Left Behind in a Disaster: The Consequences for Pets and Their Owners

What happens to pets when they are left behind during an emergency or a natural disaster when an evacuation order is in place? Many of us have seen the video of Snowball, the small dog who was pulled out of the hands of his young owner by a policeman during Hurricane Katrina. Because dogs were not allowed on the bus. Only people. No dogs. No pets. No family members who weren’t people. While many articles cover the need for planning, how many people think to themselves that it would probably be a good idea, but then shrug it off for later, as nothing ever happens to them. Their family. In their area. Until it is too late.

In actual disaster occurrences, studies have shown that people frequently risk themselves as well as others during emergencies where there has been no plan for the evacuation of their pets. How many are lost or injured is not recorded. An estimated 20% of childless pet owners refuse to evacuate when given an evacuation order. This is in part because they do not want to leave their pets behind and are not aware of any safe place to go where their pets are welcome. At times, they are not aware of the danger and believe that it will only be for a short time. By the time they realize it, it may be too late. If emergency personnel do come to pull them from their home, they rarely are allowed to bring their pets. This threatens the lives of the emergency personnel who have come to rescue people. And due to the reluctance to leave and find a safe place, they have jeopardized the lives of themselves, the rescue personnel, and their pets. People are far less likely to evacuate if they don’t know where to take their pets or believe that the shelters set up for people will not allow them to bring their pets.

Pet owners should always prepare to take any evacuation order seriously and not assume that the condition will be for a short period of time. This will help keep not only the pet owners safe, but will also keep the pets and rescue personnel safe. Not having a plan in place, or at least attempting to protect themselves and their pets, could be considered pet abandonment. Pet owners are legally responsible for the care of their pets, especially during an emergency evacuation.

Developing a plan would:

• Be beneficial to the pet owners' safety and mental well-being
• Provide safety for the pets as well as their mental and physical health and well-being
• Ensure that the pet owner and pet remain together and safe
• Drastically reduce the stress and potential angst of the pet owners
• Help keep the number of lost and injured pets out of the shelters and veterinarian offices.
• Help keep potential injuries, disease, and illnesses under control

Many reports have shown that pets left with their owners during a crisis can provide emotional stability to their owners and help them cope with the crisis. One survey states that over 63% of respondents considered their pets as an integral part of their coping mechanism. On the other hand, leaving a pet behind or being unable to reach it during an evacuation can seriously affect the owner’s mental health as well as emotional well-being, which in turn can lead to psychological distress and extreme trauma. This is especially true with young children and can have a devastating effect, possibly requiring therapy to help them learn to cope with the loss of a beloved pet.

Research has shown that pet owners who have lost their pets due to a natural disaster or other emergency frequently experience:

• Anger
• Helplessness and extreme guilt
• Depression (intensifies)
• Sadness
• Lack of sleep or appetite
• Need for therapy
• An inability to focus or maintain normal daily activities
• Acute trauma
• Peritraumatic dissociation
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Post-disaster stress

An estimated 80% of pet owners return to their homes, or attempt to return to their homes, for either their pet or medication that was left behind, before the evacuation order is removed. This threatens the lives of the pet owners and can potentially threaten the lives of officials who are there to secure the area.

Rescuers who may come in to attempt to find and rescue people and their pets are placing themselves in danger. Depending on the event, they can be exposed to fire, smoke, contaminated, unpredictable floodwaters, and unstable ground, among other dangers. Rescue personnel can be bitten or scratched by terrified pets, and the pets may bolt or hide in difficult places from fear and stress.

Due to a lack of preparation before an event occurs, there is frequently not a unified, transparent system in place to identify pet owners and lost pets. Reunification of pets and their owners can be extremely difficult. Pets may be shipped to other regions, adopted out, or euthanized without knowledge of their owner. Rescuers may not have a secure, known place where they take the pets that they are able to safely capture, so owners may have no idea where their pets are. Pet owners who are able to look for their pets may not have a central control center to reach out to, and feel helpless in the search for their pet.

Pets who are abandoned or left behind and survive the initial event run the risk of being homeless, with no proper food, water, or shelter. During the event, they can be exposed to dangerous smoke, which can irritate their lungs, causing potential difficulty breathing or other respiratory complications. They may also drown in floodwaters or become trapped in culverts, sinkholes, or drainage systems. Starvation is a serious possibility. Diseases can become more prevalent due to the local conditions, especially in the case of flooding. Being injured by debris such as broken glass, branches, sharp metal items, or unstable ground is a serious concern, as are fights with other animals. Exposure to extreme weather, either heat or cold, can lead to illness or death. They may also become trapped in the home or the debris that has built up in the area. Exposure to water that may have been contaminated by potential sewer waste, hazardous material, chemicals, garbage, and other debris can cause serious illness. There is also the threat of looters who are taking advantage of the situation, breaking into the home and potentially stealing the pet, or leaving the doors open and allowing the pet to escape.

For the pet, the upheaval of their regular life and the lack of food, water, and shelter can contribute to trauma, stress, fear, and anxiety. The trauma of the disaster, added to being separated from their owner and being forced to survive in an unnatural environment, can cause serious emotional issues with the pet. They can suffer from extreme depression, separation anxiety, and can become more aggressive in self-defense and fear, or more skittish and fearful. When rescuers do attempt to capture them, they may react by biting and scratching. Bite numbers increase in number during natural disasters as the pets react to unfamiliar people and circumstances. A high percentage of those bites occurred on people who were familiar with the pet, but due to the stressful situation, the pets reacted in fear.

The lost pets who survived have a higher chance of lowered immunity caused by the environment, stress, and lack of access to sustainable food and clean water. Some of the more prevalent diseases that have been found in lost or stray pets after a disaster are:

• Parvo
• Ringworm
• Dermatitis
• Ear infections (otitis)
• Fleas or mites
• Mosquito-borne disease
• Ehrlichiosis – a tick-borne illness
• Distemper in dogs
• Panleukopenia in cats
• Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)
• Mange
• Bacterial or fungal infections due to injuries or compromised skin from scratching

These health issues may be potentially avoided by keeping the pet’s shots up to date. It will ultimately depend on the health and age of the pet, and what they are exposed to while surviving in the remains of the disaster. Some of these health issues do not have vaccinations available and can easily be transferred to other pets, especially in confined and contaminated areas. Pets who suffer from skin diseases due to a disaster may have complications such as chronic infections, hair loss, and ongoing discomfort. Adult and older pets were more likely to be affected by disease. In a study of over 6,000 rescued pets, it was found that seniors were four times more likely to become sick than younger pets.

While dogs and cats are the most common pets who may be affected by an emergency or natural disaster, other pets who are provided shelter in our homes can also be affected. Many of these require much more specific care than a dog or cat may. They are also frequently contained in cages or other types of confinement, and have no way to escape unless their housing is damaged during the course of the event. This would lead them to be extremely vulnerable to dangerous situations that they are not adapted to living in.

Small mammals such as rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, and guinea pigs are among the types of pets that are frequently housed in cages. Unlike a dog that might break a window or chew through a door to escape rising water, small mammals are entirely trapped in their enclosures. If left behind, they are essentially trapped and are unable to escape floodwaters, smoke, or collapsing structures. Small mammals are frequently more susceptible to stress in unstable environments, especially as they are small prey mammals. The extreme noise and vibration of a disaster (like a hurricane or earthquake) can induce fatal cardiac events or gastrointestinal stasis in prey animals like rabbits and guinea pigs, even if they physically survive the event itself.

Pet birds, especially those who are caged, rely solely on their owners for food, water, and a safe home. When left behind, even if they survive the disaster, they may starve to death or die of dehydration before the owners can return to them. They can also suffer severe respiratory trauma from smoke, ash or chemical fumes, which can lead to their death. If they manage to escape the home, they can become disoriented and lost, or unable to find adequate food. They can also become injured, leading them to be easy prey for displaced dogs or cats or other animals looking for food. If the bird remains in the house and a rescuer enters the home, a panicked, free-flying bird is nearly impossible to capture safely without causing severe injury or having the bird escape out of a broken window into a hazardous environment.

Depending on where the disaster takes place, reptiles and amphibians may be able to survive and thrive. This can lead to serious concerns about them becoming a threat to the environment as well as to inhabitants of the area, depending on what type of animal they are. For those who are in enclosed containers, if the container doesn’t break, loss of electricity will turn off required heat lamps, water pumps, and filters. Without proper heat, their digestive system may shut down, and their immune system will collapse. If they are in a hot environment, it may become too hot, which can lead to their death. As amphibians absorb water through their skin, any contaminated water can quickly cause serious harm, or even death. If rescuers are able to enter the home, they may not be able to locate the reptiles or amphibians due to their natural ability to hide well when they are highly stressed. Depending on the species, they may require special handling, which the rescuers may not be familiar with if they can capture them, and finding shelters that are set up for these species may be difficult.

In past disasters, many livestock, equine, and poultry owners have opened the gates and prayed for the safety of their animals. While they may have time to place halters or other headgear on the tame animals, and place identification or phone numbers on it, there is no guarantee that the animals will be found. Halters or ropes could get caught in debris, fencing or a tree and not allow them to escape. They may panic and run into fencing, which is frequently barbed wire, causing potentially serious injuries. Also, any debris such as downed trees, building structures, roofs, or metal can lead to potential injuries. Fires can burn off any graze, and floodwaters can leave contamination on the ground. Water may be unavailable or contaminated with chemicals or other debris. If rescuers can reach them, panicked large animals can react negatively and cause harm, placing the rescuers in grave danger. If the rescuers can catch them, they may fight being placed in trailers, which may cause injuries, or they may find a way to escape and bolt away.

During this time, local veterinary offices can quickly become overwhelmed with injured and frightened lost pets. They frequently have no medical history for the animal, no vaccination records, and no knowledge of existing conditions such as epilepsy, diabetes, heart disease or allergies to medications. They may not know whether unusual behavior is caused by fear and trauma, an untreated medical condition or the sudden loss of medication the pet normally receives. Without an owner available to answer questions, veterinary personnel must make difficult treatment decisions with incomplete information while caring for an increased number of injured, sick and frightened animals. Many may be doing this while worrying about their own homes, families, and pets or dealing with damage to their practices and shortages of medication, supplies, clean water, and electricity. The pressure of treating unidentified animals under these conditions can take a serious emotional toll on the entire veterinary staff.

In most areas, leaving behind a pet in a natural disaster or emergency can be considered pet abandonment. Depending on the jurisdiction, pet owners who leave their pets behind and do not arrange for their care during a natural disaster can be charged, and local authorities may actively enforce these laws. In most areas, it is considered a misdemeanor. While over 30 states have laws that require animals to be considered during emergency planning, they vary by state and are not addressed as seriously as they should be. In 2006, the Federal Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act was passed, mainly due to the horrific loss of pets and the tragic separation of pets and their families during Hurricane Katrina. This Bill requires States that are requesting Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance to accommodate pets and service animals in their plans for emergency evacuations of their residents.

As more recognition of the importance of pets in the lives of the people is developed, cities, counties and states will begin to develop stronger programs to assist pet owners and their pets during times of natural disasters or emergencies. After the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the State of Louisiana and the city of New Orleans developed stronger programs to help provide for the pet owners and their pets. During Hurricane Gustav, they installed a system of identification that provided the owners with a number for their pets, and the number was attached to their pet so that when the owners were able to come back for the pet, they could be more easily reunited. Also, a large shelter was provided that not only took care of the normal household dogs and cats, but also small mammals, birds, and exotic pets, which allowed the owners more peace of mind and some sense of normalcy and security in the midst of a natural disaster.