Animal shelters overwhelmed after Venezuela's double earthquake

Animal shelters in Venezuela's La Guaira state are collapsing under the weight of thousands of abandoned pets in the wake of devastating earthquakes on June 24. A makeshift tent in Los Corales, run by the volunteer organization Brivet, is overflowing with animals needing urgent care.

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We can't do this anymore, we are at maximum capacity. What I ask is if you can leave them with you while we find a space for them, but we will examine them.

"We can't do this anymore, we are at maximum capacity," said veterinarian Irene Tejera, one of 170 members of Brivet, which formed spontaneously after the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes. "What I ask is if you can leave them with you while we find a space for them, but we will examine them," she told a woman who arrived with three newborn kittens.

Tejera explained that the organization provides only primary care at the tent, with critically ill animals then transported to Caracas for further treatment in private veterinary centers. "The shelters are collapsed... we cannot accommodate the animals because we do not have the infrastructure and we do not have the long-term capacity either," she added.

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The shelters are collapsed... we cannot accommodate the animals because we do not have the infrastructure and we do not have the long-term capacity either.

Many of the dogs and cats brought to the Brivet tent are in critical condition, exhibiting shock, aggression, and fear. "If we humans are in a state of shock, they are too because they do not understand what is happening around them," Tejera noted. The double earthquake has claimed 2,595 lives and injured 12,400 people, with a significant number still missing.

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If we humans are in a state of shock, they are too because they do not understand what is happening around them.