Are You Prepared?

tirluc · 06-13-2008, 04:00 PM

ok, w/ all the disasters that have been happening lately, what would you do if you were caught in one.....what would happen if, like Katrina, you were flooded out and such and they told you you had to leave your dogs behind....i mean, quite a few of us here have multiple pets, that might pose a difficulty in taking them w/ you....i, personally, would not leave my dogs behind.....if they couldn't go w/ me, i'd be staying.....but i know there were alot of people in Katrina that fought not to leave and apparently they had no choice in the matter.....

but, are you prepared for it?

MyRescueCrew · 06-13-2008, 04:30 PM

Preparedness is something everyone needs to think of. As one who went thru Katrina, and goes thru hurricanes yearly, I have a plan in place constantly.

I have a crate or cage for every dog and and the two cats I own. I also have four rabbits, and all four of them also have carrying cages. I work for a vet that I have known for years, so if a hurricane is headed this way, reservations are already made for boarding "just in case". If he is full, or close to it, we have the agreement that the animals can stay there, but in their own crates. (He is on 'higher' ground, and also lives on the property of the clinic. It survived every hurricane in the last few decades with no problems).

I stock up on dog food, cat food, and rabbit food. I have carrying bins for everyone in case they need to come with me, as opposed to boarding (one year, we went to relatives many many miles away). Everyone has a battery powered crate fan, with a optional ice back that attaches, in case electricity goes out (and trust me, it always does).

Things like this are just some of the things I have to be prepared with. It's rare we evacuate. We hauled a$$ for Katrina, obviously. We also high-tailed it for Rita, Andrew, and a couple others in the past, but it's not a yearly thing.

My bigger concern is the yearly storms that don't cause evacuation, but will leave you without electricity, and sometimes running water, for days and even a week or more. This is where food storage, large quanitities of water, generators, and battery powered crate fans come in. I also freeze enourmous quanitities of bottled water (if it's in the hotter months). Walmart sells a case of 24 bottles of water, 20oz size, for like $4. I buy a few of those, throw them in the deep freezer, and if/when power goes out, we'll take them out as needed for keeping the animals cool.

harrise · 06-13-2008, 04:57 PM

Yes. It annoys everyone around me too.

Ella'sMom · 06-13-2008, 05:02 PM

I live in Massachusetts so none of this is really an issue here BUT if there were to be a disaster my children would come first...but I don't think I could leave my Ella behind. It would kill me.

InverseLogic · 06-13-2008, 05:24 PM

Colorado doesn't have many natural disasters. I live too close to the mountains to fear tornadoes, we almost NEVER have had earthquakes here, there is no danger of floods in my area, and fires are a non-issue in my area (unless it's a house fire).

Being snowed in is probably the biggest problem, but we have a backup generator and plenty of food in case of such an emergency. Our animals would be fine.

dusty&lulusmom · 06-13-2008, 05:42 PM

We were just talking about this topic at work today. Since I am in NJ we don't have many natural disasters. Some of the people at work were saying that they could not believe how many dogs became homeless after Katrina. We were more shocked by the fact that after leaving the pet it seemed like their owners did not come back to look for them. Anyway then some of us figured maybe it is just to hard to track down where your pet was taken too, and then they get adopted by someone else. This scenario made me think maybe it is really a good idea to have the dogs receive a microchip. No matter where they wind up they can identify who the owner is...I guess you still have the problem of tracking the owner down...but maybe this would make it easier. Scary to think of my pets being seperated from me and I may not be able to locate them.

digits mama · 06-13-2008, 06:13 PM

I am well prepared...Being from the Mississippi Gulf coast...Its a way of life.

I dont evacuate..because of my business. I have to be here for the immediate aftermath.I also take on others pets and people if need be. I have a underground storm shelter with all the implements needed to go through another Hurricane enough for a zoo and a party of 100. I am 7 miles inland and high and dry.

sillylilykitty · 06-13-2008, 09:13 PM

Nope, no plan for me. But if something were to happen Lily would be coming with me or Im not going at all. And if someone were to force me out without her someone would be paying. No one has the right to do something like that. I would try and get Tanzie too if my sister wasnt around. Just another reason I dont want too many pets. I want 2 cats and 1 dog, I could handle that many depending on the type of disaster though.

Erick Aguilar · 06-13-2008, 09:33 PM

Well, i live in mexico, and my state is almost free of natural disasters except for medium floods, and some hurricane winds.

However if something mayor happened i would seriously try to take my dog with me, which wouldn't be hard to do.
But one day some category 4 winds hit my state, the winds were so strong we couldn't open the backdoor, and my dog had to find shelter inside her doghouse, it was a miracle the top wasnt blown off, when we went outside to check on her (after all the winds passed, and it was safe to go outside without having debris fall on our heads) we saw she had a new leave bed inside her house.

Sometimes you might even consider letting the dog run away, since they have a better chance of living than us humans, instinct comes handy at some times.

tirluc · 06-14-2008, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Erick Aguilar

Sometimes you might even consider letting the dog run away, since they have a better chance of living than us humans, instinct comes handy at some times.

this i don't agree w/....i think their "wild nature" has been bred out of them to much to survive for long....especially the ones that have been well cared for by their people....but, i do, however, think that they would find someone to take them in......but, in the event that i had to evacuate for any reason, my dogs go or i don't....my kids are grown so i don't have to worry about them....am i prepared? in the sense of having "extra" dog food on hand, no i don't, anymore than i have stuff stocked up for the people side....but i would make sure that my dogs are not left behind, and i do have crates for everyone of them if needed....

Durbkat · 06-14-2008, 09:40 AM

The only natural disasters we have are tornados and the occasional flood. If there were a tornado I do what I've been doing any other time the siren has gone off with tornados in the area. I go down to the basement with Snoopy in my arms on his leash and we just stand there in the basement. But if the tornado started tearing up the apartment I would get down to the ground with Snoopy under me and pull a heavy comforter over us, as well as the other people in the basement, and hope for the best.

Rowdy · 06-14-2008, 10:16 AM

Yes. Last year a wildfire came within a mile of our house. We could see the smoke just over the hill behind us. The water dropping planes were going right over the house.

We had both cats in harnesses so we could easily grab them and stuff them into their crates. Both dogs had on their collars with leashes attached. We had the food for all of them piled in the living room along with a box of important papers (including vet records). The computer was boxed and piled in the living room. We had called friends in a nearby town who said she would take the dogs. Both cars were set in the driveway pointing in the direction of the road. We'd set up a rendevous point in case we got separated.

Luckily the wind changed direction and the firefighters quickly knocked down the fire. So we didn't have to go. But it was a good drill. Now we have a list of stuff to remember right on the counter in case it happens again.

muki89 · 06-14-2008, 12:20 PM

I'm lucky enough to live in an area of a country that has little to no natural disasters other than drought.

I'm still prepared though. I have a bag with blankets, first aid kit specifically for the dogs, bowls, toys, 2lt bottle of water, packets of food, snacks and extra collars and leashes.

I worry too much...

sillylilykitty · 06-14-2008, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rowdy

Yes. Last year a wildfire came within a mile of our house. We could see the smoke just over the hill behind us. The water dropping planes were going right over the house.

We had both cats in harnesses so we could easily grab them and stuff them into their crates. Both dogs had on their collars with leashes attached. We had the food for all of them piled in the living room along with a box of important papers (including vet records). The computer was boxed and piled in the living room. We had called friends in a nearby town who said she would take the dogs. Both cars were set in the driveway pointing in the direction of the road. We'd set up a rendevous point in case we got separated.

Luckily the wind changed direction and the firefighters quickly knocked down the fire. So we didn't have to go. But it was a good drill. Now we have a list of stuff to remember right on the counter in case it happens again.

Glad you didnt lose your house in that fire

My aunt lives in Tahoe and almost had to evacuate as well. My mom and 2 sisters were with them for a few weeks for vacation (I had to stay here because of school

) and they would have had to evacuate with them. Im glad the firefighters got that fire under control in time.

Rowdy · 06-14-2008, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sillylilykitty

Glad you didnt lose your house in that fire

My aunt lives in Tahoe and almost had to evacuate as well. My mom and 2 sisters were with them for a few weeks for vacation (I had to stay here because of school

) and they would have had to evacuate with them. Im glad the firefighters got that fire under control in time.

Thanks. It was really scary. The electricity had gone out, so I called the PUD to tell them. Their answer was, "It's because of the fire." WHAT FIRE???? So I went out on the deck and just over the hill I could see a small plume of smoke. In less than 15 minutes it had turned into a HUGE plume of smoke. We got very lucky.

Dieselsmama · 06-14-2008, 07:29 PM

It's certainly something everyone needs to think about irregardless of where they are. For us the two main worries are fire or being snowed in. Having lived in Vt most of my life, i'm well versed on what to expect being snowed in, but fire really scares me. I know I'm not as prepared as I should be and this is a good reminder.

Lorina · 06-14-2008, 09:09 PM

I'm one of the few members of my family who doesn't live in the flood zone, so my house might be part of their emergency plans.

melgrj7 · 06-15-2008, 02:08 PM

I'm pretty sure that after katrina a law was passed saying that you can bring your pets with you. Its called the PETS act, its a federal law that says states have to help people who have pets, but it doesn't mean they have to put funding towards it or actually have shelter and aid for those pets during a disaster, but you have the right now to not leave them behind. If you want something more put into, call your state officials and ask them to actually do something with this.

I would never leave my dogs and cats behind (the fish unfortunately would have to be left).