Dr. Dick Green
Director of Disaster Response, Field Investigations & Response
ASPCA Anti-Cruelty

Dr. Dick Green is the director of Disaster Response for the ASPCA’s Field Investigations and Response team.  In his role, Dr. Green is responsible for leading the efforts of the Disaster Response department, which covers natural and man-made disasters as well as large and small animal rescue operations. He also oversees the ASPCA’s internal disaster readiness program and develops partnerships with national and local agencies to enhance the organization’s disaster response capabilities.

Most recently, Dr. Green guided the ASPCA’s response to Hurricane Isaac in Louisiana and Mississippi and Hurricane Sandy in New Jersey and New York City. In anticipation of the storms, Dr. Green directed pre-evacuation efforts of shelter animals and distribution of vital pet supplies to pet owners. Following the hurricanes, Dr. Green managed field rescue operations to search for stranded pets as well as mobile wellness clinics dispatched to provide veterinary care for affected animals. He was essential in the planning, establishment and oversight of an emergency boarding facility set up in Brooklyn, N.Y., to provide temporary shelter for animals displaced by Hurricane Sandy.

Dr. Green has successfully led numerous field operations for various animal rescues across the country. Aside from directing recovery efforts during Hurricanes Sandy and Isaac with the ASPCA, Dr. Green responded to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita with the American Humane Association, and Hurricanes Gustav and Ike during his time at IFAW. Additionally, Dr. Green has made frequent trips to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to improve animal welfare conditions since the January 2010 earthquake there and spearheaded a study which identified effective efforts for vaccination and spay/neuter initiatives to provide animal welfare groups with essential information to design and target areas of Port-au-Prince with the greatest need for future intervention activities. Dr. Green has made monumental contributions to the field of animal rescue and relief efforts worldwide by applying scientific background and research to response efforts.

Prior to joining the ASPCA in 2011, Dr. Green was at the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), where he served as emergency response manager of disasters and recently led large-scale response operations in Haiti, Japan and Pakistan. In the last two years, Dr. Green managed the animal rescue and relief efforts of 24 domestic and international responses, including the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan and severe flooding that affected communities in upstate New York following Hurricane Irene. Additionally, he organized and facilitated a two-day meeting of world experts on the effects of radiation on animals following the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, and submitted recommendations which were accepted by the Government of Japan.

It was also at IFAW where Dr. Green established and chaired the National Animal Rescue and Sheltering Coalition (NARSC) in early 2006 following Hurricane Katrina. NARSC is comprised of 14 animal welfare groups, including the ASPCA, and it is the first coalition in the nation that is dedicated to working with all levels of government and non-government agencies in finding collaborative solutions to major human-animal emergency issues. Dr. Green assumed the Chair position for a second time in January 2012 and continues to participate as a key player during domestic and international disasters as well as animal cruelty cases.

Dr. Green is a frequent speaker on such topics as best practices in animal evacuations, relief and recovery efforts. He is also certified in numerous animal rescue operations, including swift water and rope rescue, technical animal rescue, and has completed the Department of Homeland Security/FEMA coursework. Dr. Green has a doctorate in education from Brigham Young University, and was Assistant Professor at Gonzaga University and the University of Puget Sound.

Dr. Green resides in Santa Rosa, Calif.

ASPCA

ASPCA's Field Investigations and Response Team