Carmel Magazine

"We were live on KSBW, and between dona- tion pleas, we watched the news about an out- break in Seattle. The stock market took a huge hit. I vividly remember at the end of the night, when we're usually hugging and high-fiving and celebrating, we paused and realized that maybe we shouldn't hug it out this time," says Brookhouser. "The next week, we went into shelter-in-place." Even COVID couldn't derail the SPCA's suc- cess, however. The organization expected pan- demic-related job cuts and economic uncertain- ty to trigger an influx in homeless animals. Instead, shelters nationwide reported spiking adoption rates. "People saw the benefit of having an animal to share their heart and their home with. Even today, we have very few animals available for adoption," says Brookhouser. She and the SPCA team again jumped into action on August 16, when lightning sparked the River Fire. The organization's Highway 68 facility filled with evacuated pets, and families with horses, goats, emu and other large species were directed to overflow shelters established at the Marina Equestrian Center and Salinas Rodeo grounds. Within three days, the Carmel Fire and Dolan Fire also ignited. "Demand more than doubled, and our team 124 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 2 1 The SPCA quickly expanded its pres- ence at the Monterey County Fair & Event Center, separating horses, chickens, dogs, exotic pets and other species into venues across the grounds. (Top) Ducklings evacuated from Salinas were kept safe at the SPCA, (Bottom) a bunny is cared for by the SPCA. Photos: Courtesy of SPCA Monterey County

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