Hurricane Katrina impacted health of many residents of our Gulf states – and not just human residents. When the hurricane struck, many people realized that they didn’t have an effective plan for themselves or the animals in their care.
Some of these animals were saved by the monumental efforts of volunteer or professional responders - unsung heroes who provided rescue, shelter, and veterinary medical care. The dedicated group drawn from local, state and national response partners, including members of the NDMS National Veterinary Response Team and the veterinary officers of the U.S. Public Health Service, was committed to protecting animals yet not all survived.
The veterinary response proved challenging not just because of devastation caused by the storm but also because at the time few plans existed to help guide their efforts and some of the best practices we look to today, such as co-transportation and sheltering co-location, were even prohibited.
After Hurricane Katrina, we started thinking differently about the role animals play in our lives and the importance of having disaster response and recovery plans that include caring for them. We realized that for many people, pets and service animals can be a source of resiliency. They can help us cope with the stress of disasters if they are with us – and being without them can cause stress when we are unable to evacuate with them.
So in 2006, Congress passed the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act, requiring states seeking assistance from FEMA to accommodate pets and service animals in their plans for evacuating residents facing disasters. National coalitions, such as the National Alliance of State Animal & Agricultural Emergency Programs (NASAAEP) and National Animal Rescue and Sheltering Coalition (NARSC), formed to put the lessons of Hurricane Katrina into action when disaster strikes. Many local and state plans now provide for animal family members.
Although these efforts are a good start, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done in this area. We don’t know when or where the next disaster will strike, but we do know that there will be another disaster that will impact the animals in our communities. Does your community’s disaster plan include strategies to care for animals? Is your community ready to help rescue, decontaminate, shelter, and possibly evacuate the animals that are impacted by disasters? If not, check out FEMA’s Animals in Disasters: Community Planning to get started.
Most importantly, have you planned to take care of the animals in your life? Before a disaster strikes, consider how you can care for your pets or service animals and how you can reunite if you become separated. Microchipping your pet can help you find him or her if something happens during a disaster. More broadly, think about what you will need to care for your pets or service animals when you have to shelter in place as well as when you have to evacuate. Before a disaster strikes, learn about the steps that your emergency plan 
needs to include if you have pets and plan to take them with you if you need to evacuate. Create an emergency kit and go bag for your pets.
If your community or family has a plan for your pets, share your good ideas by commenting on this blog.
