Starving Pets Struggle To Find Food and Water In Areas Destroyed By L.A. Wildfires

Pets who have been separated from families displaced by the Los Angeles wildfires are fighting for their lives ... because there are limited ways for them to get food and water.

The heartbreaking situation is playing out in Pacific Palisades and Altadena, where people's pets have been left behind to fend for themselves in the rubble.

No food or water is being left for the cats, dogs and other pets who survived the fires ... according to Chris Valles from Los Angeles County Animal Care and Control.

The only way for these displaced animals to be fed and hydrated is for their owners to call L.A. Animal Care and Control and ask for an animal welfare check at a specific address. Personnel will go to the address provided and look for the animals, and if they don't find them they will leave food and water. But in some areas, no one can gain access.

This means if displaced residents think their pet is dead and aren't calling for checkups, the animals are unlikely to find food if they are in fact alive.

We're also told there are no active patrols searching for displaced animals in Altadena or the Palisades ... mainly because of safety issues, with live wires and gas leaks making the area unsafe.

Thing is ... residents can't just go back to the burn zones to look for the pets ... law enforcement is keeping people out and only allowing a select few inside.

The Pasadena Humane Society previously said they were approved to send search teams into the affected areas and randomly leave out food ... but now they're telling us that is not actually happening.

Valles says Animal Control is working around the clock responding to animal welfare checks ... with personnel responding to calls about small pets and larger animals such as livestock.

We're told an Animal Control team went to a residence Tuesday in the Palisades to check on a koi pond. Some of the fish were dead, and those that survived were rescued.

Other welfare checks Wednesday included a woman calling about a cat colony she used to feed in Altadena ... and another from a resident concerned about their horse. Food and water were left for the cats, and hay for the horse.

Another grim reality facing these pets ... a lot of wild animals are displaced too ... and hungry coyotes and mountain lions are likely scouring destroyed neighborhoods for food.

The situation is pretty dire ... tonight will be the 9th night displaced pets go without food and water.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ … There has been an underground operation of residents leaving food and water themselves when they're able to get inside the disaster zones.