The following press release is courtesy Northeast Animal Shelter.

After the tornado in Springfield, many people affected are facing challenges with what to do with their pets while they rebuild or seek temporary shelter.

Representatives of the Northeast Animal Shelter in Salem went to Springfield last wekk to help the city's Thomas O'Connor Animal Adoption Center, returning with several cats to put up for adoption. This will make room for animals owned by those in Springfield and surrounding areas who may have to give up or board their pets temporarily.  

Beginning late Wednesday afternoon, people were arriving at Springfield shelters with animals they either had to surrender or put in a safe place since their homes are damaged. One family had no idea where they were going to sleep Wednesday night.

To date, five different rescue groups across Massachusetts have taken approximately 25 animals out of the O'Connor center to make room. The groups are NEAS, MSPCA Boston, MSPCA Methuen, Animal Rescue League Boston, and In Honey's Memory in Huntington.

In the last three months, NEAS has taken in dogs from the Southern tornado regions, chihuahuas flown in from the streets of LA by Katherine Heigl's foundation, Puerto Rico dogs taking the last non-stop flight out of San Juan, and dogs seeking refuge from a shelter fire in