Viral video of Oreo the dog's L.A. fire reunion inspires lawmaker to help save pets during disasters
A California lawmaker this week introduced legislation inspired by the viral reunion of “Oreo” the dog and his owner during the Los Angeles fires that aims to help save pets left behind during natural disasters.
LOS ANGELES — A California lawmaker this week introduced legislation inspired by the viral reunion of “Oreo” the dog and his owner during the Los Angeles fires that aims to help save pets left behind during natural disasters.
The proposed law, which has been filed in the California State Assembly but is not yet publicly available for viewing, is called the FOUND (Friends of Oreo Uniting During Disasters) Act.
"The FOUND Act is something that embraces what we all understand, how important our pets are and that they are parts of our family," California Assemblymember Rick Zbur, who authored the bill and represents portions of Los Angeles, said in an exclusive interview with NBC News.
Casey Colvin's holds his dog Oreo after they reunited on March 17, 2025.NBC Los Angeles"This grew out of the circumstances that so many people faced trying to reunite themselves with their pets when they were evacuated throughout Southern California because of the recent wildfires," Zbur said. "One of the things that we realized is that, you know, cities and towns don’t really have procedures to help people reunite with their pets."
The measure, AB 478, calls for local jurisdictions to include in their emergency plans a process for retrieving animals left behind during mandatory evacuations. It also seeks to have cities establish an emergency rescue hotline to help evacuees get assistance.
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