Frantic Residents Search For Pets Lost in Fire

Their family home destroyed, Kathleen Moretti and her husband George searched through the ashes and rubble of their fire ravaged residence on Wednesday for two cats who have been missing since they .

Moretti, who lives on Oakwood Drive in Manorville, has not been able to find Little Kitty, a cat who was in the basement when she and her family were forced to flee. Moretti was able to toss another cat, Cocktail, out of the house to safety, but he hasn't been seen since.

The Morettis, who have three inside cats and a German shepherd, and who cared for three feral cats outside, are desperate to find their two missing four-legged felines.

"We were expecting the evacuation just to be precautionary, and that we'd all be home later that night," Moretti said. "I'm frantic, because they're like your children. You just want to know they're okay."

Little Kitty, who was last seen in the basement, where the fire broke out, is skittish, Moretti said. "I don't even know if she's in there or not."

Cocktail, she added, is a "big, fat lovable" cat who started up a stray. "I felt terrible, just throwing him out the door, but I thought he'd be okay. I'm sure they're absolutely terrified. This was their sanctuary."

Another cat, Moretti said, has been disoriented since the fire and keeps trying to get back inside the burned out home.

Lending a hand are the Guardians of Rescue, a Port Jefferson based not for profit, volunteer organization that is galvanizing to help residents whose pets were lost or displaced in the wildfires. Robert Misseri, president of the organization, has put a call out for voluteers to help search for animals, and for donations of manpower, water and food.

"We've been contacted by residents who have dogs and cats, and feral cat colonies, that are missing, and we're going to try and find them," Misseri said.

"Because of the sudden warning, a lot of pets may have been outside and the owners were not able to get them. The animals probably got spooked by the smoke and disoriented," he said. 

One mama cat, he said, had just given birth the day before the fire and is missing. Volunteers headed to Manorville Tuesday with cans of food to lure the cats home.

When fire approaches, Misseri said, animals can often travel a mile from home to escape. "They might as well be in another country," Misseri said. "Because once the smell of smoke takes over, they don't have the scent, and it's problematic. My concern is that they go deeper into the brush and don't find their way back -- and days turn into weeks."

Wildlife is also a worry, said the Suffolk County SPCA, which is urging drivers to use caution near the wildfire areas and near large brush fires.

Roy Gross, Chief of the Suffolk SPCA said wildlife has been displaced from their natural environment because of the wildfires. "These animals are suffering, and are dazed and confused, and might wander into the path of oncoming vehicles," Gross said. Even normally nocturnal animals might be out during the day because of the fires, he added. 

Animals, said Staci Earl, clinic director of The Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center of the Hamptons, located in Hampton Bays,  will vacate the area as fire approaches. "They're gone long before the fire even gets there," she said.

The danger of wildfires, especially during the birthing season, is that animals can't rescue their litters. "Babies can get left behind if a mother can't get them all out," Earl said. Mothers also need to be able to find a new site for their young, Earl added.

Since many mammals are born this month, squirrels and baby fox might have been left behind. Raptors, including owls and hawks, could also be at risk since birds are physically unable to move their young from their nests and would have to abandonthem.

Turtles, who often move too slowly to escape fire, are hibernating beneath the ground and could be safe, Earl said.

Although no wildlife has been brought in yet, Earl urged residents to call the Wildlife Rescue Center if any wildlife is found.

Pam Green, executive director of the Kent Animal Shelter, said although initially is was feared they would have to evacuate with 100 animals, they were able to stay put and all animals are safe.

As for Moretti, she continues to search for her two lost companions. "I'm just going to pray," she said.