KEY WEST, Fla. – As migrant landings in the Florida Keys surged starting last summer, federal agents noticed more than just humans onboard homemade vessels. They also saw pets.
Juliette Llanes was among a group of migrants that arrived on Stock Island on Aug. 4. She was onboard a boat with her daughters, husband, and two dogs, Pelusin and Nina.
Llanes said when they made landfall, she got to her knees and thanked God. Federal agents later took Pelusin and Nina, 12-year-old rescues that had never left her family’s side.
“I felt like the whole world was falling down on me,” Llanes said in Spanish.
Llanes said the agents asked her to fill out forms, so they could take Pelusin and Nina to the Florida Keys Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, a private, non-profit animal rescue in Key West.
“For the most part, these dogs when we get them are incredibly healthy, and that is true to their pet owners and what they’re doing to take care of them on the journey over here,” said Tammy Fox, the executive director of the SPCA.
U.S. Border Patrol takes migrants into custody for processing, but they don’t care for their animals. Fox said the state and federal governments require the dogs to be quarantined and receive veterinary care. She reported that between June and now, they have received 46 dogs that migrated from Cuba.
This, she warned, was a big increase from past years. Some of the dogs end up getting adopted. Fox said 96% are reunited with their families, usually at no cost. Llanes picked up Pelusin and Nina at the SPCA months after her arrival in late October.
“I would not have come here without my dogs,” Llanes said through tears.
Fox said the reunions are very emotional.
“We get emotionally invested in them when we care for them,” Fox said. “We are very grateful we can provide this for the pet owners.”