September is National Disaster Preparedness Month, and we’d like to dedicate this blog to raising awareness of how important is for dog owners to prepare their pets for emergencies or disasters.
The general rule for prepping is to get ready to go 3 days without water, food, electricity, and access to stores and local services. However, things are a bit different when it comes to prepping your dog for an emergency.
How to Prepare Your Dog for a Disaster?
Being ready in case of emergency is crucial not only for your and your family’s safety but also for your beloved pet. Sadly, many pets were abandoned during Hurricane Katrina due to the lack of preparedness. To prevent this from ever happening to anyone, we’ve prepared a list of a Pet Emergency Kit.
Pet Emergency Kit Must-Haves
When preparing your pet’s disaster kit, you must include the following items:
- Pet documents – Vaccine records, medical history, health certificate, ownership/adoption records, prescriptions for medications, microchip information, a recent photo of your pet(s), and your contact information. Put all documents in a waterproof plastic bag.
- A basic first-aid kit
- Pet medications for at least 2 weeks including regular therapy and pills for flea/tick and heartworm prevention.
- As many cans of dog food as it can fit (at least for a week) + a few bags of bully sticks or other dental treats for dogs + a manual can opener
- Water supply for at least 3 days
- Collar, leash, harness, and a dog carrier with an ID tag – The carrier or box should have bedding or a blanket so that your pet feels comfortable.
- Automatic dog water dispenser
- Collapsible dog bowl for food
- Familiar toys
- A few packs of poop bags
- A small flashlight and extra batteries
What About the Shelter?
Apart from having an emergency kit for your pet, you should also take into account the shelter options. We really hope none of us will ever have to go through this, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
So, what’s the problem with shelter?
If you go to a public shelter in case of a disaster, you may not be allowed to bring your pet with you. That’s why you need to consider alternatives to a public shelter.
The best ones are pet-friendly hotels, so you better go and ask the local ones if they’d allow you and your pet to stay in case of a disaster. Also, ensure you have other alternatives besides a hotel like relatives, friends, and colleagues who would be happy to welcome you and your dog in their home.
Final Thoughts
National Disaster Preparedness Month reminds us that pets also need to be prepared for an emergency. They, just like us, need to be saved and taken care of even in the hardest of times.
So, this National Disaster Preparedness Month 2023, we, at Mellow Premium, want to ask you to take time to prepare your pets for an emergency. A little preparation today can save your and your dog’s life tomorrow!