When the unexpected happens.  Prepare today, do not delay

Humans have a way of procrastinating until it’s too late.  The question isn’t if there will ever be an emergency, but when is it going to happen and am I prepared?  None of us can tell the future, with the National Weather service, cell phone weather apps, local and national news; emergency broadcast systems and the internet how can we not know what’s happening, when and where there is the possibility of weather events that might occur causing an immediate emergency situation.

Being prepared is something that every horse owner needs to take seriously, stop procrastinating. Have an evacuation plan in place.  Organization is the key; place items in an area that is easy to reach and unobstructed. Place halters and Identification in sight and easily accessible, labeling them with reflective lettering is helpful as well.

Every boarding facility, large and small farms alike needs to be prepared.  Know your property, is it located in a known flood zone, high fire area, high wind location?  Is there a probability that weather can and will affect your fences, barn, home even your roads that could be blocked during and evacuation?  Do you have the ability for more than one escape route?  If not, you might want to start looking for one, as this could save your life.  Travel roads in your area, know which ones are dead end, where others may go and if they double back, this way you can prevent yourself from getting caught in a dire situation.

Do you know where to go when you are evacuated?  Some animal shelters can intake small animals, but what about large animals?  Does your area have local, county or state fairgrounds that might be opened for emergencies?  What about a local agricultural college?  Or must you rely on friends and neighbors for housing until the evacuation orders are lifted?  Only you are going to know your area, so check with your emergency services personnel and ask them for their help and advice.

Another question to ask yourself is how your horses and other animals would be rescued, removed if you were not home if you are unavailable?  Do you have identifiers on your property, in your barn, on your pasture as to the number of animals you have?  The locations of all the animals, dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, etc.?  Do you have the phone numbers in your cell phone of your local large animal organization, humane society, ASPCA or others that you can contact to help in their removal from your property?

Here are a few things that will help you to be prepared when an emergency happens:

• Telephone numbers: Have the current local telephone numbers for large animal rescue groups in your area (i.e.: Animal Control, ASPCA, Humane Society or local organizations such as C.E.R.T.).  Contact them immediately if you are unavailable to remove your animals yourself.
• Evacuation site: Know in your local area where evacuated animals can be housed until the emergency has passed. If you have a local agency evacuate your animals on your behalf, in all likelihood, this is where they will also be located.
• First Aid Kits/Medications: Make sure that you have a first aid kit available to treat any animals that may have been injured.  Take any and all medications for your animals when evacuating and don’t forget your medications as well.
• Flash Light/headlamps: Make sure you have flashlights and/or headlamps ready for use. Headlamps can help free up your hands for handling all animals.
• Operational vehicles/trailers: Be sure that you have enough operational vehicles to pull/tow any and all trailers needed to evacuate animals.  If you do not, then your first call should be to emergency evacuation teams to advise them of your dilemma and that you will need help.
• Animal Identification: Make sure that you identify any and all animals in your care and custody.  Proof of ownership may be required when the emergency has passed and you take your animals home.  Having visible identification directly on your animals is important as well.  Collars, tags, leg bands all help, however if they are attached to such things as halters or lead ropes they may be removed and misplaced during such emergencies.  In that effort, some form of a leg band is another important form of identification as well as microchipped.  Having current photos of you and your animals is also important for identification purposes.
• Secondary telephone contacts out of the emergency area: Delegate a secondary contact for any and all friends or family to contact for information about your situation.   This person could be out of state and therefore be able to contact other family members as to how you are faring during an emergency.

It doesn’t matter when an emergency happens, they may not occur during “business hours”; being prepared for emergencies is our responsibility and the only way we can be good stewards for our animals.

Start today and be prepared!