Applewood Animal Hospital is still accepting donations for WNC

In the week following Hurricane Helene’s destruction in Western North Carolina, a Dallas veterinary hospital began working to send pet supplies and other donations to the impacted areas.

Dr. Caitlin Rubow and other staff members at Applewood Animal Hospital collected several loads of supplies, and they are not done yet, according to Applewood employee Renee Beasley.

Immediately after the devastating event, Rubow said, people were mostly thinking of the immediate danger posed to families in WNC.

After a couple of days, though, they started to realize that the people who have lost everything may have been able to save their pets, she said.

Rubow said she believes that for those who did not lose them, holding onto their pets might be giving them a little hope.

In light of the destruction, Rubow said herself and other staff at Applewood, like many other businesses in Gaston County, felt moved to collect items for donation.

Rubow started by taking multiple loads of supplies to the Lincolnton airport where they were put on planes for distribution to the heavily impacted areas, she said.

While searching online for opportunities to connect with other veterinarians in the affected areas, Rubow said she came across a post created by a veterinarian in Louisiana who was looking for someone in the Gaston area to take animal supplies and deliver them to WNC.

While Applewood never limited people to only donating animal supplies, Rubow said they began to focus on those donations around the same time, so she reached out and offered to take the items.

On Oct. 12, she and her parents loaded a truck and trailer with the items and drove them to the Western North Carolina Regional Livestock Center, she said.

The family waited in line for hours along with others dropping off supplies and some picking up what they needed, according to Rubow.

"It was a beautiful thing to see, so many strangers … all came together," she said.

Applewood staff recently drove their fourth load of supplies directly to a drop-off center in Asheville, where they learned that the needs are shifting toward accommodating cold weather, she said.

According to Beasley, Applewood is shifting their focus to include items that will help keep people warm.

They ask that people donate fencing supplies, generators, warm clothing, and other items that can be used to heat homes or keep people warm ahead of colder weather.

She added that it is hard to contact some of the veterinary clinics in the impacted areas to find out which ones are still able to operate, but the clinic is grateful for the community support allowing them to aid in relief efforts.

“We’re still willing to collect … we’re not going to turn anyone away,” Beasley said.