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This post is by Bernie Carr, apartmentprepper.com
In the event of an emergency, your pets will continue to rely on you for care and feeding. The day before a hurricane or flood would not be a good time to run out of pet food or other supplies. You don’t have to get everything together all at once, but today is a good time to assemble your pet emergency kit.
Container
Find a storage container so you can have everything in one place. Nothing fancy – use a 5-gallon bucket or plastic crate you may already have around the house.
Items to include
Pet food
I always buy a large bag of kibble that is used on a daily basis. I also keep an extra unopened bag of pet food for emergencies. Most dry pet foods will keep for a year, but will start to crumble after a longer period. I just keep rotating the bags.
Canned pet food will always show an expiration date. Use the ones with the expiration date that is fast approaching and replace them as you use them up.
Water
Don’t forget pets when calculating your household’s water needs. Include at least five gallons of water in the pet emergency kit. If you have multiple pets, be sure to store additional water.
Hygiene
Keep an extra bag of cat litter if you have a cat, or pet pads for the floor in case you are unable to take your dog outside in a hurricane or flood.
Accessories
Include an extra collar, harness and leash in case you have to leave in a hurry.
Pet medicines and supplements
If your dog or cat is on Heartgard or some other vet prescribed medicines, keep a couple of extra doses for emergencies. Similarly, if they are on supplements such as glucosamine, set aside a few spare tablets or even a bottle for the emergency kit.
Keep extra Flea prevention treatments in the kit.
Include your pet carrier – in case you have to evacuate.
Have a backup food and water dish and stash a pet blanket or toy.
Additional tips
- Store pets’ ownership and vaccination records in your grab and go binder.
- Make plans ahead of time of where you will head out to, in the event of an evacuation. Many shelters do not allow pets, and only a few rare ones do. The time to find this out is before anything happens, while you have the opportunity to make backup plans.
- To save time and make it easy to restock, I prefer to order my pet needs online via Chewy.com. They have reasonable prices and fast shipping. I also group all my orders together to qualify for free shipping. (Note: All links are affiliate links and may give me a small percentage by clicking through them. This doesn’t cost you anything extra but helps out the blog. You are not required to click through any of my links if you don’t want to.)
Pets naturally provide comfort, and we all need all the help we can get in times of high stress such as a disaster. They also depend on you no matter what happens. Take care of their needs now, and you’ll have one less thing to worry about in case an emergency.
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