Help the dogs get their home back.

Last week we had a 40’ conex delivered to Cane Corso Ranch. My plan is to convert it to kennels with outdoor runs. This way, if we have another flood we will be able to close the doors on the conex and load it onto a trailer with the dogs and evacuate. We can then roll out as a self contained unit to anywhere in driving distance should disaster strike. The cost of the conex was 2,750 including delivery.

The funding you guys have provided enabled this to happen. I opened a bank account with the remaining money and there silt sits until I can figure out what the next best move is. I plan to put concrete under the building here and this alone will probably be around 6,000 dollars. After that there will need to be runs and gravel installed for the dogs and shelter. I am exploring HVAC that can move with the conex and run off generators.

Thank you so much for your support.

The roads are opening back up finally. 421 is only two lanes but trash trucks are able to get through and so they are picking up the piles of trash from the ends of the roads. This weekend we were able to get most of our flooded stuff out of the buildings outside and have them drying out now. Once dry we will finally be able to get our cars emptied out and the stuff off of our piece. So far, there has been nowhere else to put that stuff.

The dogs’s building still has some stuff in it. The easiest solution is just empty it, clean it up and put them back in it. With cold weather approaching fast, all of the insulation would need to be replaced and heat introduced. And thus the dilemma. There is always so much to do and consider. Including, do we build back up here, build better, or just save every penny and try to get out and to higher ground? We still have all of your donations and want to spend it in the wisest way possible. The next week or two will solidify our choices.

We have gotten all of the dogs back to the farm and FEMA has been out as well as NCJUA to access the wind damage. NCJUA said the dog's building is a total loss and estimated it would take a crane two days to get the two trees off of it. The insurance will only pay for one "garage" and the pump house where the well snapped off and the laundry facilities were is another building with a roof that needs replacement and has its own tree on it. The max payout is 11,000 and some odd dollars. The estimated cost of removing the trees alone is over 7,000 dollars. In short, there is nowhere near enough money to get the dog building rebuilt with power and water. Further, we do not know if we should put any money into rebuilding here as FEMA may condemn the area. If we do rebuild, we will have to rebuild higher. There was around four feet of water in the dog building. If I build it again, it will have to be at least five feet higher than it currently is. I have applied for a SBA loan and am still waiting to hear from insurance. FEMA gave us loss of use money for the house for two months but we have yet to see a cent from insurance. Your contributions have kept us alive!

The plan is to get the dogs back to the farm tomorrow on Friday. While most people have about three weeks of recovery behind them, we are just getting started. The house has only been accessible for three days. Some of our things were looted, other missing. I found many things about a half mile away. The power came on yesterday.

We lost practically all of our dog records, measurements, first aid, vaccines, wormers etc. The kennel building had about four feet of water inside. All of the outbuildings did too. It looks like everything just floated around in some strange current, created by what I have no idea. Everything is covered in red, slimy hog waste tainted water. Our well snapped off. The health department will come and test the well tomorrow.

The neighbors I have seen have had enough. Just two years ago, Matthew was catastrophic and supposedly as bad as it could get. Florence added four feet of water. Everyone is hoping FEMA buys the whole community out. It's hard to put your heart, soul and savings into a place that can wash it all away with ease.

So many people have offered to help but the truth is, it's such a mess I don't know where to start

I made it back to the farm today. The water was low enough to witness the destruction. I found most of the things that were washed away from outside about a half mile up the road. It seems looters had already been picking away at what they could reach.

The dog's kennel area had about chest deep water in it, tossing everything around inside. There is atill a tree on the building that needs to be removed before getting inside but there are several crushed panels and obvious holes on the metal roof. The water pump's bladder tank snapped off when it went under water. The HVAC unit for the kennel building was submerged as well but there is no power to test it.

Goal for tomorrow is getting water running and calling the power company.

When I got back to town I checked the mail and found a letter from the IRS saying we are now a legit 501c3! Very happy about this.

Today I did an interview with WECT Ben Smart trying to draw attention to the Canetuck community so that people will know what we are dealing with in Pender County. Wilmington is beginning to feel like normal while those of us from Pender County have not yet begun he recovery process.

Whether we stay on our property or move some place higher, the rescue needs more donations to get back to the readiness level we were at before the storm. If we stay the building will need to be repaired or replaced and raised up off the ground six or eight feet. The dogs will need to be housed and setup before we can begin recovery of our own house.

We have come a long way from the feeling of utter despair that I felt that first night, huddled on the soaked couch with wet dogs, drywall and insulation falling all around us and buckets of rain falling outside. If anything, these things are supposed to bring a community together and it has. The help people are offering us is tremendous.

The time spent with the dogs in these close quarters, that night in panicked evacuation, the following days of uncertainty and now in an entirely new routine for all of us has increased our bond as one big pack. It is an incredible sight to see the dogs begin to pick up on what's happening and assisting in adapting to the adversity we face. There have been times I've sat on the couch full of panic and dread, completely drained and Tiny Tot has just pressed her ear against my chest and leaned into me, showing me we will be OK. I used to and still do sing to her. She was a sickly puppy that could not nurse and I spent many hours attempting to get food in her. When I would return from a day at work I was sure she would be dead. The line, "one more night could kill me baby" from You and Tequila seemed so fitting at the time because every night I would take care of her thinking the next she would die. And it was killing me inside. Now she's the one taking care of me as we await our farm's fate.

Last night a friend on the fire department told me water has receded to the previous record of Hurricane Matthew, the storm that devistated Currie, the storm we still had not recovered from when Florence hit. Some estimates of returning home are as soon as five days. Others are two weeks. As of today there are still rivers and creeks flowing through washed out portions of the highway home. When the water is low enough, our drive will be considerably longer than the 45 minutes it used to take to get to work and to town. Only once we are home on the farm can we begin the long road of recovery. For now we wait with each other with the realization that this is all we have.