Why Pet Preparedness?

The lack of pet disaster preparedness was demonstrated during the hurricane Katrenia.  The plight of the pets left behind, starving and lost, has awaken pet lovers around the country to take action to prevent that in the future.

What needs to be stressed is that both people and pets need disaster plans.  The government can only offer aid in an emergency not control.  Each person and pet owner must take steps to help the relief agencies help you. 

Some families have fire drills not all.  Some families have earthquake drills not all.  And most families have no pet plans for any disaster.

 WHAT DISASTERS? 

 Possible disasters that could affect you and your pets include, but are not limited to:

Severe winter storms- Most local counties have had federally declared disasters within the past 25 years because of these types of storms and the problems they cause.  Heavy snow can prevent you from moving to a safer, warmer location that has power.  Heavy snow can last for days.  

Ice- This can break power lines causing entire cities to be without electricity, make travel to a safer, warmer location impossible and impede or prohibit the response of emergency crews.  If you are not prepared to shelter in place without power for several days, this could be a dangerous or deadly situation.  Safe, non-electric sources of heat are essential.

Extended Power Outages- Especially if temperatures are very high or very low.  With everyone using more and more power, these could become more common.  This could also affect just one community that includes an animal shelter, farms and homes with pets if something like an auto accident, ice storm or transformer explosion involves a major power supply. Power outage is often a component of other disasters.

Tornadoes- Even urban areas are not immune.  Tornadoes and severe straight line winds have effected many areas in tri-state counties.

Floods - The Ohio river and the smaller rivers around this area have crested their banks many times.  In smaller scale emergencies, the back-up of a sewer system into a facility or home could cause an evacuation or bio-hazardous situation.

No water- If a main water supply line breaks or is disrupted, will you be able to care for yourself and your animals until water is restored and deemed safe?  If pipes freeze, and weather conditions prevent travel, do you have stored water?

Fires- This could be a wild fire, barn fire or a house/apartment fire. Are you prepared to evacuate your home in a matter of minutes? 

Chemical spills- Could be from a rail car, tractor trailer or chemical plant.  On a small scale, it could be pesticides or some other chemical that is knocked over or dropped and spilled/combined causing a small but immediate evacuation need.  If you are within 5 miles of a through road, rail line or business that uses chemicals, you could be effected.
 

Explosions-  From chemicals, fuels or other volatile substances.  This could be stationary locations like businesses or home meth labs or a moving source such as trucks, rail cars or aircraft. 

Disease outbreak- If many people are getting sick and going to the hospital, who will care for their pets and livestock?  Orders to stay home may be issued by the government and enforced by law enforcement to prevent the spread of disease.  It could take months or longer for a disease to run it's course.  Even if you could go out, all the businesses would be closed.  If it's an animal to animal disease, people will need help caring for their pets or livestock or a quarantine may need to be enforced.  If many animals are dying, carcass disposal and prevention of bio-hazards from decomposition can be a big issue.

Civil Unrest- Cincinnati has had riots in the past and could have them again.  The scale would be determined by the cause of the upset.

Terrorist acts- No one knows what tomorrow may bring.  The U.S. has already been attacked and it could happen again effecting health, utilities, transportation, etc.

Loss of employees or help- If disease, quarantines or injury affects the people that help you with your farm, stable, kennel, shelter, etc., will you still be able to function and care for the animals that rely on you?

For more info on national disasters between 1980 - 2005: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/reports/billionz.html#narrative  includes economic impacts and the impact on human lives.

WHAT ANIMALS?

American Pet Products Manufacturers Association (APPMA) tracks consumer trends when it comes to pets. The 2007/2008 National Pet Owners Survey done by the APPMA found that pet ownership remains on the rise in the US. While dogs, cats, and fish remain the most popular, reptiles and other small pets are becoming more popular too. 

Breakdown of pet ownership in the U.S. according to the 2007-2008 National Pet Owners Survey

Number of U.S. Households that Own a Pet

Bird                              6.4 Million
Cat                               38.4 Million

Dog                              44.8 Million

Equine                          4.3 Million

Freshwater Fish             14.2 Million

Saltwater Fish               .8 Million
Reptile                          4.8 Million

Small Animal                 6.0 Million

That is 63% of U.S. Households (71.1 million homes) have a pet!  

Total Number of Pets Owned in the U.S.

Bird                              16 Million

Cat                               88.3 Million

Dog                              74.8 Million
Equine                         13.8  Million

Freshwater Fish            142.0 Million
Saltwater Fish               9.6 Million

Reptile                          13.4 Million

Small Animal                 24.3 Million

Source: AAPMA

That's over 380 Million Pets!  And the numbers continue to rise.  That doesn't even include stray animals, horses, farm animals or exotics/wildlife kept as pets or as a means of income.

WHY PLAN FOR ANIMALS?

According to a Zogby Poll, 49 percent of pet owners would NOT evacuate if they could not take their pets.  Pets are family for many people.  Livestock may be a sole source of income and an asset a farmer cannot afford to replace.  People do not want to leave these animals behind to an unknown fate.  This puts human lives at risk, both the owners and the rescuers trying to get them out (or keep them out) of a dangerous area. 

By having a plan in place for evacuation of animals along with their owners, it helps everyone get to safety with the least amount of trauma and resistance.  It also reduces the number of animals wandering loose after a disaster that may be sick, injured, diseased or frightened (and thus more likely to bite or kick.)  Providing for the rescue of animals also reduces the number of animals that die and create additional health hazards and disposal responsibilities.

Human lives ALWAYS come first, but by planning for the evacuation and care of animals, more human lives can be saved and/or kept out of danger.

P.E.T.S. Act

 Even the government is recognizing the need to plan for the animals to expedite the evacuation of the humans.  The PETS (Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act) has been signed by President Bush and is now a law.  It is a federal mandate that state and local preparedness offices take into account pet owners, household pets and service animals when drawing up evacuation and emergency preparedness plans.  Offices that fail to do so will not qualify for grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.  The Tri-State CART teams would play a major role (along with shelters, rescues and national response teams) in the activation of a local plan that includes all animals.

Pets

Additional information

Visit the web sites of organizations that do disaster response on a national level and offer training for anyone intrested in doing disaster anamial response work.

www.americanhumane.org/

www.uan.org/

Help your clients keep their animals safe in a disaster by providing them with this informative booklet from the AVMA. This detailed planning resource for both small and large animals in disasters can help your clients maintain the safety of the animals you have dedicated your life to helping. American Veterinary Medical Association www.avma.org/disaster/default.asp