Getting yourself ready for an emergency is one thing, but what about the pets you’ve chosen to include in your family? These furry critters depend on you for everything, and unlike other family members, they don’t have any survival skills to help keep them safe in an emergency.
Prepping with pets is just like prepping for people, but with a few key differences. By planning and thinking through some key details, you should be able to safely escape any disaster with your pets.
Think of it this way: if you could never go to a pet store again, what would you need to transition your pet into a life off the grid? This is the best place to start and can help guide you into prepping successfully for your pet.
What to Prep
Just like us, pets require some basic items to survive when the SHTF. Starting with a broad list and adjusting it to your pets’ specific needs is the best way to make sure your furry friends are taken care of.
Food and Water
If an emergency turns into The End of the World as We Know It, you’ll have to find more abundant sources of pet food than what you find at the pet store, but if an emergency happens that is recoverable like an earthquake, fire or other natural disaster, having a backup of food for your pet is crucial.
The same goes for water. While dogs can drink water from just about anywhere, cats and other critters are a little more discerning. You should know how much water your animals drink every day. Make sure you have enough to make it through any major emergency.
You’ll want to keep at least 3 days’ worth of food and water for each animal. In a perfect world, at least a week’s worth of food and water is the best idea. If you have to transition to a food your pet doesn’t usually eat, you’ll need a few days’ worth to get them used to it.
Medicine
If your pet takes medicine daily or monthly, you’ll want to keep a backup of his or her medicine in case you can’t find it due to an emergency. Flea collars, heartworm medicine, and animal-specific medicines should always have a backup.
Keeping a year’s worth of heartworm medicine for dogs is recommended, and at least an extra month of every other medicine is good, too.
First Aid
Speaking of your pet’s health, you need to make sure you have a first aid kit specifically built for them with your prep. Animals can get hurt just like people can, but their various sizes means a basic human first aid kit might not work best for them.
The best way to know what you should have in an emergency pet medical kit is to talk to your veterinarian. They’ll know what’s best for your specific pet and can guide you to make some good decisions. The basics still stand no matter what, including isopropyl alcohol, gauze bandages, cotton bandage rolls, antibiotic ointment, scissors and saline solution.
Pet Carrier, Collar, and Leash
Cats and dogs usually wear their collars all the time. If this isn’t the case, one should be kept with your prep to be used if the SHTF. The same goes with a leash and the animal’s pet carrier. Even if you don’t typically use a leash or even a carrier, having them on hand for an emergency is a very good idea.
Having an emergency pet carrier for your pet is crucial to getting out in a hurry. Some emergencies can freak animals out, making them unruly and hard to get moving. By placing them in a carrier you help save precious time and keep them calm and safe.
Everything Else
Most indoor animals use some form of “bedding” for their waste needs. For cats it’s typically kitty litter and for other small animals it’s some form of wood chips. Whatever the case, make sure to have a backup of these to ease your pets into a new situation.
Bleach for cleaning up accidents is a good idea, too, as you don’t want your bug-out safehouse smelling like urine. Best of all, bleach can be used for water purification.
For exotic pets like snakes, lizards, chinchillas and birds you will need to think through how their specific needs will be met in an emergency. Extra emergency heat lamps and dust baths are inexpensive ways to keep your pets safe and still get you out of the house in a hurry.
Getting a Plan Together
Even after you have supplies prepped for your furry friend, you need to make a plan for how to handle them in an emergency. You should have already made a plan with your family as to what happens when the SHTF, but how will you handle your animals?
Make someone responsible for each animal and make sure everyone knows where the emergency supplies and carriers are for each of your animals. Know how you’ll fit them into your car or truck and how they’ll fit with your other emergency supplies. Practice moving your animals so there aren’t any surprises when disaster strikes.
Being organized and prepared is the key to surviving an emergency with your pets. If you have a pet, you know they’re not just creatures living in your house — they’re just like family. So treat them like that and include them in your prepping so they’re taken care of well into TEOTWAWKI, just like you.