Animals in Emergencies
If you look across the country we have a lot of zoos, we have exhibitions like aquariums and we have wildlife sanctuaries, wildlife rehabilitation facilities, we have a lot of different animal facilities out there that may need some assistance if they get a fairly major emergency.
The first thing that those facilities need to do is they need to have their own contingency plan for emergencies. Indigenous wild animals, being the property of the state, are generally the concern of fish and wildlife management agencies and are not considered pets in this video. Owners should always remember that unvaccinated wild animals can transmit rabies to their domesticated animals and themselves through an infected animal bite and all wildlife should be considered potentially dangerous, especially if the wild animal is behaving abnormally.
The problem is whenever you take a population of animals, whether it be companion animals, wildlife, laboratory animals, livestock, you're changing the dynamics of the system. So say there's a wildfire and wildlife are affected. Then those animals move into the general population and can co-mingle with domestic animals increasing the likelihood of say rabies or other types of diseases.
Planning to evacuate with animals is important because it will make sure your animals are as protected as you are. Most agencies now recommend taking household animals when residents are told to evacuate.
While most public shelters do not allow animals other than service animals inside for health and safety reasons, some jurisdictions allow crated animals with current vaccination and medical records to be sheltered outside public shelters. Others offer separate or adjacent facilities such as fairgrounds for sheltering animals. Many hotels and motels will waive pet exclusion restrictions during major disasters. You can usually obtain a list of pet-friendly motels and hotels through your state or local emergency management agency. Such information will allow you to leave with your pets, knowing you can assure both their safety and your own. Some people think confining pets in vehicles outside shelters is a viable option but the practice should be avoided. You can place yourself and your pet in danger when caring for them during stormy weather or other hazardous events. And vehicles are not safe places for animals during severe storms where flooding or downed trees or structures are potential risks, in hazardous material releases where protection offered by a vehicle is minimal because of the high air infiltration rate, or in extreme heat or cold.
After finding out what your emergency management agency plans for animals in emergencies, it's time to develop your specific plan for protecting your own animals. Usually this includes selecting a destination site, adding animal care and food supplies to your emergency kit, having appropriate carriers and restraints for each animal, and taking additional water, bedding, and clean-up materials such as paper towels and trash bags. If you know your animal dislikes vehicles or going into crates, take time to familiarize them with the routine by setting up the carrier and placing treats and familiar bedding inside it so they get used to it over time.
If your community does not have an emergency plan that includes animals you have a bigger job because you have to identify the hazards and their associated risks that could affect your animals. Understanding what the local risk is for a disaster is very important. It's really key to understand what that possible hazard would be and to plan for it.
Most year round residents are familiar with hazards that periodically occur in their community, such as hurricanes and floods, but a newcomer or a visitor may be unfamiliar with the specific risks of a hazard or what actions to take in emergencies.
People may reside for several months in an area for seasonal employment or vacations or for educational studies but remain unaware of the hazards to their animals at their temporary home. It's important that you learn about potential hazards wherever you take or house your animals. Other hazards that you should prepare for are potential train derailments or hazardous releases from industrial facilities or semi-trucks along major roads and highways if your animals are located nearby.
Although such events have a low probability of occurring, a general evacuation plan for your animals can often be quickly adapted to meet such emergencies. Your local emergency management agency will often have maps locating flood zones or other hazards such as earthquake faults and areas subject to wildfires that you can view or copy. Some communities near nuclear power plants or military installations with highly toxic chemicals publish maps in telephone books, calendars, or brochures outlining the emergency planning zones where a hazardous release could occur. Your local emergency management department can also tell you how to contact your Local Emergency Planning Committee, your Citizen's Emergency Response Team, or your Citizen Corps - if they exist in your area - for advice on hazards that could affect you and your animals.
Generally people start by planning for weather-related emergencies such as floods or wildfires that could affect their animals. Having a personal plan can reduce the chance of injury and loss of animal life in fast-moving events and also aid recovery efforts.
If you look at general preparedness planning for families you have to have your general family plan built and a kit built. And as part of that plan, not as a separate plan but as part of that plan, you need to decide how are you gonna take care of your pets and your livestock. So its not a family plan and an animal plan, it's a plan.
Some of you reading this article have livestock, horses and highly valued market animals. They present unique problems in emergencies because many farms are vulnerable to natural disasters because of their location near ponds and rivers or in remote areas.
Certainly the economical implications of a disaster for our livestock producers is significant during a disaster. And so we must have plans in place for evacuation, response to the injuries, the difficulty that animals may be getting into as far as the livestock are concerned.
Take time to find out where animals are usually located or areas they usually roam through. Knowing this is will help you provide the information to emergency response or rescue personnel. It's critical to quickly locate animals after severe storms or an event such as an earthquake or flood because animals can be placed at further risk if electrical lines, trees, or fences are downed or debris is scattered through areas they normally frequent. Emergency sirens and responders dressed out in protective clothing or unfamiliar odors can also upset or spook normally calm animals.
There are things you can do if not at home when the emergency occurs. One is to designate a willing neighbor or friend to care for your animals. If you think there may be occasions when you will be unable to provide for animals because you work or because of physical impairments or not having access to a vehicle to transport animals, you should make sure your plan includes a designated care-taker who can help you and your animals in an emergency.
It's important for people to understand that not everybody is going to be home during every emergency and be able to implement their plan and, like they would have hoped to be able to. I think coordinating with friends and neighbors so that, for instance, if you live in a rural area and something happens and you're not home, that your neighbors have some ability to help you out with your animal issues when possible.
The person should have a key to the animal's quarters, be familiar with the animals, know your plans sheltering animals, understand your evacuation plans and destinations, know where evacuation supplies are stored, and know which animals should be evacuated.
To clarify that such a person is the designated choice, you should sign a form designating that person as the animal care provider and releasing him or her from responsibility should one of the animals be injured or require medical treatment during or after the evacuation. Another option is to place stickers or placards on front and back doors, barn doors or pasture entrances to notify neighbors and response personnel that animals are on the property. The signs should state where you can be reached, and where evacuation supplies are located. You should also provide a list near the evacuation supplies about the number, type, and possible location of all animals on the property, their names and preferences, and how the animals can be identified.
Sometimes you may be forced to shelter your animals in place. This is because a fast-moving hazard such as a passing toxic chemical cloud may require people and animals to shelter-in-place before evacuating. Officials in communities with large chemical complexes often instruct residents to immediately shelter when hearing an alert siren and to wait inside for further information.
Some disasters require that you must take care of yourself sometimes without heat or running water for some number of days. And that sort of way of taking care of yourself if a disaster means that you're not evacuating but rather you're stuck.
Emergency officials may also stage evacuations and direct one part of the community to shelter and another part to evacuate to allow those most at risk to leave first or to reduce traffic volume on vulnerable highways or bridges. Once you choose a place to shelter your animals practice bringing them into enclosed space. When evacuating to another state, you should be aware of potential problems on returning home if proof of ownership, licenses, proof of rabies vaccination, or a recent health certificate for your animals are missing. All animals should always be clearly identified with readily visible tags or collars and with the same visible identification on crates or vehicles.
If you plan to evacuate by commercial plane, bus, or rail, you should contact the carrier for their policies on animal transport. The ADA requires all public and private ground transportation services to accommodate service animals. Dogs, cats, birds, or other animals will not be allowed to be transported by rail or bus.
Airlines must permit guide dogs or other service animals with appropriate identification to accompany an individual with a disability on a flight. Identification may include cards or other documentation, presence of a harness or markings on a harness, tags, or the credible verbal assurance of the passenger using the animal.
Some airlines allow service animals as small as an infant to be held but larger service animals must have their own seat. Some airlines allow a small number of ticketed passengers to carry a cat, dog, bird or other small warm-blooded animal on-board on a first-come, first-serve basis, providing the kennel containing the animal fits under the seat in front of the passenger and the owner has a health certificate signed by a licensed veterinarian within ten days of departure. The animal must remain inside the kennel in the boarding area and during the flight with the door securely closed. Airlines also transport animals as checked baggage or as air cargo for a fee. Because some cargo space is not temperature controlled, some airlines refuse to transport animals below or above certain temperatures to protect the animal.
If your plan includes evacuating with animals to a friend's or family member's residence, you should try to be as self-sufficient as possible by having adequate food and water, bedding, medications, and clean-up supplies for all animals for at least three days. Oftentimes distribution networks for food and supplies are disrupted for several days following a disaster. If the animal is unfamiliar with children or other animals, you should make sure the animal is always restrained.
