Pet Emergency Prep

The pet go-kit

One container per animal, grab-ready by the door. Store where the human go-bags live so nobody forgets them.

• 72 hours of food (week if space allows) plus a manual can opener
• Bottled water for the animal's size (see care basics for amounts)
• Foldable bowls
• Week of any medications, with dosing instructions written out
• Carrier or leash/harness — one that fits NOW, not the one from puppyhood
• Vet records in a zip bag (vaccinations, prescriptions, microchip number)
• Photo of the animal WITH you (proof of ownership at reunification)
• Familiar item — toy or blanket — stress shrinks in strange places
• Litter + small pan, or poop bags
• Pet first aid basics: gauze, self-adhesive wrap, saline — see Medical section for wound care that applies to animals too

Identification layers

1. Collar tag with a current phone number — the fastest reunification path there is.
2. Microchip — collars slip; chips don't. Verify registration points to a phone you'll actually answer during an emergency.
3. Current photos — face and full-body, stored offline in your phone and printed in the kit.

If you must shelter in place

• Bring outdoor animals inside early — frightened animals bolt long before the weather arrives.
• Confine nervous animals to one quiet interior room with their kit; scared cats hide under furniture you can't reach later.
• Keep leashes handy even indoors: post-disaster doors and fences fail.

The neighbor handshake

Trade keys and kit locations with one trusted neighbor: "If I can't get home, feed and water my animals, they're in the garage." Write the arrangement down — both sides. This five-minute conversation rescues more pets than any gadget.

Livestock note

Large animals need 24–72 hours' notice to relocate, so their triggers fire earlier: haul arrangements made in advance, trailers checked monthly, and a written "release or relocate" decision point for fires/floods. Never release animals onto roads.