Ready to evacuate your pet without getting your whiskers in a whirl?

Greenhill Human Society Executive Director Cary Lieberman joins Tiffany to talk about how to prepare for evacuation with your pets, tips to help reduce their stress during an evacuation, and community resources that help people with their pets before and during an evacuation. 

Episode resources:

• Greenhill Humane Society website
• Pet preparedness information from Greenhill
• FEMA pet preparedness information

**If you would like to have a question answered on the upcoming Q&A episode, please send your question to publicinformation@lanecountyor.gov or call 541-682-4526 to leave a recorded message for us to use on the podcast.**

Listen online or on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Podcasts or Spotify.

You can find more information, including episodes and show notes, at LaneCountyOR.gov/fan. Sign up to receive emergency alerts at LaneAlerts.org.

The views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Lane County Government.

Transcript

The transcript is AI generated and lightly edited for glaring errors. Please excuse minor errors.

Introduction:

Welcome to When It Hits the Fan, Lane County's favorite podcast for all things emergency preparedness. Whether you're just dipping your toes into the world of emergency preparedness or you've been building bunkers since Y2K, we've got something for you. Hosted by Lane County Emergency Management, this podcast is all about equipping you with the knowledge and resources to be prepared and stay safe, no matter what hits the fan.

Tiffany

Welcome back, Devon. 

Devon

Hi, Tiffany. How are you? 

Tiffany

I'm great. How's your fall been? 

Devon

It's been busy, but that's not always a bad thing. I'm really excited; we have Cary Lieberman here with us today. 

Cary

Hello. 

Tiffany

Hi, Cary. Welcome. 

Cary

Thank you. 

Devon

Cary is the executive director at Greenhill Humane Society. And so, we'll get to hear from him about how to, you know, best support and take care of your pets during a disaster.

But before we get there: Tiffany, as always, you're running here and there and all over the place. Any updates from emergency management? 

Tiffany

Well, a few. We had an election security exercise at the end of September. That went really well. And so a great opportunity to sit down with election stakeholders during the presidential year and understand how we can ensure the safety of voters and election workers and everybody that's involved in the process. And, well, I want to say fire season's over. So it's not something that's happening, but it's something that's not happening. Those are my big updates. 

Devon

I'll take the not happening on that one for sure, as will most of the people in our community. Well, I don't want to delay the best part any longer, so I'm going to get out of the way and let you and Cary talk about pets.

Tiffany

Thank you so much. This is such an important topic. Pets are such an important part of people's lives, whether they're part of your family, whether they're your emotional companion. And so I'm really excited to dive into this today. This hasn't always been a priority in our country. And we saw a big shift in this after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

For our listeners, I'll remind you that that was a hurricane that people were expecting, but it was the levee failure that people were not expecting. And so people left their homes. They're used to hurricanes. They thought they'd be coming back, and they didn't come back. They didn't. They weren't able to come back for a long time. And so a heartbreaking number of pets perished during Hurricane Katrina.

Cary probably knows better than I. I think the numbers were 250,000 were left, and some of those were rescued, and it resulted in us looking differently about disaster planning. And it resulted in the pet evacuation bill that simply instructed federal agencies to include pets in their disaster and evacuation planning. And I dare say that it has had an impact on our country.

So, thank you so much for joining us, Cary. Please add anything to that background that you have that is, that adds to the understanding of that. 

Cary

Sure. Yeah. And I'll add to that. After Hurricane Katrina and the federal requirement that communities have plans in place for people and their pets, Lane County here – so over a decade ago, almost 15 years now – the Lane County Veterinary Medical Association and Lane County Animal Services and Greenhill Humane Society came together and worked on a comprehensive plan for pets and people in this community. And we did not have to exercise that until 2020  with the first Holiday Farm Fire.

But, it was so good that we had a plan in place to ensure that people could evacuate safely with their pets. It didn't have to be a question about should I stay behind because my pets don't have a safe place to go? This community has really worked hard to solve that problem.

Tiffany

That's just great information to know about our community. Makes you proud to be part of this community. You talk about exercising or activating the disaster response plan. I think a lot of us are familiar with what you do at Greenhill on a day-to-day basis. What are you called upon to do in an emergency? 

Cary

Yeah. So in an emergency, we pivot from what most people think, that Greenhill does. Most people, understandably, believe that we are here to get and adopt pets. It's the place you think about when you're thinking of bringing a new dog or cat into your home. We do a lot of that.

And at the same time, we are here as this community safety net during times of crisis. So, when a disaster happens, we, something local happens. We immediately contact our partners throughout the state to see what their capacity is for helping to move adoptable pets out of our shelter into other communities so that we can free up space here at the shelter for the pets of people who may need to evacuate their homes or might be in some other crisis.

So that's the first thing we do is, is look at our capacity. It might be anything from having crates available for transporting or caring for animals remotely. It might be having supplies at the ready. If people need to evacuate their homes quickly, and they leave behind pet food or they leave behind dishes and supplies it, we may set up a location where we have those things available.

It might mean something like setting up a full remote shelter. As we did for the Cedar Creek Fire a couple years ago. And, and in that situation, it's bringing out a whole kit of crates and food and supplies and cleaning materials and a team of people and volunteers to help care for pets 24/7 around the clock where they're going to be sheltered. Hopefully with their person. 

Tiffany

That was, that was my next question is if the owners were staying with the pets or you're just taking care of them, but it sounds like both.

Cary

Our approach is a combination of both. So ideally, people will be sheltered with their pets. There might be times that that's not possible. And so we make our shelter available also for the pets. We also make the shelter space available for our lost pets during this time. 

Tiffany

Cary, what kind of pets are we talking about? Cats? Dogs? Yes. Give us some examples. And are there any pets that you can’t care for? 

Cary

Right. So mostly it is cats and dogs because that's the most common pet. But really, we're talking about any pet companion animal. We will, find a way to care for them and house them. Every year, we care for upwards of 20 different species here at the shelter. So we do have housing and the know-how to do that.

We do not care for large animals. So, horses, cows, farm animals in general, aside from chickens. That is under the purview of Lane County Animal Services, who I believe will be on your show sometime soon.

Tiffany

I think we're talking to them next month. So, how can pet owners be prepared for evacuating their pets?

Cary

Yeah, the first thing I would say is to prepare a go-kit specifically for your pets. I'm sure you've talked about preparing a kit for humans already. And, I would suggest preparing one for pets as well. And that kit should contain food and water for two weeks, up to two weeks, and cat litter if you're caring for cats, and should also have containers for an extra container for cat litter and also food and water dishes, essentially those types of containers. Photos and vaccination records and veterinary records are also something good to keep in this go-kit. In addition to that, you'll want to have somewhere the name of your veterinarian. 

Tiffany 

That's great. One of the things you said I'd like you to explain is the photos. I think lots of people have pictures of their pets. I think this is related to reunification. Will you explain? 

Cary

Yeah, it's absolutely related to reunification. And a lot of people have phones. And that's where we keep all of our photos. Most of our phones are probably filled with photos of our pets. But there are times when the phones aren't working. You know, battery power may be an issue. And so, I always like to recommend that people have a printed picture of their pet. It is a lot easier ­– to follow the saying, and as the saying goes “a picture is a thousand words”. It's a lot easier to just look at a picture and understand where exactly the unique spots are on someone's pet. And so, again, the goal really is to keep people connected with their pets. 

Tiffany

Thank you. Speculation is such a stressful process for everyone involved. Pets included. Do you have any tips for reducing stress for pets? 

Cary

I do. Some of this is about preparedness as well. And so one of the other things I would do, aside from creating that go-kit, is to train your pet to recall, to come back to you in, in any situation, really. And the, people do that a lot with dogs and they know and they call their dog's name, the dog comes to them and that's common. You could do it with cats also. And, we really recommend that happens. And it may be a special whistle that you do, calling out their name, shaking a little container of treats and, and really training that animal to come to you in any situation so that, in the middle of something scary, like an evacuation, you have that pet quickly with you and the pet, you know, understands “oh, this is this is a time to play”. Maybe. And, the other thing would be I, you know, I would recommend when you're doing an evacuation, if you do have to evacuate, you have your crate for your pet and leashes or a collar that the pet is used to using.

In addition to that, I would say, make sure that you grab a toy that the pet loves. Maybe a blanket that, smells like the pet or like you and have that with you as well. And that will reduce stress. The other thing I will say in terms of preparedness, because I know a lot of the part of the reason for this podcast is to, to really make everyone ready or to prepare us all, and so I would say starting to build the resources around you, like having crates ready and, and, you know, finding those if it's if cost is a prohibitive thing. Some of those things are available at Greenhill, through our pet pantry program, and it's just a matter of calling us up and asking, as I said. 

Devon

I really appreciate the focus on making sure you have those crates. I remember during the Cedar Creek Fire, I mean, Greenhill did an incredible job and was able to gather and donate many crates to the, you know, Oakridge area and that community. But it still wasn't enough. 

Cary

Sure. Yeah, I yeah, I would add to that, that what we saw in Cedar Creek with the evacuation was that sometimes people were coming with like, as I noted before, they had their neighbors pets as well.

And so, having the supplies ready and enough of them for oneself, and then if you are the sort that's inclined to like, save the, the cat along the way or the dog along the way, having that extra crate, having an extra leash, is key to that. And, so those people who have the resources to help in that way, these are things to think about too.

Tiffany

That's a great consideration. I appreciate the lessons learned that you both share from the events in the past few years. Cary, do you have a most memorable experience or a pet that you can share with us today around disaster response? 

Cary

Yeah, I, I do. This was during the Cedar Creek Fire. We, Greenhill, sheltered over 100 pets next to the Red Cross shelter that also had over 100 people in it.

And, we had a gentleman come in and look around at our pet shelter, and he walked out. And a couple hours later he came back and said that he had a cat, that he loved tremendously, but was uncomfortable about bringing the cat into our shelter because he was not capable of grooming his cat to the level that he felt would be seen as acceptable.

And he did bring the cat to us. And the cat did, in fact, need some grooming. And during that stay, we connected with him and he connected with other, other people that that could offer him support. And his cat was groomed and got nails trimmed and we gave vaccines and provided him with, with care that he really needed, you know, both him and the cat needed that.

But it's wonderful when our community comes together to help people. I have time and time again seen crises through, fires, forest fires, that we've had here, and how people really work together. Barriers get dropped and neighbors help neighbors, and this community really comes together to, to help each other.

Tiffany

Thank you. Cary.

Devon, is there anything we didn't talk about that you thought we should have? 

Devon

I don't think so. I think it's giving pet owners a lot of things to think about. And I think many people in our community grew up with pets as part of their family. Right? I won't name names, but some people like their pets more than some of their family.

And so, knowing that there is support is so important. And I've had a chance during activations or exercises to get to see Cary's team and their volunteers in action alongside the folks taking care of the bigger animals. And their hearts are just humongous. And so it's a pretty amazing response that we get out of people in our community to come help provide that support.

And I appreciate it, you know, on the community level. But also I appreciate knowing that when it happens, and it'll happen, when my house is being evacuated and I still have to come to work. I know there's a safe place I can take my pet because even though I’ve threatened to bring it in to the emergency operations center, I'm not actually sure you would let me do that. But if I didn't have that safe place I wouldn't be coming in. So, I just very much appreciate everything that they do. 

Cary

Yeah, well, I would be happy to bring crates into the emergency operations center so that everyone can be there with their pets. It's, it might get a little loud, depending on how loud some of our pets are.

Devon

Yeah, yeah, mine's not cut out to be any kind of therapy animal. It would just be traumatic for everyone. 

Tiffany

My mother doesn't trust people who don't have pets. And so, when you talk about that camaraderie, and finding your people during an emergency, pets bring us together in that way. You see it at dog parks, you see it everywhere. And just sort of finding comfort and being with people that share your, your values and, and love of animals. 

Cary

Yeah, definitely. And I do want to say if there's like one thing that people should leave this podcast with, it's, if you have a pet and you're at all concerned about evacuating, bring your pet with you, even if you don't have all the supplies necessary.

And I'm definitely not encouraging cats and in pillowcases. But even if it's that, know that we will have additional supplies at the ready for those people who need more supplies and support. So, evacuate with your pet. Don't question orders that say to evacuate at home. Know that this community has a plan in place. And as noted, a lot of people come out and help support, particularly the pets in this situation. So 

Tiffany 

thank you. Hope we never have to use them. Wonderful to know those resources are available. Devon, I think we're wrapped up here for the day. What do you have? 

Devon

So we are going to – now that we've covered the smaller critters – next month we're going to talk about the larger and sometimes very large critters and how to best support large animals and livestock. During an evacuation. And we are still accepting questions for our end of season Q&A episode. So, there's information in the show notes and a link to where you can submit those. And thank you very much for spending some more time with us today. 

Tiffany

Great to see you, Cary. 

Cary

Yeah. Thank you. Good to see both of you. 

Closing:

When It Hits The Fan is brought to you by Lane County Emergency Management and co-hosted by Lane County Emergency Manager Tiffany Brown and Public Information Officer Devon Ashbridge. Music is by the Love Gems. Many thanks to our listeners and guests. We are so glad you're here to help us create a more prepared community. You can find more information, including episodes and show notes, at LaneCountyOR.gov/fan. 

Sign up to receive emergency alerts at LaneAlerts.org. The views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Lane County government.