals rescue organizations and a number of animal control agencies were already present.

One of the conditions the SPCA was given when they were granted access to the community was to keep it a secret.

For 96 hours the animal organization was not allowed to speak publicly about saving the animals, since it would cause more anxiety for pet owners.

“While we understood how anxious and worried local pet owners would be, as the only local animal welfare organization in the RMWB, it was important to us that we serve our community and did everything we could during this devastating time,” the post explained.

During the rescue operation the SPCA reopened and animals received medical treatment at the in-shelter veterinary clinic. On Sunday 244 animals were transported to Edmonton by a transport truck.

As of Monday, the fire has grown to over 204,000 hectares and is 25 kilometres from the Saskatchewan border.