Q&A - How Do I Prepare Emergency Plans For My Dog?

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About The Episode

Welcome to the next episode of our new Q&A minisode series, where we will feature a curious question about canine/human behavior and relationships. For the second question, John Bartlett answers about how you can prepare an Emergency Plan for your dog in case of something happening to you.

Episode Transcript

Dogs are our best friends, and so it stands to reason that we should establish emergency planning for our furry family members in the event that something happens where you cannot care for your pet for any length of time.  What does an Emergency Planning for your dog entail? Choose a caregiver you trust, who is responsible and reliable, and a second backup caregiver. Create an information dossier on your dog, and prepare an emergency supply kit with all food and medical essentials.  

Welcome to the Dog Save the People, a podcast about how dogs make our lives better. My name is John Bartlett, and I’m your host. This episode continues our Questions & Answer series where we take listener questions. My answers are based on my own personal experience and research as well as advice from our previous podcast guest experts.  If you have a question you’d like answered on the show, reach out to us at dogsavethepeople.com, where you can email us directly or connect to us on social media. 

In today’s mini episode, we explore the question: “How to prepare an Emergency Plan for my dog?” Specifically, if something happens to you – like getting hurt in an accident or falling sick. You are the one who knows your dog the best – their habits, their food schedule, their walking routes, and every detail of their lives. But if something were to happen to you, what would happen next? It’s a scary scenario to think about, I know, but you have to cover your bases and make sure you have a plan in place to handle your dog’s care during an emergency. 

To start off, perhaps the most important step to have in place is to choose an emergency contact and caregiver in case anything happens. Choose someone who could help out, whether it be for a short or long term period. Possibly a family member, neighbor, friend, or an available boarding facility. If you use a dog-walking or dog-sitting service, you may want to check ahead of time if they can deal with emergencies. You probably want to have a second backup person, as well, in case the first is out of town or temporarily can not go to help with the dog.

I’ve started to think about this a lot lately and for me - I have certain family members who are ready to take care of my dogs. More importantly, my dog walker (who really is kind of like their mom) is prepared at the drop of a hat to move in and take care of my dogs. She knows their habits, she knows what they eat. She knows probably more about them than I do. So I have kind of a dual plan, where I have family members that would take my dogs in the longer term and then I have my dog walker who would move in to take care of the dogs in a shorter period of time.

To be extra careful, you may even want to have official instructions in your Will or Trust that specifies these Caregivers for your dog in the event of something tragic.

Once you choose your Emergency contacts, you also want to have all your dogs information available for them in one place. Send it over in advance, so they can have it ready at any time. This could include a list of 

  1. Identification and Owner Contact information such as recent photos of your dog, contact info for your Emergency Caregivers, copy of registration or adoption records, as well as your own phone number, email, and address. 

  2. Medical-related documentation including brief summary of medical history, current prescriptions, the vaccinations they’ve had, and contact information for your vet.

  3. Care Advice specific to your dog, such as their personality characteristics, behavioral tendencies, routine walking and feeding times, and their favorite toys.  

Full list below via CDC recommendations on specifics:

  • Medical summary

  • Prescriptions for medications

  • Vaccinations

  • Rabies certificate

  • Prescriptions for medications

  • Most recent heartworm test result 

  • Photocopied registration information (ex: proof of ownership or adoption records)

  • Physical description(s) (ex: breed, sex, color, weight)

  • Photos of each of your pets (keep to newer photos)

  • Your contact information (phone number, email, and addresses for your family and friends or relatives you may be staying with or any related contact info)

Aside from having this information ready, and your Emergency Caregivers in place, you want to be sure that anyone who finds you hurt or sick would know that you even have a dog at home in the first place. You should have a printed Pet Card in your wallet that explains this information. There are several places online where you can find free templates for this. Basically, this states you have a dog alone at home, and then provides the emergency contact information for them to reach out to.

Template examples:

https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/pet-planning/getting-started

https://kudzumonster.net/products/free-printable-pet-emergency-contact-card

Additionally, for the person taking over you may want to have a Pet Disaster Preparedness Kit ready with physical items aside from the information. This can include a couple weeks worth of food, the dishes they eat and drink out of, any medication, toys, their leashes and harnesses, and more. The Emergency Caregivers should also have a copy of keys to your house so they can get in quickly and without any issues. And if you live in an apartment, their names should be on the list of people who are allowed entrance to your building.

Full list of CDC recommendations:

  • 2-weeks worth of food in waterproof containers

  • Non-spill food and water dishes

  • If applicable, a 2-week supply of any medications (if applicable)

  • 1-month supply of flea, tick, and heartworm preventative

  • Leash, collar with ID, and harness

  • Toys

  • Appropriate-sized pet carrier with bedding, blanket, or towel

  • First aid book and first aid kit

  • Cleaning supplies for accidents (paper towels, plastic bags, disinfectant)

You want to make sure your dog wears collars and tags with up-to-date contact information and other identification. In addition, you may want to consider microchipping your dog and have your caregiver contact info as a secondary contact in the event the dog gets lost while under their watch. Microchips work with RFID, which means that it works by a microchip scanner being passed over the dog and the microchip then getting enough power from the scanner to transmit the ID number with corresponding ownership information. And if you have a dog that might be considered a flight risk - a dog that may run if it gets frightened or loose from its leash - we definitely recommend getting a GPS little tag for their collar. This is a wonderful way to track the animal so they don’t get lost.

I know these things are hard to think about but it’s really important that you have a plan ready for your dog. Things happen! I really have thought about this and I encourage you to do the same.

What other plans or systems do you recommend having in place for your dogs in case of emergency? We’d love to hear from you. Reach out to us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, or drop us a line at dog save the people at gmail dot com. If you have a question that we should answer in a future episode, send it our way!

About The Host - John Bartlett

John Bartlett is an NYC-based fashion designer who has a passion for dogs and always has a home of loving animals. Currently, he is the proud owner of two rescues and a purebred Bernese Mountain Dog. John is a graduate of Harvard University and the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). He created his own eponymous “John Bartlett” Men’s Fashion collection in 1991, and later created a specialty line of dog-themed apparel and accessories with all profits supporting his “Tiny Tim Rescue Fund” (named after his three-legged rescue dog of the same name). Bartlett has long championed the issues of animal rights and welfare. He has worked alongside the Humane Society of the United States, the North Shore Animal League, and other animal rights organizations helping to raise awareness and spread the message of compassion.

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