Preparing an emergency kit for your dog

If the last 2 years have taught us anything, it’s to be prepared in case of an emergency situation.

It’s not something that we consider in our suburban bliss when the sky is blue and the sun is shining. But, when the skies turns red with smoke as we witnessed with the devastating  2019 bushfires, and the dry creeks turn to raging torrents in the flooding that followed the fires – it’s taught us that we need to be prepared for anything.

Ask yourself this, if you needed to evacuate your home immediately, do you know what you would need to take to care for your pooch? If the answer is no, we have a few tips on the essential things you would need to pack in your emergency kit.

-          Medication: Pack at least one weeks’ worth of medication for your dog to ensure any health issues can be managed during times of turbulence. You may not be able to get access to medication quickly wherever you end up, so one weeks medication will provide a good buffer.

-          Food and water: this is a no brainer but it’s often the most obvious things that are missed in times of stress and uncertainty

-          First aid kit: Remove all of the thinking and purchase a ready-made first aid kit that contain all the essentials such as gauze pads, antiseptic, cotton balls, scissors, saline solution, tweezers etc.

-          Additional leash and collar with the up to date tags: In times of stress dogs can try and escape. If this happens, you want to ensure that your dogs’ tags are up to date so that people can easily contact you if your dog is found.

-          Collapsible bowl: Any bowl will do, but a collapsible bowl will limit the amount of (often limited) space it takes up.

-          Blanket: A blanket will give your pooch will need somewhere soft to rest if they don’t have a bed, and will also keep them warm.

-          Comfort toy: This will give your dog something familiar and comforting to turn to if you end up in a new environment, it will also help to reduce anxiety levels by giving your pooch something to focus on. 

Please note, this is a very general list. If your dog has any particular needs, including injury, illness or unique behaviours that you will need to manage, you will need to ensure that these are addressed in your emergency kit.