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Just like you and your family, it's important to keep your pets safe during an emergency. They depend on you to take care of them and have a preparedness kit prepared and a plan in place so they'll be ready.
Here are some tips and directions to ensure your pets will stay safe.
To prepare before a disaster:
Call hotels or motels outside your immediate area and ask about their policies on accepting pets during an emergency. Red Cross shelters will not allow animals.
Keep a list of "pet friendly" places in your emergency kit so you"ll know where to go. If you get advance notice that you will need to evacuate, call and make a reservation at the "pet friendly" places right away. You can also ask friends or relatives outside the area if they could keep your pets in an emergency.
Prepare a list of boarding facilities and veterinarians who could shelter your animals in an emergency. Keep the list in your preparedness kit, too. If you have more than one pet, they may be more comfortable if they are kept together, but in an emergency that might not be possible.
If you think a disaster might happen soon - (Like if you're in a tornado or flood warning.), keep your pets inside with you so you don't have to look for them if you have to evacuate. Make sure they are wearing collars and identification tags.
Take photos of your pets and put them in your preparedness kit so you will have a way to identify them if you become separated.
To keep your pets safe during a disaster:
Always bring them with you! Even if you have a safe place at home to leave them in, it's much safer to bring your pets along.
Birds and lizards should be moved in a secure travel cage or carrier. If the weather is cold, wrap a blanket over the carrier and warm up the car first.
During warm weather, carry a plant mister to mist the bird's feathers from time to time. Put a piece of fruit or some vegetables with high water content in the cage instead of water. Try to keep the carrier in a quiet place, but DO NOT let your pet out as they may fly away in the confusion.
Snakes should be put in a pillowcase while you are evacuating, but you will need to put them in a more secure place later.
If your snake requires regular feeding, carry food with you, as well as a water bowl large enough for soaking your snake and a heating pad.
Smaller pets, such as hamsters and gerbils, should be moved in their secure cages or carriers. Take bedding materials, food bowls and water bottles.
Remember, most shelters do not allow pets.
The best way to keep your pet safe in the aftermath of a disaster is to plan ahead and find a place for them to stay if you and your family are evacuated.
Pet Safety Pack
Sign up to receive important alerts and information from the ASPCA, and we’ll send you a FREE Pet Safety Pack! In your safety pack, you’ll find our pet rescue window and door stickers to help alert rescue personnel that pets are inside your home in the event of an emergency. You’ll also find an ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (APCC) magnet, so you can keep APCC’s information handy should you need to call us about your pet.
Livestock Disaster Preparedness
Write down a list of emergency telephone numbers, including those of your employees, neighbors, veterinarian, state veterinarian, poison control, local animal shelter, animal care and control, county extension service, local agricultural schools, trailering resources and local volunteers. Include a contact person outside the disaster area. Give it to everyone involved in caring for your livestock.
Contact your state department of agriculture and county extension service well in advance of a disaster to learn how they can help in the event of an evacuation. If your animals cannot be evacuated, these agencies may also be able to provide on-farm help or insight.
Make sure every animal has durable and visible identification.
Ensure that poultry has access to high perches if they are in a flood-prone area, as well as to food and clean water above the potential flood line.
Reinforce your house, barn, and outbuildings with hurricane straps and other measures.
Perform regular safety checks on all utilities, buildings and facilities on your farm.
Use only native and deep-rooted plants and trees in landscaping (non-native plants are less durable and hardy in your climate and may become dislodged by high winds or broken by ice and snow).
Remove all barbed wire and consider rerouting permanent fencing so that animals may move to high ground in a flood and to low-lying areas during high winds.
Install a hand pump and obtain enough large containers to water your animals for at least a week (municipal water supplies and wells are often contaminated during a disaster).
Identify alternate water and power sources. A generator with a safely stored supply of fuel may be essential, especially if you have electrical equipment necessary to the wellbeing of your animals.
Secure or remove anything that could become blowing debris. Make a habit of securing trailers, propane tanks and other large objects. If you have boats, feed troughs or other large containers, fill them with water before any high wind event. This prevents them from blowing around and will also give you an additional supply of water.
If you use heat lamps or other electrical machinery, make sure the wiring is safe and that any heat source is clear of flammable debris.
Label hazardous materials and place them all in the same safe area. Provide local fire and rescue and emergency management authorities with information about the location of any hazardous materials on your property.
Remove old, buried trash, which is a potential source of hazardous materials during flooding that may leach into crops, feed supplies, water sources and pasture.
Review and update your disaster plan, supplies and information regularly.
Evacuating without your Livestock
If evacuation is not possible, decide whether to confine large animals to an available shelter on your farm or leave them out in pastures. Owners may believe that their animals are safer inside barns, but in many circumstances, confinement takes away the animals' ability to protect themselves. This decision should be based on the type of disaster and the soundness and location of the sheltering building.
Survey your property for the best location for animal sheltering. If your pasture area meets the following criteria, your large animals may be better off out in the pasture than being evacuated:
No exotic (non-native) trees, which uproot easily
No overhead power lines or poles
No debris or sources of blowing debris
No barbed wire fencing (woven wire fencing is best)
Larger than one acre in size (if less than an acre, your livestock may not be able to avoid blowing debris)
If your pasture area does not meet these criteria, you should evacuate. Whether you evacuate or shelter in place, make sure that you have adequate and safe fencing or pens to separate and group animals appropriately.
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