Pets are more like a member of our families. We love them and nurture them just like we love and nurture our kids. If you also love your pet just like your baby, it is important that you fulfil your responsibilities towards them just like you do for your children. When you take suitable steps to protect your children from any impending disaster, you need to take similar steps to safeguard your pets as they may also get affected by disasters.

There can be several situations in our lives when sudden contingencies changed the course of our lives. It can be flood, fire, terrorist attack, tornado, hurricanes and more. It is always better to be well prepared to face any such challenges knocking at our doors. Proper planning and taking preventive measures is the best way to reduce the likelihood of any damage that may come because of these emergencies.

If you have a pet at home and you are worried about its safety, the first step that you can take to ensure its safety is to assemble an emergency supply kit meant for animals. You can also develop a pet care support system where you can form a group where pet owners can chip in their efforts and take care of each other’s pets. There may be certain situations that may necessitate immediate evacuation and moving to a safer place. For this purpose, you need to line up an emergency shelter services for your pet. Besides making effective plans for the future, you need to ensure that any step you take for the safety of your pets are effective enough.

There may be times, when you come across a sudden situation when you need to evacuate your home. In such a situation, it is very important to ensure that pets are not left behind in any case. Not only it is not safe for your pet, but the chances of its survival on its own are also meagre. Thus, make proper arrangements for a safe place where they can be left or take them along with you.

These days, there are many pet shelters that offer excellent services in this regard. You can sign up for their services and ensure that in case of any emergency, you are able to use these services. In case, there is no pet shelter in your vicinity or the shelter is not able to meet your requirements, you can seek help from your friends who can keep your pets safe until you return.

Besides ensuring proper support system, you can take following steps that can help you to face contingencies-

1.Prevention is always better for cure and for this purpose, you need to keep the emergency kit for animals available. The kit must have all necessary things like a  carrier, leash, a harness, food, bottled water, canned and dry foods, water bowls, the medical records of your animals.

2. Your pet must have harnesses or collars with proper identification. You can also keep the latest photo of your pet readily available for the easy identification purposes just as you would do for your own kid.

3. You can also stick emergency window stickers of PETA on the front as well as back doors. Thus, in case there is any fire or weather related emergency in your absence, the rescuers will be immediately alerted about the presence of animals in the home and they will be immediately saved.

4. In case, you have to evacuate your building, you need to take your pets along with you as leaving pets behind would be a disastrous decision. You may never know what will happen to your pet when you leave your home. Pets may suffer from dehydration or malnutrition in the absence of food and water, which may be bad for their health. Moreover, in case of disasters like an earthquake, the pet may face a danger to their lives due to collapsing walls. In case of floods, the animals can easily get drowned. All these situations necessitate that people take away their pets along with them even in dangerous situations.

5. If possible, try to decide the place where you will go in case of a sudden situation. If you are planning to stay at an emergency shelter, you need to make sure that they allow pets to stay with you. Also, during disasters, many hotels drop their “no pet” policies and allow pets to stay with their owners.

6.When rushing out of the home, always keep a carrier for the animals handy. Pets will feel secure when carried in their carriers. You must also carry an emergency kit meant for the animals along with you.

7.You must never leave your pets outdoors as this situation may turn out to be more dangerous for them. The animals who have been domesticated cannot survive without their owners.

Keeping the above instructions in mind will surely help you to keep your pet safe and sound in the face of any emergency.