UVALDE, Texas — Austin Pets Alive! has taken in over 270 animals over the past four days as flood response efforts expand across Central Texas, with teams now on the ground in Uvalde and in a neighborhood in Crystal City.

APA! deployed transport teams and volunteers to Kendall County, Kerrville, Boerne, San Antonio, Hondo, Zavala, Uvalde and, Medina County. They have worked to clear animal control facilities so those communities could focus on their residents.

By the end of the day Thursday, APA! stated that they had taken in 68 dogs against just 42 open kennels, with teams working through the night.

Late Friday, APA! received word of a neighborhood near Crystal City that had been completely evacuated as floodwaters rose. Families made it out safely, but were not able to bring their pets with them.

After roughly an hour searching for a way in, the team gained access with help from the local fire department. At around 7 p.m., the first trapped animals were pulled from the water.

Over the next three hours, the team worked to pull animals directly out of flooded homes, including dogs left in kennels that were partially submerged in floodwater.

They stated that one kitten was found trapped in a birdcage inside a flooded shed, where she was later brought to safety.

The team rescued a total of 10 dogs and 7 cats directly from the floodwaters during this time.

ALSO: LCRA to begin floodgate operations at Buchanan Dam Sunday

Additionally, APA! is helping coordinate the evacuation of a Uvalde shelter with 53 dogs and 12 cats, all now safe and transferring into APA!’s care.

APA! is asking the Austin community to help by fostering, adopting, volunteering, and donating.

TO PERFORM AT PBR GAMBLER DAYS PRESENTED BY TECOVAS

Local Honky-Tonk Band to Kick Off Fan Fest on Saturday, Aug. 22, and Selena Quintanilla Perez Tribute Band to Close Out Gambler Days On Sunday, Aug. 23

AUSTIN, Texas (July 16, 2026) – The Austin Gamblers, 2024 PBR Teams Champions, announced today that Austin-based honky-tonk and country band All My(eux) Groovy Friends will take the Fan Fest stage on Saturday, Aug. 22, bringing an energetic mix of Texas country, Americana, and dance-ready sounds to PBR Gambler Days presented by Tecovas. Additionally, nationally acclaimed Selena tribute band Tejano Queen Forever will close out the weekend on Sunday, Aug. 23, with a high-energy celebration of the music and legacy of Selena Quintanilla Perez during Fan Fest. Both bands join a star-studded lineup of live music performances at Gambler Days, which also includes country superstar Dustin Lynch on Friday, Aug. 21, and hip-hop icon Nelly on Saturday, Aug. 22.

“We’re always looking for ways to raise the bar and deliver an experience our fans will never forget,” said JJ Gottsch, CEO of the Austin Gamblers. “Just like the adrenaline and excitement that comes with riding a 1,000-pound bull, we wanted to bring that same energy to our lineup of acts for Gambler Days 2026. Tejano Queen Forever will celebrate the music and legacy of Texas icon Selena Quintanilla, whose m and All My(eux) Groovy Friends is a staple in the Austin honky-tonk scene, so it felt only right to bring  both acts to the Fan Fest stage.”

Known for bringing people together through two-stepping and line dancing, All My(eux) Groovy Friends will add an authentic Austin honky-tonk experience to the Fan Fest lineup. Led by Tate Mayeux, the group continues to build its following throughout Austin. Mayeux has assembled a powerhouse band of long-time friends, featuring highly accomplished songwriters and multi-instrumentalists including Jordan Matthew Young, who competed on Season 20 of The Voice in 2021 as part of Team Blake (electric guitar/vocals) and Adam Johnson (electric baritone guitar/vocals), alongside Bryan McGrath (drums) and Preston Rhone (Gulf Coast bass).

Based in Dallas and touring nationwide, the beloved tribute act Tejano Queen Forever is led by vocalist Carymel Rodriguez, whose dynamic performances capture the spirit and sound of the Queen of Tejano Music. Backed by an ensemble of award-winning musicians, the band delivers authentic renditions of Selena’s biggest hits, creating an unforgettable live experience for fans of all ages. Showgoers can look forward to chart-breaking hits from the beloved Tejano superstar such as “Como la Flor”, “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom”, “Amor Prohibido” and “Dreaming of You”.

Gambler Days Weekend Entertainment Lineup

• Dustin Lynch – Friday, Aug. 21 | Fan Fest and post-event DJ performance on the dirt
• All My(eux) Groovy Friends – Saturday, Aug. 22 | Fan Fest performance 
• Nelly – Saturday, Aug. 22 | Post-event performance on the dirt
• Tejano Queen Forever – Sunday, Aug. 23 | Fan Fest performance

The Austin Gamblers will host their fifth annual homestand, PBR Gambler Days presented by Tecovas, at Moody Center on August 21-23. 

Tickets for the event are on sale now and start at $36 (taxes and fees not included) and can be purchased online at Ticketmaster.com, PBR.com, and MoodyCenterATX.com, or by calling PBR customer service at 1-800-732-1727. Fans who purchase Sunday tickets starting at $42 before Aug. 7 will be eligible to receive a free kid’s ticket. Exclusions apply.

For more information on Austin Gamblers, visit www.austingamblers.com or follow on social media channels:

ABOUT AUSTIN GAMBLERS

2024 PBR Teams Champions, the Austin Gamblers are based in Austin, Texas, where the team’s fifth annual Gambler Days homestand will take place at the state-of-the-art Moody Center on August 21-23, 2026, bringing three days of world-class professional bull riding to the heart of downtown Austin. The team is coached by PBR legend and world champion Michael Gaffney. Under the leadership of JJ Gottsch as CEO, the Austin Gamblers are owned by Egon and Abby Durban. Both originally from Texas, Egon is Co-CEO of Silver Lake, the global leader in technology investing, and serves on the board of directors of Dell Technologies, whose founder, Michael Dell, is also a minority investor in the Gamblers.

All PBR Teams events are carried on either CBS Television Network, the CW, streaming live on YouTube, RidePass on Pluto app, or the PBR app. For more information, visit PBR.com, or follow on Facebook at Facebook.com/PBR, Twitter at Twitter.com/PBR, and YouTube at YouTube.com/PBR.

ABOUT PBR TEAMS

PBR Teams is an elite league featuring the world’s top bull riders competing on teams in five-on-five games leading to a Team Championship at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. During the 2026 season, the league’s fifth, each of the 10 teams – Arizona Ridge Riders of Glendale, AZ; Austin Gamblers of Austin, TX; Carolina Cowboys of Greensboro, NC; Florida Freedom of Sunrise, FL; Kansas City Outlaws of Kansas City, MO; Missouri Thunder of Ridgedale, MO; Nashville Stampede of Nashville, TN; New York Mavericks of Belmont Park, NY; Oklahoma Wildcatters of Oklahoma City, OK; and Texas Rattlers of Fort Worth, TX – will host a three-day homestand. Neutral-site games in Anaheim, CA, and Fort Collins, CO are planned for the 2026 season as well.

PBR Teams, launched in July 2022, builds on the existing structure of professional bull riding with the same basic rules for judging and scoring qualified 8-second bull rides. In events staged in a tournament-style format, all teams compete in head-to-head matchups against a different opponent each day. Each game features five riders per team squaring off against another team. Full team rosters are comprised of seven riders on the Protected Roster and three Reserve Roster riders. The team with the highest aggregate score of qualified rides among its riders is declared the winner of each game.

PBR is part of TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: TKO), a global sports and entertainment company. For more information, visit PBR.com, or follow on Facebook at Facebook.com/PBR, Twitter at Twitter.com/PBR, and YouTube at YouTube.com/PBR.

About the Author:

Biography:

I grew up on a Midwest farm with dirt under my fingernails and the sound of wind rustling through cornfields. My childhood was all about 4H – raising pigs and horses, learning to bake and sew, and discovering the magic of transforming a garden into jars of summer sunshine. Those years taught me the value of hard work, the thrill of seeing a project through to the end, and the simple joy of creating something beautiful. A country girl with a need for speed and a thirst for adventure. Maybe that’s why I love the feeling of wind in my hair – whether I’m cruising down a dusty road on my Harley or tackling a mountain trail on my trusty mountain bike. Some of my earliest memories of rodeo are watching my father compete at small local events. That’s also where my love for country music comes in – long car rides listening to 8 tracks. The lyrics and melodies always spoke to my soul. These days, you’ll find me cheering on the cowboys and cowgirls at rodeos, two-stepping to my favorite bands, belting out a country tune at a concert or sharing stories and laughter with friends around a bonfire. When I’m not soaking up the country life and getting my boots dirty, I’m a nurse, caring for folks in my community. Follow along for more stories from the heart of rodeo and country life!

KERR COUNTY, Texas – Recovery efforts are ongoing in Kerr County. 

The county received 20 inches of rain over the past few days, which led to lots of flooding.

What they’re saying:

Paul Hawkins, a longtime Kerrville resident, picked up debris along the Guadalupe River Friday afternoon.

“We just kept having flood, after flood, after flood. Then, flood wave, after wave. It kept getting higher and higher, and it actually got up a little higher than it did on the Fourth of July last year,” he said.

He says a white cross that was knocked over was supposed to honor the victims of last year’s flood.

“We just had it all looking really nice and stuff, and people were starting to bring their children back, so they could play here, and it was really nice again, and so just buckle up, get back to work, and get it straightened out here just as fast as we can,” Hawkins said.

After the devastation last year, Hawkins reflected on how the community feels.

“It’s a bad blow, and it’s really depressing. Even though we needed this rain to fill up our reservoirs and fill up our aquifers because they were way, way low, and this will get that done, but here in Hill Country it’s a land of extremes, you either get too much or you don’t get enough, and that’s just the way it is,” he said.

Dig deeper:

Multiple roads are still closed in Kerr County. Officials say at least six bridges have major damage, but they have to wait for water to fully recede to further assess.

Chunks of the road are washed away on Town Creek Road, and other parts are covered with rock and sediment.

On Third Street, part of the sidewalk is washed up, the guardrail is damaged, and tree limbs and debris are clogged on the sides of the bridge.

Kerr County officials say they were much better prepared for this flood than they were last year.

The Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said they had to do multiple water rescues this week, and there were 232 calls for service on Thursday, July 16. 

Officials set up an incident command center before the weather hit.

Statewide, there are two deaths from this flood event. One of the victims was identified as John Steward. 

FOX 7 Austin confirmed Steward graduated from Westlake High School in 1979. He also played football, ran track and sang with the Madrigals.

Officials say there are no reports of missing people in Kerr County.

“Much different than the loss of life that happened between this one and the last one, that goes back to, we weren’t caught off guard by something nobody expected,” State Rep. Wes Virdell (R-Kerrville), said during a press conference.

Alerts and sirens went off as they were supposed to.

“The flood warning system, something that is very important to everyone here. The good news is it worked, and it worked the way it was designed to work,” Tom Jones, Precinct 1 Commissioner for Kerr County, said.

The county says 17 people were in a shelter Friday morning that was cleared by the afternoon.

Texas flooding: How to help

What you can do:

If you want to volunteer for recovery efforts, click here.

If you want to donate to help out, click here.