With Emergency Preparedness Week coming up on May 7 through to the 13, the Lloydminster SPCA is also encouraging people to create a plan for their pets in case of an emergency.
“At the very least, have a package ready. Think about and have a plan in place for your animals. We all don’t want and hope that we never have something in the Border City like what happened in Fort McMurray. The best thing that we can do is ensure that everything goes as well as it can in those situations,” says Jon Punshon, the Executive Director of the Lloydminster SPCA.
The SPCA advises people to:
- Have a place you can take your pet, as evacuations can be extended for days or even weeks
- Keep your pet up to date on vaccinations in case they have to be in an evacuation kennel
- Make sure your pet is licensed, has a microchip and an id tag in case you are separated
Another initiative launched by the SPCA is their Emergency Pet Registry. Pet owners can go online and register their pets, the list will be used in case of emergencies to help first responders and will help in case a temporary shelter needs to be set up. Punshon says when the Fort McMurray fires happened, temporary shelters did not expect to see the amount of bird, reptiles and other small animals that they did.
“If we know what they have in their homes, in the event of first responders having to come into the community and potentially locate animals or if they get a phone call that there’s animals, we have a rough idea of what this community has. In addition to that, as setting up a temporary shelter for these animals we know we can expect X amount of birds or reptiles and we want to make sure we have supplies available, so that in the event they do come into us, we can provide the best care possible for them.”
Basic kits should include:
- Water (at least 2 litres per pet)
- Food (enough to feed each pet for 3 days minimum)
- At least 2 bowls
- Blankets
- Medical records
- Medication
- Photographs of pets
- Can opener
- Cleaning supplies
- For dogs also include: leash, collar, carrier/crate, poop bags
- For cats also include: litter box (with extra litter and scoop), carrier/crate
- For small animals also include: extra bedding, carrier
- For reptiles also include: extra bedding/substrate, extra light bulbs, extension cord/power bar, water mister, water conditioner, filters
Punshon adds, “we certainly encourage people to consider their pets, get prepared and certainly if they’re interested, we encourage people to do the registry as well.”