8 State Hurricane Kate

As far as we know, Kate, an Australian Cattle Dog, was rescued from a rooftop in Louisiana on September 7th 2005, nine days after Hurricane Katrina struck. On September 18^th, Kate and I met at the Lamar Dixon Expo Center in Gonzales, LA where rescued animals were brought for care and feeding. I didn’t think that Kate would survive the system there and fought red tape for two days to become her foster mom. On September 22nd, before Hurricane Rita hit, I cancelled my plane ticket home and hijacked my rental SUV to take Kate over 1200 miles to Minnesota. We traveled through eight states, thus Kate became 8 State Hurricane Kate.

In November, I was told that Kate came from Plaquemines Parish, a county with a population of about 27,000 southeast of New Orleans, where cattle were grazed along the river. This county was ground zero for Katrina, experiencing flooding from the sea wall to the southeast and from the Mississippi River to the northwest. 80% of the cattle were reported lost to the storm. After the hurricane, there was only one road out of Plaquemines Parish, and much of the Parish was underwater.

After arriving in Minnesota, Kate was diagnosed with hookworms, whipworms, and giardia. She tested positive for heartworm. She had fly strike bites on her ears and muzzle and her face was sunburned. The hair was missing from her muzzle and feet. Her teeth were very worn, and she did not have one whole tooth left in her mouth. She had arthritis in her spine. She had tendon damage in her foot and walked with a limp. But Kate is a cattle dog. She’s tough and she’s a survivor.

I listed Kate on Petfinder and spent months trying to find her original owners. But Kate was in Minnesota to stay.