Leaving your pets behind in an emergency..

[CalliesMom]

We ended up packing up the cats and the turtle and heading for my brother's house in Atlanta. The storm wasn't as bad here as I thought it would be and we didn't have any damage to the house. THANK GOODNESS! I couldn't imagine ever, ever leaving my babies behind. They are like children to me and go where I go.

[Giselle]

Ahhh, see now if I was given days and hours to evacuate, I would certainly bring ALL my pets. Thankfully, our family has three cars, one of which is a large van which could certainly carry the dogs and birds. However, we live in the Bay Area which has never experienced a hurricane or any weather travesty like that (to my knowledge). Earthquakes and fires, on the other hand...

[AdoreMyDogs]

Just 2 days after arriving in Texas, we had our first tornado warning. Back in 1979, much of Wichita Falls was wiped out by a tornado that reached a mile wide...tornados are nothing to gamble with here. I had not yet unpacked the cats carrier, it was in my car, and the hail was pounding down...I didn't have time to go to my car, put it together and then catch the kitties. I brought the dogs with me to the cellar, but I had to leave the kitties behind, because I couldn't even find them, and if I did, I had no way to transport them to the cellar (neighbors cellar, as we don't have our own). So instead of risking my own life, I left the kitties behind. They were in hiding anyway, because they had never experienced the sound of hail slamming into a house before, and they were freaked out.

I have since made up an emergency pack with a bottle of water, a flashlight, and the cat carrier, and next tornado warning I'll do everything in my power to get the kitties packed into their carrier so I can take them as well as the dogs next time.

As much as I adore my pets, if they don't come to me, and they run and hide and make catching them a difficult, time consuming task, then sometimes you just have to say a prayer that they'll be OK, and get to shelter. In a tornado warning, there's little time to waste. I left the cats, there simply wasn't time to get them. I have made it easier to get them in the future, but if they run and hide when I pull the carrier out, or if they're off in hiding from the tornado sirens going off, and every minute counts, yes I'll unfortunately have to leave them behind...but if it was an evacuation that I had time to prepare for, you bet I'd take them all, even the cats with me, even if we had to stay in the car because we wern't allowed in any shelter/hotel situation.

[tikeyas_mom]

if i could'nt take all my pets.. i wouldent leave.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by AdoreMyDogs
but if they run and hide when I pull the carrier out, or if they're off in hiding from the tornado sirens going off, and every minute counts, yes I'll unfortunately have to leave them behind...but if it was an evacuation that I had time to prepare for, you bet I'd take them all, even the cats with me, even if we had to stay in the car because we wern't allowed in any shelter/hotel situation.

That's how I feel, too. I don't see the good in everyone dying in a fire or something like that. I would do whatever I could to get my pets to safety, but, if my house was burning to the ground around me, and, I couldn't get to Finn, I would not stay and die. If I had the chance, and, the ability, I would most definitely save my pets. I wouldn't even want another person to stay and die with me if I wasn't able to be rescued. But, I wouldn't let something like a no pets hotel or something like that keep me from having my pets with me. I'd live in my car with Finn before I'd live somewhere without him. If it was at all possible, Finn will always be with me, as well as any other pets I may have.

[lv4dogs]

I would never leave my pets behind. I would do whatever it takes to have them with me. I have enough carriers appropiatly set up near their cages & by the door and have an emergancy bag in my car as well as one in my house near the door.

Of course it does depened on the situation.
Like if my house was on fire and I couldn't get to my animals in time, but I certainly would try.

If it was due to a storm or something else where I have notice to evacuate then of course they would all come with me, even if I had to live in my vehicle or something.

If it some sort of emergency that only gave me a tiny bit of notice I do have to say that I would rescue the dogs first, the cats, the ferrets, my hamster then my fish, in that order. It is hard to explain why, it's not really that I have favorites I love them all. I guess its a combination of things like who is easier to catch & transport, who is more human like, who is more bonded to me, who would be less stressed if we were to up & move without the comforts of home, the fact that a tiny dwarf hamster would probably die faster (less suffering) in most cases, etc... etc...

Life or death situation then yes I would leave them behind IF I HAD to (fire or something). But the choice to stay in a non pet hotel or the like or on the street you bet I'd be camped out on the street.

[Cataholic]

Originally posted by kittycats_delight
I could never do that. I would die with them before I would leave them. I am responsible for their lives and they trust me to not abandon them and leave them to die. There is no way in this worl would I leave them. I could never live with myself knowing I left them scared and alone to die when they trusted me. NEVER I COULD NOT DO IT !!!!


Would you leave your child behind? Well to me those animals are just as dependent on you and therefore they are your children. Why leave them behind?

Let me ask you this, if you were me, a mommy to Jonah, and the decision was to leave with Jonah, or stay behind and perish- Jonah included, with your pets, what would you do?

[petslover]

If I had days notice, I would take all 7 of my pets. I would make sure they were okay.

On the other hand, if it was a fire I would get as many as I could, and pray that the rest get out okay. I want my human family to be safe. I couldn't bare to lose any of them. I love my animal family, but my human family you can never compare to.

The comment about would you leave your child behind really bothered me.

I'm not a mommy yet, or not even considering to be one anytime soon. Although, if I did have a child I would take my child and fight for my child's life before anything else. If it was to my child, of course I would grab my child before my pets. I would try to get my pets, but if not all possible I would make sure that child got out okay.


Okay, you all know that my animal family means alot to me, but my human family means the world to me. I don't know what I would do without them.

[cali]

for me it depends, I have a lot of animals, there is no way I could leave my dogs and rabbit, and I would hope it would never come to having to leave the guinea pigs and gerbils behind. its not really poossable to take the fish... they live is a huge show tank, there is no room in the van with all the cages and kennels to place a fish tank the size of a large dog kennel.

[kittycats_delight]

Originally posted by Cataholic
Let me ask you this, if you were me, a mommy to Jonah, and the decision was to leave with Jonah, or stay behind and perish- Jonah included, with your pets, what would you do?

That is a question I just cannot answer !!! I don't have a child so I don't have to choose between my child's life and my pet's lives.

But what I said was would you leave your child behind?

If you couldn't do that and your pet's are like family then how can you in all good conscience leave your pets behind????

[Fox-Gal]

Really sensitive subject for me, sense I had to make this decision for 3 hurricanes that hit my home last summer.

I have lots of pets as many know and I would love to be able to load them all us and take them with me, but that is TOTALLY impossible. Where am I going to take Ducks, Chickens, Goats, Iggie's, Rabbits, etc? There's not a hotel in the world that will take them all in.

When the first hurricane hit me, we had 1 hour notice that it was coming. It turned that quick that we had no time to prepare, so we left, taking who we could and leaving those behind that we had to. Me crying the whole time worrying about them.

The second one came and we decided to stay and not leave our babies again. Well the closer it got, the bigger it got, the scarier it got. Family came and got us out, fearing for our safety and life. Paul's sister crying for him to come with her, because she couldn't deal with another death. So again we took who we could, again me crying, worried about those we left.

The third one came, eye heading right over our home, this one we had a place to go too and planed it out some, but again, we could not take all pets, there was no way to do that. We rented a house from a sweet old woman, who lets us bring 6 pets to the house, no more. So again some had to stay behind. Again me crying.

Life hands you some really hard chooses sometimes and even though I said I'd never leave my babies...........I did. Not because I love them any less then anyone else loves theirs. But because I value my life, my husbands life and the lives that would be effected by any harm/death that could come to us, Family members etc. I made one of the hardest chooses I have ever had to make.

In till you are really faced with it, you just never know what you will do, as much as you think you know. You live in a wood frame home, low lying area, a eye of one of the biggest hurricanes (size wise) is coming toward you and you look over at the man you love and you have to say, Lets go. If any harm came to my pets, it would kill me, but if any harm came to the person I love more then my own life...............I would die.

He left the home, because of his love for me and I left because of my love for him. The love of our pets is strong, but the love for each other is stronger, so you do what you have to do, no matter how much it kills you inside to do it.

Yes, I lost pets...ChiChi, my Chin, because our side wall was riped off, Baby rabbits, from stress we believe, fish from having no power for 3 weeks, no filtrations. It still hurts me to think about them, but did I make the right chosie............YES! What if my husband our I was standing near that wall, when it came off??
One of us could be a widow today!

Never say never.............as you never know. All situations are different, all answers to those situations are going to be different too. There is no black and white answer to all situations, choice will have to be made, quickly and some with no good answer. Picking the best of the worce, is all you can do. Then you pray.

[Suki Wingy]

I agree with you Kay.

[Pit Chick]

Originally posted by Fox-Gal
I have lots of pets as many know and I would love to be able to load them all us and take them with me, but that is TOTALLY impossible. Where am I going to take Ducks, Chickens, Goats, Iggie's, Rabbits, etc? There's not a hotel in the world that will take them all in.

There may not be a hotel that would take that many, but having that many critters is a responsibility you took. I'm not saying you should have stayed there and died, but if you have a pet the size of a goat, wouldn't that mean you have something big enough to transport it in? Living in hurricane prone areas is a good reason to have a game plan that also involves your pets. I'm not attacking you and I'm very sorry for your losses, but there really isn't a reason that anyone, people or pets should be left behind.

Heck no I wouldn't stay behind and die with my pets, but there is no reason to leave your pets behind to die. If you have to get out now, that's when you grab your family, your pets, whatever stuff you can carry and sort out the rest later. As long as me, my family and my pets are safe, a place to stay will come along later even if I have to drive several hours to a relative's house. I have a lot of animals in my house doing animal rescue and I live in Houston and know that one day I'll have to bail out when a hurricane heads our way. There's no way a hotel or shelter will allow us in with all of these critters, but that's ok, we'll just keep driving til we find some place that will take us in. Sure we'll have to rent a moving truck to haul all of these animals and if we have to sleep in the back with them, so be. They were already abandoned by their first owners, they don't need to be abandoned again. No one will be left behind. For people to leave behind one dog just because they aren't allowed in hotels or shelters is even more inexcusible.

[Lexi_Lover]

I only have a couple of pets so it wouldn't be hard for me. Of course, its really hard to get the heck out with 9 bettas. So, some would unfortuantly have to be left behind. I would take as many with me, trying to pack them in somewhere. We are not anywhere near a hurricane, but if fire came to our home, I would save the ones I could get to first. Lexi & Skye. I couldn't imagine leaving the bettas, but if its my life I risk, or B*Boy's, I'd have to savour my life. Even though this is coming from somebody who actually tried to kill themself, I value life more then ever now!

Fox-Gal, I will never completly understand what you went through, until I have gone through it myself. But I am glad you made the right decision and chose your loved ones, even though they all were. You're very strong.

[ParNone]

Unlike Hurricanes, most emergencies happen with very lil' notice. When something's sprung on you and you're in a state of panic, who really knows how they'll react until you're faced with that reality.

And a lot depends on how many pets you have and what kind. I think for those of us with only a few dogs, it may be a lil' easier. My three are always with me in the house, so if an emergency hits, it's not like I'm going to have to search the house for'em. But there's still no way I can carrry all 3. My plan is to pick up Murph and urgently yell "Let's Go, Let's Go, Let's Go", to Oz and Gull as Murph and I flea the house. I'm going to put a lot of trust and prayer in their natural Collie instinct to stick with the pack kicking in and that they'll be hot on my heels. Plus, stick with me once we're out of the house. Hummm I may need to practice this to see how they do.

I don't have a child, but if one of my lil' nephews were staying with me, he would be my first priority. I would never be able to live with myself, if I had to look my sister in the eye and tell her I sacrificed her son, for one of my dogs. That choice would be incredibly heart renching, most likely requiring therapy, but I would hope and pray that Oz and Murph and Gull would understand. I kind of think they would. Dogs seem to have a tendency toward that. Thinking of the pack's safety first and themselves second and my nephews are definitely viewed as part of the pack.

Par...