When Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005, our country sat glued to the TV, horrified by images of folks stranded on rooftops, houses reduced to wet rubble and an estimated 250,000 animals fending for themselves after being abandoned by fleeing owners. Many of us thought we could do little more than wring our hands or write checks to the American Red Cross, but East Dallas neighbor Maeleska Fletes felt moved to action.
Maeleska, a lifelong animal lover, grew up in a family that “usually had a dog, cat, goat, horse or hamster.” Maeleska was moved to help when she learned that Metroplex Animal Coalition was spearheading relocation efforts for the four-legged victims of the storm. Unable to assist in transporting animals to area shelters — “I drove a Volkswagen Beetle, can’t get many animals in that,” she says — she instead offered her expertise and services as a web designer.
The Coalition immediately took her up on her offer, but fate had more in store. “Soon I was meeting rescue folks and discovered Paws in the City. I started as the web designer, and next thing you know I’m fostering, attending adoption events and helping any way I can.”
That would be an understatement. Maeleska is well known in the animal rescue community and serves as president of Dallas Companion Animal Project, a non-profit umbrella organization that coordinates rescue groups and works to reduce euthanasia rates. She also represents District 9 on the Animal Shelter Commission, advising her councilman on maintaining excellent shelter programs and services.
Mere titles? A bureaucrat? No, Maeleska walks the walk. And it’s all a labor of love, every bit volunteer. She pays the bills with her web designs and with her work as a manicurist at Rocket Science Salon on Garland Road. For years, Maeleska has run the Animal Alert program for Little Forest Hills/Forest Hills. Her phone rings frequently with calls from panicked pet owners whose dogs or cats have gone missing. She gets right to work, emailing photos and information to neighbors in the area. More often than not, the result is a happy reunion.
Animal Alert also helps found animals, those wandering the streets with no obvious owner. Maeleska arranges a foster family for the animal until its owner is located or a new permanent home is in place.
No matter the neighborhood, though, Maeleska’s ready. “I carry leashes, treats, dog food, water, and a microchip scanner in my car at all times. In a perfect world, the pup comes to me.” That’s not always the case. Many a time, she has had to “sit on the ground for an hour or two until the pup’s hunger makes him come to me.” In harder cases, “I have to follow the pup, learn his hangout and set a trap to catch him.”
Maeleska, who has been known to stop her car in the middle of the street to carry a pokey turtle back to safety, has stories. But she reflects, “The one thing I’ve seen over and over is the way a scared dog living on the street that no one can touch has turned into a total love bug and wonderful pet.”
So goes the story of Trixie. When Maeleska moved into a new neighborhood a couple of years ago, she immediately noticed two dogs running in the area. A bit of investigation revealed that Trixie and her daughter had been running loose for about eight years and had at least 80 puppies between them. Maeleska contacted Duck Team 6, a group that catches street dogs. Though it took eight months, they eventually caught Trixie (sadly, the daughter disappeared). “Once she was caught, I truly cried.”
Maeleska and partner Nick Shannon are now fostering Trixie who is making progress. “She still gets nervous when things get loud,” but she interacts well with the other fosters in the house, as well as Maeleska’s and Nick’s own “babies,” Charlie Brown and Holly, both lab mixes. “Trixie is patient, so when I get home she waits her turn for kisses. She stands behind the excited pups until I pet each one. Once they have calmed down, she walks up and waits to be petted. She is super sweet and I hope to find her a perfect home.”
Maeleska encourages neighborhood vigilance. “If we keep an eye out for each other and our furry friends, East Dallas will be the best part of Dallas.” And she urges pet owners to spay/neuter, collar and tag, and microchip.
“Us rescuers do the best we can, and each animal we ‘save’ takes a bit of our hearts,” she admits. “But in return we get a piece of theirs. So one day I will have a complete dog heart. That, to me, is a heart full of unconditional love. That is the goal, right?”
For more Information:
DCAP: dallasanimals.org
Dallas Animal Services: dallasanimalservices.org
DFW Furgotten Friends: DFWFGF.org
