Hello all, Boo here. This week we are going to interrupt our planned blog posting and take a moment to reflect on the events of the week. Our paws are folded and our hearts go out to the victims of Hurricane Harvey in both Texas and Louisiana. This week been “ruff”, to say the least, as we watched our friends and fellow furry family members go homeless. But what hurts our furry hearts even more is seeing the reports of the countless pets and animals who are in crisis from Harvey.  So this week, on our blog we want to talk about being emergency prepared as it relates to your pets.

Ensure Proper Identification for Your Pets.

As always us furry family members, should always be wearing proper identification on their collars in the form of tags that list our family’s contact information as well as any medical issues that we might have.

Of course the gold standard in being able to find your pet at any time is a microchip.  It is small, nearly painless to insert and it cannot be lost like a tag and collar. As much as our pet parents don’t want to lose us, WE don’t want to be lost either! It’s sad and scary!

Have Easy Access to Records.

As with emergency prep for your human family, you should keep copies of your pet’s documents and paperwork in an easily accessible location. You should include records of your pet’s immunizations and licensing with the rest of your family’s necessary documents. All of these documents should be kept in well-known place that is easy to access if and when your family needs to evacuate. If you seek shelter in a group location, you will likely have to prove that your pet is up to date on shots before it will be allowed to enter.

Make a plan for emergency pet friendly resources.

When preparing for an emergency, plan to evacuate and relocate.  Keep an updated list of locations for pet friendly accommodations. Keep an additional list of emergency veterinary service providers in case your pet is injured in the emergency situation or the evacuation.

Pack an Emergency Kit for your pet.

Just like you would pack an emergency kit for your family, us furry guys will have our own needs. Ensure that we have what we need to be well fed and cared for if the need arises. Here are a few things that are recommended to include:

  • Food / Clean Water Supply
  • Harness, Collar, Leash
  • First Aid Kit
  • Pet Carrier
  • Sanitation / bedding

Keep a Stockpile of Medications.

Just like our human parents, we can get VERY sick if we don’t get our medications.  Especially for us older fur babies, if there is impending weather, be sure to stock up on our medications as well as your own in case it is a few days or weeks before you can find more. If our medications need to be refrigerated, then consider picking up dry ice before you hunker down in case of power loss.

For more information on preparing for emergencies with animals, livestock and more, visit ready.gov for more great resources and information.

Or download this great information from FEMA: https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/90944

Our hearts go out to the victims of Hurricane Harvey and the floods that followed. We hope that all of the victims both human and furry alike, will soon be home where they belong!

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