Triangle nonprofit reunites owner with dogs affected by Hurricane Florence

With kayaks and a canoe, Nicole Kincaid, Mollie Doll, and others members of the Triangle nonprofit Cause for Paws of North Carolina went to the coast to help rescue animals affected by Hurricane Florence.

The group initially went to help shelters, but then heard a call about two dogs stranded on the roof of a house in Newport.

"The street was completely flooded, mailboxes were underwater, water was rising pretty fast," said Kincaid, Program Director for Cause for Paws of N.C. "We paddled out there and found the dogs strapped on the roof."

They were able to rescue the dogs that day, which was nearly two weeks ago. They also posted pictures of the dogs on social media.

Amazingly, they located the owner, Jack Denton, and set up a reunion at the CFP thrift shop in Zebulon on Wednesday.

"Sorry I had to throw you outside in the water," Denton told the dogs, named ACDC and Babes. He apologized for letting them fend for themselves. He said he's disabled and that the water was rising into his toilets, sinks and everywhere else.

"I didn't know what else to do to save them so I just threw them on out the door and I figured somebody would get them," Denton said.

Denton said he swam to a friend's house, where he stayed for a few days. After he was safe, he said he visited a shelter daily to see if his dogs were there.

Cause for Paws of N.C. had found ACDC and Babes on a rooftop, one block away from Denton's house, on Sept. 15. The organization said they checked out Denton to make sure he's a good dog owner so that he could have his dogs back.

"He's an incredible pet owner," Kincaid said. "He goes every month to make sure those dogs get heartworm preventative. He makes sure those dogs are up to date on vaccines. He truly did not want to leave these dogs behind. They're his buddies."

"Just jumping out of my heart, excited to see them because I even didn't think I was going to get them back or nothing else," Denton said.

Denton said he hopes to rebuild in the same area. He said he went back to his home and discovered he lost everything, but he still has his family and his dogs.

"They're like my children," he said.

Cause for Paws of N.C. is going to take care of flea and heartworm preventative medication and food for ACDC and Babes for the next year.

The organization is collecting supplies for dogs and cats at their thrift stores.

If you would like to help, click here.