By Khalida Sarwari
Animal shelters in Santa Cruz County have opened their doors to pets and livestock threatened by the Lockheed Fire, a county animal shelter spokesman said.
The blaze raging in the Santa Cruz Mountains since Wednesday night has charred 4,200 acres and has forced more than 2,200 people to evacuate their homes, according to a Cal Fire spokesman.
As of this morning, no animals or people have been injured.
Residents started bringing in their pets and livestock Thursday morning to the county’s two shelters located in Santa Cruz and Watsonville, according to Henry Brzezinski, Santa Cruz County Animal Services’ general manager.
Chickens, horses and other livestock are being kept at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds.
Officials are on the field to assist people who are not allowed to return to their homes as well as to locate animals that have been left behind by their owners.
“A lot of people have self-evacuated,” Brzezinski said. “Which has been quite helpful.”
So far the two shelters have accommodated 14 dogs, 30 cats, 90 chickens, 15 ducks, seven sheep, seven goats, five geese, 11 llamas, 20 horses, one pig, one donkey, one alpaca, one parrot, one cockatiel, one turtle and seven doves.
Brzezinski said the animals will be returned as soon as circumstances change and residents are allowed to return home. As of 8:30 a.m. today, the fire was 5 percent contained.
Brzezinski said aside from a shortage of crates, the shelters have not experienced any problems.
The shelters are being assisted by the Santa Cruz County Equine Evacuation Unit, which aids in the evacuation of horses in disasters; Noah’s Wish, a rescue shelter for animals during disasters, and the SPCA of Monterey.
Representatives from the Marin Humane Society are helping to relieve the shelter’s growing population by transporting adoptable animals to a shelter in Novato.
Brzezinski urged concerned residents to be patient and to call the county’s Animal Services at (831) 454-7303.