So, it’s hurricane season, and you have a flashlight, some cans of food, and, if you’re lucky, a generator. But, do you have a plan for your pet? To keep your fur babies safe, I’ve compiled some tips below from my City Cast Houston colleagues and Ready.gov. Let’s get to them!
Safety Tips for Pet Parents
- Keep calm during the storm. Our pets take their cues from us. If we are frantic and scattered, they will be hyper and anxious right along with us.
- Keep your pets in the same room with you. They need to know where you are. If you have to evacuate your home, you don’t want to have to search for them.
- Get some ear covers for them. Put them on them before the storm, and it’ll help them with the sound.
- Toys and treats ease stress. Make sure you have their favorite toys and treats to distract them.
- Pets rely on smell. City Cast Houston host Raheel Ramzanali puts an old shirt on his dog that smells like him. You could also put a shirt that smells like you inside their crate.
- Have an evacuation plan. Many shelters and hotels do not accept pets so identify a safe place you can go with your pet ahead of a storm.
- Build a hurricane kit for your pet, similar to your own, with food, water, medicine, a first aid kit, grooming items, and any important medical records.
- Consider having your pet microchipped if they aren’t already.
- Contact your local emergency management office for more advice or information or shelters that accept animals.
Outdoor Pet Tips
- Have a way to call them and make sure that they answer you. Practice this pre-storm. Once the storm blows in, they might start to hide. For City Cast lifestyle contributor Olivia Flores Alvarez, it’s a can of tuna for her cats.
- If you don’t want to bring them inside the house to ride out the storm, then keep them in the garage.
- City Cast Houston producer Carlignon Jones puts her dog in a really big cage outside. She stuffs hay, old blankets, and sheets everywhere to block the wind.
- If you have to bring your pet inside and want to keep them in one specific area, fence them in using a baby playpen.
Evacuation Tips
- Get an airtight container to transport all of your pet’s medication, food, toys, and treats.
- Have a list of hotels and shelters that are pet-friendly.
- Update your pet’s vaccines. You may be denied shelter or hotel if you don’t have updated vaccine documentation. Have a hard copy of those record vaccines.
- Make a pet-friendly emergency kit.
- Learn the heimlich maneuver and CPR for your pet.
- Buy life jackets
Lost Pet Tips
- Get your pet microchipped, so they can be tracked if they get lost during the storm.
- Join a neighborhood pet group on social media. They show photos of lost pets. If you get separated from your pet, this might be a resource to find your pet.
- Take clear, color photos of your pet’s face and whole body, in case you need to use it .
Did we miss any pet prep tips for hurricane season?
Got other tips?
