50+ dogs, cats from the south flown into Waukesha; nearly ready for adoption into 'fur-ever' home

 

WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The temperatures are in the mid-20s, the wind is violently blowing, and dozens of volunteers in Santa hats are standing outside on a tarmac at the Waukesha County Airport Monday morning.

Despite the chilly weather, everyone is in good spirits as they anxiously wait for a plane to touch down. 

On that plane are some of the airport's most important visitors -- dozens of dogs and cats from New Orleans, Louisiana, who are in need of their fur-ever homes.

“Animal welfare is struggling, shelters are full, capacity is like nothing I’ve ever seen," said Erin Robbins, the vice president of Pet Transport Good Flights. 

Robbins spends her days flying with animals who are hoping for a second or even a third chance.

They're taken from the Greater Good Charities Good Flight program, which "conducts lifesaving airlifts and supports ground transport for some of the country's most at-risk pet populations."

Wisconsin is one of the program's major hubs. Officials said that's due to the state having lesser shelter overcrowding issues compared to those in the south, and higher spay and neuter rates.

The animals that get flown in are typically at-risk. With the care from the Wisconsin shelters, most are normally able to be put up for adoption within a couple of days.

Monday's flight was extra special, as it marked the program's 200th transport since its inception nearly two-and-a-half years ago, as well as the 12,000th animal to be flown in. 

"Frisco here is number 12,000, so can I have a round of applause?" Robbins yelled out to the volunteers who had begun unloading the near-60 other dogs and cats off of the plane.

Animals in their kennels were placed into vans heading to several different locations around the state, including the Wisconsin Humane Animal Welfare Society, Elmbrook Humane Society, Humane Society of Jefferson County, Humane Society of Southern Wisconsin, and the Washington County Humane Society.

Officials said they do these kinds of transports regularly, and that they can happen regardless of an environmental disaster.

“It’s that community that’s being built, and those relationships between the wonderful Wisconsin groups and the Louisiana groups that truly save lives," Robbins said. “I look forward to the day that I’m not needed to fly anymore and that shelters have empty kennels again.”