Following President Trump's mass deportation campaign, federal agents have conducted large-scale immigration enforcement crackdowns across multiple U.S. cities, including a five-week operation in New Orleans, resulting in hundreds of thousands of arrests and deportations. Companion animals including dogs, cats, bunnies, and chickens have been left behind by deported families, overwhelming pet rescue organizations and animal control agencies. In New Orleans East, residents Luis and Nivia Burke have taken in a growing number of stray and abandoned pets, including a dog named Rocky whose owner left him behind when he returned to Honduras after growing fearful of detention. The Louisiana SPCA, which handles animal control for the city, reported the number of surrendered animals in 2025 was nearly double that of previous years, a rise attributed to both immigration arrests and families sheltering in place out of fear of deportation.