La Guaira (Venezuela) (AFP) – Hundreds of hapless creatures are waiting to be reunited with their owners or find refuge with an adoptive family after Venezuela's devastating earthquakes struck one month ago.
Issued on: 23/07/2026 - 04:32
3 min Reading time
Cats, dogs, turtles and even a goat were made homeless by the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude quakes on June 24, adding to the human misery of the disaster.The tremors that struck within a minute of each other killed over 5,000 people, and left over 23,000 homeless in the worst-hit state of La Guaira and injured some 17,000 more.Survivors wracked with grief over the loss of their loved ones have set about looking for their pets in animal shelters that have popped up around the coastal city of La Guaira, north of Caracas."When the earthquake happened, we ran out and she stayed behind. I haven't been able to find her since that day," 42-year-old Raquel Ramos told AFP as she searched for her cat Mia.
Volunteers organized donations next to a sign reading "pet supplies" at a collection point at the Central University of Venezuela in Caracas © Raul ARBOLEDA / AFP
