Things are settling down for the animals in Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Charley, said Alan Schwartz of Days End Farm Horse Rescue of Lisbon, Md., on Aug. 23. “We treated a couple of horses, a bull, some pigs and goats, mostly for puncture or debris wounds,” said Schwartz. “A large animal vet we’ve worked with said he’s seen a few colics lately.” Schwartz said the biggest concern at this point for horses is clean drinking water.

“The heat has been brutal, and it’s very humid,” he reported. “We’ve had massive rain storms nearly every afternoon. The Peace River Is over its banks, and you can smell it a half-mile away. That’s because there’s no power for the waste treatment plants.”

The Peace River usually is touted as one of the best of Florida’s State Canoe Trails.

Code 3 Associates brought their “big truck” to Florida. This is a fully equipped semi-truck that can handle large and small animal triage. Schwartz said three vets and four vet techs from the University of Florida are currently working out of Code 3, and the personnel have been rotating from the university. The Code 3 truck also has a 350-gallon water tank, so one of their jobs has been to carry fresh water to farms