Since October is National Animal Safety and Protection Month, this would be the perfect time to go over the safety plan in your home when it comes to your pets. It is a regrettable reality that something could go wrong at any time and your pet could be left without your care for an extended period. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to ensure that your pet’s discomfort is mitigated or even eliminated during this time.
Making sure that you’ve done everything you can to keep your pet protected will go a long way toward keeping them safe. It is said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure and keeping your pets up to date on their vaccinations will cut down on the amount of illnesses that are potentially dangerous (or even life threatening) to them or others around them.
Spay/neuter your pet. Animals that aren’t fixed can be driven by their instincts to look for a mate, and that could take them far away from your home. Males in particular are more likely to fight other males if they’re not fixed and are out on the prowl. Keeping your pets nearby will go a long way toward protecting them from unknown dangers.
Microchip your animals. If you cannot afford to do this at your veterinarian’s office, there are many clinics that will help you do this for a reduced fee. If for any reason your pet should get away and wind up in the care of a shelter or veterinarian’s office, they will know how to contact you to get your friend back to you. Microchipping is also a good way to prevent any disagreements if your furry feline likes to spend her nights elsewhere and someone else thinks that Fluffy belongs to them.
Making sure your home is pet-proof is another way to keep them from getting into trouble when you’re not there. If you have screens that are loose and your pet could get through them easily, they should be repaired, or those windows should not be opened. If your canine is a clever cupboard opener, it might be a good idea to put child locks on them (the cupboards, not your dog).
Check your heating ducts. Can your cat pull them open and fall down into them? (You may scoff, but this very nearly happened to my kitten earlier this year. It was a good thing I was home to prevent it.) Making sure the seals are tight, or taping them down will help prevent kitty’s claws from accidentally pulling them open.
Once you’ve done all you can to keep them protected, focusing on how to keep them safe involves a bit of forward thinking. I know most of us think “it won’t happen to me” or “we don’t have storms of that nature” but to quote another tired cliche, “it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
Make a plan for your pet. If something should happen to you, make sure there is a designated person or persons who can be called to help care for them. Have a trusted friend or pet sitter on your speed dial. If anything comes up, they can be alerted to assist and already know how to care for your critters.
Get stickers for your doors that alert rescue personnel as to how many and what kind of animals are inside alone. Your veterinarian may have safety stickers available, or there are several kinds you can find online. Have a card or keychain that can be seen by anyone and notifies medical staff who to contact should you become incapacitated while in public or because of a car accident.
Keep your pet’s medical records updated and within handy reach in case of an issue. If you have a dispute with someone, or if you need to leave in a hurry to go out of range of your veterinarian, they will be an invaluable tool to keeping your pets safe.
If possible, keep a week’s extra food for your pet, rather than waiting until you’re about to run out to buy more. Medications can be a bit trickier to keep extra on hand, but any amount extra is better than running out.
If this list seems a bit overwhelming, it is! Not everything has to be done all at once, but any single thing you can do to help your pet in advance of an emergency is one less stressor you’ll have to deal with when life becomes unpredictable.
For more information, the Animal Health Foundation has extremely thorough and helpful disaster preparedness guidelines available at animalhealthfoundation.org.
(Sarah Caton owns All Paws Pet Sitting, which serves all of Lincoln County.)
