Hundreds of helpless animals trapped in the California wildfires have been found traumatized, injured and charred to near death as search efforts ensue for the state’s deadliest blaze to date, with a reported 50 human fatalities throughout the north and south as of late Tuesday.
Heartbreaking photographs taken from outside demolished homes, animal hospitals and barren places capture the severity of the animals’ injuries. While many have been rescued thanks to animal rescue groups, Good Samaritans and firefighters, while others weren’t so lucky.
Paradise resident Jeff Hill said he had been scouting his neighborhood over the weekend when he discovered a helpless horse trapped inside someone else’s backyard pool.
Hill wrote in a Facebook post that has since gone viral since he posted Sunday night: ‘As I was checking to see if someone’s house was standing, we stumbled upon this girl who had given up and had the look of defeat in her eyes.
‘There’s no telling how long she was there but she was shivering uncontrollably and ultimately lost her fight… she was all caught up in the pool cover but her being suspended by it prevented her from drowning.’
Hill unhooked the pool cover and assisted the horse to the shallow end and onto the steps, where helped her out of the water to safety. The horse luckily survived.
‘She got out, shook off, loved on us for a few minutes as a thank you and walked off assuring us that she was OK,’ Hill said in the post.
The happy ending wasn’t the outcome for many other animals.
Tear-jerking photographs show burnt and injured cats and a crying kitten after they received treatment thanks to the Little Angels Project, which is operating a MASH-type service, free of charge, for animals afflicted in the wildfires.
The more seriously-injured cats were transported for rest to the Project’s hospital in Agoura Hills.
A German Shepard was found hanging from a fence with badly-burnt paws. The dog can be seen in photos lying in his recovery bed with casts on all four legs.
A terrier is also captured getting readied for a surgical operation to fix a broken jaw after being hit by a fleeing car in the fires.
There were happier moments as well – of firefighters and residents tending to animals, feeding them and providing much-needed affection.
Paradise resident Jeff Hill was scouting his neighborhood this weekend after returning home. He discovered this helpless horse trapped inside a backyard pool
Hill said: ‘As I was checking to see if someone’s house was standing, we stumbled upon this girl who had given up and had the look of defeat in her eyes’
Hill is pictured assisting the horse to the shallow end of the pool and out of the water
Thanks to Hill’s efforts, the horse survived. Hill said: ‘She got out, shook off, loved on us for a few minutes as a thank you and walked off assuring us that she was OK’
A traumatized kitten is pictured after receiving treatment through the Little Angels Project, which is running a MASH type service free of charge for animals afflicted in the fires
The kitten’s burnt paws are seen in this close-up shot. An unknown number of pets and wild animals have died in the flames
Another heartbreaking photograph taken from inside the animal hospital shows the severity of the kitten’s injuries
This black and white cat survived the deadly wildfires. Others were laid to rest
This German Shepard was found hanging from a fence with badly burnt paws this week in the California wildfires
The dog is seen laying in his recovery bed with casts covering all four legs
A terrier is also seen as it is readied for an operation to fix a broken jaw as it was hit by a fleeing car in the fires
A cat is treated for its injuries due to the Woolsey Fire in Woodland Hills, southern California
General views of the Animal Hospital in Agoura Hills, California
Dakota Semler stands with ‘Stanley’ the giraffe at the Malibu Wine Safari in Malibu, California on November 13
Los Angeles County firefighter Aurelio Sanchez feeds a camel stranded by wildfires in Malibu, California on November 13
Meanwhile, a tabby cat found with serious injures in a wildfire ravaged street in Paradise, northern California has tragically died, animal activists said.
A picture of the cat, nicknamed Billiegirl on social media after the road where she was found on Sunday, was shared all over the world as a miracle rescue, but unfortunately the animal did not survive its injuries.
An organization of animal lovers known as California Wildfire Pets which has been trying to reunite lost animals with their owners disclosed the news on Facebook.
They had earlier posted: ‘Are you missing an orange tabby kitty from the area of Billie Rd in Paradise?’ with a picture of the cat in the hope its family could be found.
Billiegirl the cat became one of thousands of animals who have perished in the deadly wildfires ravaging the state of California.
More tragic images from animal clinics or during rescue efforts show a cat in a makeshift incubator, a bunny rabbit whose ears were burned off by the flames and emergency workers desperately ferrying animals from the edge of the fires to safety.
Rest in peace: The badly burned cat was pictured cowering in agony before animal rescuers could take it to a veterinary center, after it was discovered near a residential block in Paradise, California on Sunday
A local animal activist group helping to reunite pets and owners announced that the tabby cat, nicknamed Billiegirl, had not survived her injuries
A rabbit suffering from burns struggles to find safety, as the Woolsey Fire continues to burn near Malibu in California
A badly burned bunny was rescued from the fires and treated for its wounds
The Camp Fire devastating Northern California, and the Woolsey Fire, which is currently raging near Malibu in the south, have forced residents to flee their homes, and have left many unable to also save their beloved pets.
As the confirmed human death toll of the Camp Fire reached 50 as of late Tuesday, with the flames having levelled more than 7,100 homes and other buildings, it now ranks as the deadliest and most destructive wildfire on record in California.
It is not officially known how many animals – wild or pets – have been killed or injured in the wildfires, which have been raging since Thursday, but it is thought to be at least several thousand.
Urgent evacuation orders have seen many animals abandoned, including horses and other farm animals, with residents potentially underestimating how damaging the fire would become.
A dog is treated for severe burns on its paws from the Woolsey Fire. Volunteer veterinarians with Veterinary Angels and The Little Angels Project, created a mash tent at Pierce College to treat animals injured or displaced by the fires
Shiloh, a two-year-old golden retriever, has suffered burns to her face and needs veterinarian treatment, but her owner, Cathy Fallon is refusing to leave her property because authorities will then not allow her to return due to the evacuation order
Cathy Fallon pets her dog Shiloh outside their burned-down home in Paradise, California
A cat is treated by workers at the Little Animals Project in LA after they were found with burns in the Woolsey fire
Equine veterinarian Jesse Jellison carries an injured goose to a waiting transport during the Camp Fire in Paradise
Dr. Maritxu Ravenscroft with Veterinary Angels and The Little Angels Project, looks over treatment notes for animals displaced by the fire
As well as pets, Northern California area is home to a myriad of wild animals, including several types of deer, black bears, bobcats, elks and cougars, and the Butte County area where Camp Fire burns hosts several wildlife sanctuaries.
Other common forest creatures are coyotes, raccoons, squirrels, skunks and foxes as well as a number of birds and snakes.
Volunteers and professionals have bandied together to try to rescue as many as possible, helped by donations from animal lovers – including Hollywood actress Sandra Bullock.
The Oceans 8 actress has donated $100,000 donation to The Humane Society of Ventura County, which announced the generous boost on their Facebook page.
‘Our efforts for rescuing and caring for evacuated animals from the Hill and Woolsey fires had caught her [Ms Bullock’s] attention and her team reached out to the shelter to show their support,’ the organization, which operates in southern California, wrote.
Members of the UC Davis Veterinary Emergency Response Team, Ashley Nola, left, and Catherine McFarren, right, tend to burns on a dog that was brought in to the Butte County Fair Grounds where large animals are being sheltered during the Camp Fire
Many large animals have been taken to the Butte County Fair as nearby communities are ordered to evacuate
Horses are evacuated by members of the Humane Society of Ventura County from an area affected by a wildfire in Malibu, California
A horse is seen as members of the Humane Society of Ventura County evacuate animals from an area affected by a wildfire in Malibu
A donkey rests on a roadside as the Camp Fire burns in Big Bend, California
‘Sandra Bullock and her family have reached out to other nonprofit organizations both during this incident and in the past.
‘However, this time she wanted to contribute to those on the frontline rescuing animals in peril and hope others will choose to do the same.’
‘The HSVC pledges to care for these animals for as long as is needed or until their owners feel comfortable in safely reuniting their families.’
A makeshift animal clinic has been set up in the Butte County Fair Grounds, 30 miles south of Paradise, at the weekend, where emergency service veterinarians tended to dogs with burned paws and fur.
Goats and horses have also found temporary shelter at the Fair Grounds as the Camp Fire continues to burn through the region, fueled by high winds in Butte County.
In Big Bend, Fire Captain Steve Millosovich carried a cage full of cats that were found abandoned in the road after the Camp Fire.
Stanley the giraffe, one of several exotic animals at Saddlerock Ranch, is shrouded in smoke in the aftermath of the Woosley Fire. The animals on the ranch survived, but several buildings on the property we destroyed or damaged by the fire
Images of Stanley in his pen with the fires raging behind him were shared on social media
Elsewhere, celebrities including Khloe Kardashian and Ariel Winter slammed a wine estate in Malibu for allegedly abandoning a giraffe.
Malibu Wines which owns the Saddlerock Ranch where some exotic animals are kept, had reportedly abandoned Stanley the giraffe to his fate.
Pictures emerging from Stanley’s enclosure show him standing near a fence just meters away from scorched earth caused by the devastating fires and flames in the background.
Saddlerock Ranch claimed in a statement last week that the animals were being evacuated, however this has been disputed by activists, including actress Whitney Cummings who visited the site on Saturday and found Stanley in his pen.
The ranch said all animals on the ranch survived, but several buildings on the property we destroyed or damaged by the fire.
‘House gone, hope the dogs got out’: Desperate owners post images of their beloved pets on social media as they search for animals missing in the California wildfires
Pet owners across California have turned to social media in the hopes that their beloved animals lost in the wildfires may have survived the flames.
Facebook groups such as Cowboy 911 and Camp Fire Pet Rescue and Reunification are being inundated with posts by worried local residents.
Many are pleading for help to find cats, dogs, horses and even pigs which they were forced to leave behind during the urgent evacuations last week, or were unable to locate in time.
Facebook groups helping California wildfire survivors are being inundated with posts by owners from across the state who were unable to take their pets with them when they evacuated their homes
Dozens of posts are being shared online, containing pictures of pets in happier times, as owners express their hope that their four-legged friend is one of the lucky ones to have been rescued.
‘Our pug Nahla was trapped in the house, if she is found or was rescued please contact me. She is very loved, she is our baby,’ as a caption to a picture of an adorable pug wearing a a pink flower tiara around her waist.
‘House is gone. Hoping they got out,’ another writes on a post urging anyone who has spotted eight pets including a dachshund puppyu and a labrador, to get in touch.
Another missing pet is a large pig named Sumo who is still missing from near Chico, California.
Many veterinary centers and sanctuaries in the areas of the Camp Fire, Woolsey Fire and Hill Fire are in turn posting pictures of saved animals, some with horrific injuries, to try to track down their owners.
This has seen a few sunshine stories, such as that of a badly injured female cat picked up in Paradise, California.
Thanks to the cat’s unique markings, its owner was able to identify it as its one-year-old pet.
The owner of Boo Boo the cat has posted a picture of their ‘handsome little kitty’ on a Facebook group for pet owners who are looking for their animals lost in the wildfires
Sumo the pig is still missing after the Camp Fire in northern California
The owners of this male tabby cat called ‘Kitty Friend’ hope to be able to find him
These two horses were found running around in Paradise, California, and an alert was posted on Facebook by a group set up to help reunite owners and rescued pets
This heartbreaking image was shared by a woman working at a veterinary centre after the badly burned cat was picked up in Paradise, California, and appears to have since been identified by its owners who spotted the Facebook post