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Where Will Your Pets Go if Disaster Strikes?

Responding to the public's need for better access to information about pet-friendly emergency shelters, the pet-friendly lodging referral service PetFriendlyTravel.com has added a new shelter information section to its website -- http://www.petfriendlytravel.com -- providing information about shelter locations, disaster-preparedness advice for pets and how to plan in advance if the need for a pet-friendly evacuation strikes.

"The terrible toll of human and animal loss of life in recenthurricanes has had a profound impact on the pet-owning community, and highlighted the need for a comprehensive approach to sheltering companion animals during disasters," said PetFriendlyTravel.com founder and pet travel expert Tracey Thompson. "As a vacation lodging referral service, many of our clients are located in ocean-front communities, and being pet friendly themselves, are keenly aware of the seriousness of this issue."

According to published reports, the presence of a pet in the home is the number one reason people refuse to evacuate their homes in an emergency, and why they return -- to save a pet -- before an area has been declared safe by emergency officials. In fact, nearly half the victims of Hurricane Katrina who refused to leave their homes said they did so because they were not willing to abandon their pets.

As our new shelter section shows, some communities and organizations have stepped up to the plate and made planning for and sheltering companion animals part of their formal disaster planning. Others are grappling with the issue, while too many still leave pet owners to fend for themselves and their animals. Given the evolving nature of pet-friendly shelter alternatives, our shelter section remains a work-in-progress -- but we hope it will stand as a modest contribution to solving this serious problem," Ms. Thompson added.

Thompson advises that pet owners put in place an evacuation plan that includes their animals, well in advance of a storm, and stresses that, "most importantly, if you have to evacuate, don't leave your pets behind." She offers the following practical advice for disaster evacuees concerned about their pets:

• DON'T leave your pets behind in an emergency. Pets most likely cannot survive on their own; and if by some remote chance they do, you may not be able to find them when you return
  
  
• DO make a disaster plan and assemble an emergency kit for your pet
  
  
• DO identify a safe place to take your pet --
  
  
  • a friend or relative outside the likely evacuation area
    
    
  • pet-friendly motels or hotels (or ask other locations in advance if a 'no pets' policy could be waived in an emergency)
    
    
  • boarding facilities and veterinarians who could shelter animals in an emergency
    
    
• If you must evacuate to a pet-friendly shelter, know the facilities' rules and requirements ahead of time; some shelters require pet owners to pre-register; some only accept pets in carriers, etc.

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