NORMAL, Ill. (WMBD) — The Humane Society has lost air conditioning after their system went out overnight, making the building around 85 degrees.
“The first one went down a while ago and we got it fixed. And then that part that we got that’s under warranty went out, started to go out again. And then the second unit went out overnight and we didn’t know how long it’s been out,” said Mandy Hawker, operations manager of the shelter.
The shelter has been doing whatever they can to keep the animals from overheating during the heatwave.
“The cats we can let out on the floor because the floors are cold, so they’ll be able to come out on these floors and do all the cat things. The dogs we are keeping cool with wet frozen towels, frozen Kong and ice balls with kibble in it to make it more exciting. We can also set up water areas outside for them to run through,” she said.
“We had so many fans donated from all the amazing helpers we had. We had Home Depot offer us fans and extension cords. We also received water, Gatorade and popsicles have come in for the staff. All the things that we have asked for. We’ve gotten times about 20, so it’s been amazing. Each room has about 2 to 3 fans in it right now,” she said.
With all of the support, the shelter was able to keep over 100 animals cool, while also being able to transport smaller animals like a pregnant guinea pig, rabbits, and rats.
“The best thing is to keep all the animals safe and comfortable. We have people coming in often to say, How can I help? Well, you can walk around for me to check panting, breathing. Help us out with that, because there are only so many of us and there are over 100 animals,” she said.
For more information on the Humane Society and what they do, visit their website.
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