In June of 2011, record rainfall in Canada and North Dakota caused the Souris River to rise to unprecedented levels. When water crested over levees in the small town of Minot, ND, a state of emergency was declared and 11,000 people -- and their pets -- were evacuated.

Minot-based Petfinder member Souris Valley Animal Shelter stepped up to the challenge of taking in displaced pets. As staff and volunteers rounded up pets who had become separated from their families, and as people began dropping off pets until they could return to their homes, it quickly became apparent that more staff would be needed. With the number of homeless pets growing to more than 500, volunteers were spread thin.

The Petfinder Foundation is dedicated to helping Petfinder members in times of disaster. With a $5,000 grant from the Petfinder Foundation, RedRover (formerly United Animal Nations) was able to send responders to the scene to help ease the burden on SVAS staff and volunteers. "I was nearly at the point of losing hope," says SVAS director Susan Wagers. "The knowledge and experience each responder brought meant so much."

After the jump: Read an amazing reunion story from the flood.

Over 17 million people were affected by the recent severe tornado outbreaks in the South and Midwest. Petfinder.com and the Petfinder.com Foundation are working together to reach out to shelters and rescue groups in the impacted areas and provide assistance.

One Petfinder.com member shelter, Taney County Animal Control in Hollister, MO, received a Petfinder.com Foundation disaster relief grant totaling $10,000. While the tornado that hit Taney County missed the shelter, the group is now operating as an emergency shelter, taking on higher numbers of stray and displaced pets while the community recovers from the disaster. Sherry Simpson, animal control supervisor for Taney County Animal Control reports that the shelter, which usually takes in about 50 pets a month is taking in anywhere from 20 to 25 a day.

National news outlets are heralding Wausau, WI, firefighters for saving a yellow Lab from a burning house -- and reviving him using mouth-to-snout CPR.

On Tuesday, Kim Carlson arrived home to find her house in flames. Her fiance's 17-year-old son, Dwight Borchardt, had already gotten the family's Border Collie and two cats out, but 7-year-old Koda was still inside.

"I was prepared to douse myself with water to get him," Carlson told local news station WSAW. "[My fiance] said, 'You can't, Kim, you cannot go,' and I said, 'I have to get that dog, I love him.' "

She ran into the house anyway, but the smoke was so thick she had to turn back. After firefighters put out the blaze, they found Koda in a bedroom, unconscious.

"When they laid him down on the ground, we could see that he was struggling quite a bit to breathe," firefighter Jared Thompson told WSAW. He and fellow firefighter Jamie Giese began administering CPR and giving Koda oxygen.

When the two appeared on the TODAY show on Friday, Giese told Matt Lauer, "I have never been trained in [CPR for pets]. ... We could tell he was trying to breathe, and our training for humans is airway, breathing, circulation. We had no tools handy, so it was mouth-to-snout.'' They were able to revive Koda, who was rushed to an animal hospital.

Hundreds of displaced pets are without homes and in need of temporary care due to the 34,000-acre wildfire in Bastrop County, TX. Although the blaze is now about 50 percent contained, more than 1,500 homes have been lost. In addition, stray dogs and cats and those in shelters remain at risk.

Bastrop County Animal Control's shelter was directly in the path of the fires and was evacuated, and some area residents were evacuated so quickly that their pets were left behind -- and now have been without care for nearly a week.

The Austin Humane Society (AHS) has rescued more than 100 dogs, cats, kittens and puppies from the fires, including evacuated pets from animal control, and is still working in the area to save strays and pets who were left behind.

This heroic effort is possible in part thanks to a $3,000 disaster grant from the Petfinder.com Foundation that AHS will put toward the cost of medical care for the affected pets.

The rescue efforts continue daily. Thanks to the disaster grant, AHS will be able to continue its critical work while dealing with the influx of pets in need.

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To help further in this time of disaster, donate to the Petfinder.com Foundation Disaster Fund.

On Sept. 11, 2001, I was living here in New York and heard the sirens outside my window as fire trucks rushed to the burning towers. I felt dumbfounded and numb, and only my cat Toby, purring on my lap, brought me to a place where I could think again and try to help.

Toby wasn't the only pet who provided comfort that day. The Animal Planet series Saved aired a special episode about people whose pets helped them recover from 9/11.

When Maureen's firefighter sons Timmy and Tommy Haskell died in the Twin Towers, she says only the presence of Timmy's beloved Dalmatian, Blaze, "made my life worth living again." (See a clip from their segment above.)

And when 4-year-old Kate witnessed the attacks and became withdrawn and silent, only her family's new dog, Scout, helped her get over her trauma. (After the jump, a clip from Kate's segment.)

Wildfires are ravaging central Texas and flooding is still affecting the Northeast.

Shelters and rescue groups across both areas are working to get local families' pets and the homeless pets in their care to safety, and we've been reaching out to adoption groups in the affected regions to find out what they need and offer help.

(If you are a Petfinder member and need disaster-related assistance, please email your Petfinder outreach team or learn more about the Petfinder.com Foundation Disaster Fund.)

If you just want to help, we've got some simple things you can do to make a difference (after the jump).

I've long had a disaster plan that includes my pets; after all, I'm a born-and-raised New Yorker who was here for 9/11 and the blackout of 2003. But when Hurricane Irene struck, I realized my plan had a gaping hole in it: What if I'm not around during the disaster?

This weekend I was in Tysons Corner, VA, for the BlogPaws pet-bloggers conference. At the time, the worst of Irene was supposed to hit around there, so I didn't think twice about leaving my pets behind in my family's capable hands.

But then Mayor Bloomberg ordered an evacuation of lower Manhattan. Was my neighborhood next? And, if so, would my family be able to get themselves and our pets out without my help? No.

I raced back to New York and got home just before Irene hit. Thankfully, leaking windows and fallen tree branches were the worst damage we saw. But the whole thing made me all too aware of what could have happened if I hadn't have been home to help.

Count this as a lesson learned: From now on, any time I go away for a few days without my pets, I'll be sure to take some precautions. After the jump: Things to consider before you next leave town.

As Hurricane Irene threatens the Northeast, we want all of you who are within the storm's path to be prepared to keep all family members safe.

Visit our Disaster Preparedness and Pets to find disaster preparedness tips in English and Spanish, downloadable disaster preparedness kit checklists for many pet species, and information on evacuating.

Here are a few important things you can do now to be prepared:

1. Make sure all cats and dogs are wearing securely fastened collars with up-to-date identification.
   
   
2. If you must or are planning to evacuate, remember that some community shelters may not accept pets. Check beforehand, and then look into other arrangements as soon as possible, such as having your pet stay with a friend, family member or reputable kennel. Also have pet carriers on-hand and in an accessible place near the front door.
   
   
3. Contact your local animal shelter, elected official or emergency management office to inquire what pet disaster plans are in place.
   
   
4. Assemble a pet disaster kit including your pet's medical records, medications, name and number of veterinarian, a first aid kit, collars and leashes, food, water, bowls and a manual can opener, cat litter and pan and a photo of your pet.
   
   
5. Make sure you have an appropriately-sized crate or carrier for each animal. Pets will be more welcome in an emergency sheltering situation if they are contained. Ask friends, relatives or others outside the affected area whether they could shelter your animals temporarily.
   
   
6. Contact hotels and motels outside your immediate area to check policies on accepting pets and ask about restrictions on numbers, size and species. Ask if "no pet" policies could be waived in an emergency.
   
   
7. Bring pets inside well in advance of the hurricane so you don't have to search for them if you have to evacuate. As the hurricane approaches, call ahead to confirm your emergency shelter arrangements.

After the jump: Links to our disaster-preparedness content.