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We live in tornado alley and I was discussing with someone the other day about how I "train" my dogs to go to the hidey hole in a calm and orderly way. Since I have 10 dogs, 2 parrots, and 4 cats to grab, it HAS to be done orderly or we won't make it. This person said I was being silly! You know, I don't think it is silly. I have extra water, food and kennels down in the shelter. When the radio goes off, we all put our leashes on and they drag them about the house. This is their big clue that we are going to have to behave, no messing around now! The cats are next, in their kennels (crates). The birds go in their respective travel cages. We practice timing everything--and try to see which dog is going to have a problem, or where we can shave a few moments, as that is likely all we have. It really paid off last year, when we did have a real run to the shelter. I can say that my dogs were so used to the trial runs, that they behaved beautifully. Now though, I must say, I wish we had put another vent in the durn shelter, as the, um, gas from 10 dogs all excited....well...ewweee. We weren't so much saying, "Is the storm over?" We were saying, "Who's farting?" All perfectly straight faces as an answer to that one! So, since all places have their own sort of "disaster waiting to happen" remember planning in advance can save you a lot of trouble later on. Having extra water, food, crates, proof that your dog/cat is vaccinated just in case a tag is missing, all important things. Also your vet's phone number written down, just in case. You'd be surprised what you cannot remember off the top of your head when you need it most! Although I'm probably preaching to the choir here!
I think that is an excellent piece of advice! We should all be prepared on how to evacuate with our pets when bad weather or other emergencies strike.
I can't imagine what it would be like to live in tornado alley, but kudos to you for making sure that you and your pets are well taken care of (despite the... well... odorous side effects - LOL!).
Excellent, all pet owners shoud read this. I had smoke in my home last year and I had 7 dogs and a bird out in less than 5 min. You are right, you do somewhat lose it when some emergency arises. You just cannot think straight when under pressure and have a short time frame to react!
We live in hurricane country and have had mandatory evacuation twice.
Come the beginning of hurricane season, June 1, I stock up with at least 2 weeks worth of food for the animals (us too). I have 2 big totes....1 for the cats with food,bowls, small litter box, collars, harness', bottled water and some rescue remedy just in case. Same for the dog. Leashes, doggie bags, water,etc. I have portable kennels for each. I have 2 sets of their medical records...one set goes with my important papers that we carry and one set goes with each individual animal.
I am relatively new to all of this, so it has been a real eye opener and learning experience!
Thankfully, we have wonderful friends who open up their homes to us when we must leave ours. This year, DH is heading up a special hurricane taskforce...so once the threat for us is here, we will head to Dallas where the headquarters will be.
Very good advice all around for there is no substitute for preparation and planning.
I can get my head around the domestic pets and tornado shelters... what do people do about, for example, horses?!
My equines are the reason I won't contemplate living anywhere in Tornado Alley, because I can't figure out how I'd be able to keep them safe. Just out of curiosity, how do people deal with it?
At least with hurricanes, you have a lot more warning and time to "GET OUT!" and there's a network of stables that will take in evacuees. You load and go. But tornadoes....... well, you don't have that luxury.
The only thing you can do with the horses is tag them with I.D. and turn them loose in a pasture, add in alot of prayers and cross your fingers. Living here with hurricanes has been a learning experience for me. My dogs are trained to run to the truck with Load Up and to hanker down when I yell Hide. This is something I trained them in in the past few months since "cane" season is coming in.
We live in hurricane country and have had mandatory evacuation twice.
Come the beginning of hurricane season, June 1, I stock up with at least 2 weeks worth of food for the animals (us too). I have 2 big totes....1 for the cats with food,bowls, small litter box, collars, harness', bottled water and some rescue remedy just in case. Same for the dog. Leashes, doggie bags, water,etc. I have portable kennels for each. I have 2 sets of their medical records...one set goes with my important papers that we carry and one set goes with each individual animal.
I am relatively new to all of this, so it has been a real eye opener and learning experience!
Thankfully, we have wonderful friends who open up their homes to us when we must leave ours. This year, DH is heading up a special hurricane taskforce...so once the threat for us is here, we will head to Dallas where the headquarters will be.
We live in Florida so we have to have a plan for the pets as well. This is great advice! We have a hurricane box for our personal files and info so we are going to have a hurricane "kit" for the animals, too. I know one thing, I am not leaving my pets under any circumstances. They will be ready to evacuate just as quickly as we, ourselves, will be ready.
I might also add having the animals micro-chip info....You just never know when you might possibly need those #'s!
I'm with you EmeraldGirl...where I go, my pets go! If I could possibly take the fish...I'd do that too!
dogmom -- i actually think it's fantasic that you do this...
years ago, when i lived on the top floor of a three story apt, i worried about fire. the apt was on the side of a hill that terminated in a gully, and i would look out of the windows and think: how in god's name will i get barnaby (my shih tzu) out of here if i ever have to jump or use a fire ladder?
my friends all laughed at me b/c, for practice, i would put him in a book bag with just his head sticking out, strap him to my chest, and jump around the apt. and it did look crazy...but you know what, i wanted him to not panic if i ever needed to do this in a real emergency.
these days, i could probably find a pet carrier that has the kind of straps that the book bag had so that he'd be in a better carrier...
but then again, we no longer live in a third floor apt. now, i am more concerned about floods and tornadoes...so maybe i need to start practicing your drill!
My ex and his wife left their cat in the garage when they evacuated for Hurricane Katrina. How they could be so stupid and cruel is beyond me - well, I did divorce him, so maybe I had a clue, LOL. Anyway, her son came over 3-4 days later and found the cat in the rafters and started feeding her. But the water had been contaminated and the cat later died from the toxic effects. I know a lot of poeple who thought they would be home the next day, all safe at home, but it didn't happen. Just be careful not to leave the animals bhind if you evacuate even for "1 day."
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). I have 2 big totes....1 for the cats with food,bowls, small litter box, collars, harness', bottled water and some rescue remedy just in case. Same for the dog. Leashes, doggie bags, water,etc. I have portable kennels for each. I have 2 sets of their medical records...one set goes with my important papers that we carry and one set goes with each individual animal. 
