W ILLOW C REEK V ETERINARY C ENTER
W HAT W OULD Y OU D O ?
5707 L EESPORT R OAD , R EADING , PA 19605
610-378-0192 WWW . WILLOWCREEKVC . COM
J ULY 2011
D ISASTER P REPAREDNESS
Tornadoes, hurricanes,
floods, fires, blizzards, nuclear reactor accidents (we
live within 70 miles of five
different nuclear power
plants), terrorism... devastating natural
and man-made
disasters can
ravage our
lives. No one
is exempt
from the possibility of being
affected personally. You
need to prepare for yourself
and your animals in case of
disaster.
that could effect your area,
not forgetting a hazardous
materials spill. Be prepared
for the possible disruption of
services for extended periods
of time, including electric,
phone, and
local food and
water
sources.
Having a plan
in place and
practicing the
plan prior to
a disaster will help you accomplish a successful evacuation and maintain the safety
of your animals.
Countless times, people have
been told to leave their
homes for a “short time”,
only to find that they cannot
return for days or weeks.
Even disasters like gas leaks
and minor flooding can keep
you from tending to your
animals for extended periods
of time. To prevent situations such as these, TAKE
YOUR ANIMALS WITH
YOU.
Evacuate your family, including your animals, as early
possible. By leaving early,
you will decrease the chance
of becoming victims of the
disaster.
It is best to be overly cautious
during a disaster warning.
Preparing ahead of time and
acting quickly is the best way
to keep you and your family,
including your animals, out
of danger. Familiarize yourself with each type of disaster
 Please cats and small
 Bring your dogs, cats
and other small animals
indoors.
 Make sure all animals
have some form of identification.
dogs in a carrier and
secure leashes on all
larger dogs.
 Load animal evacuation
kit and supplies.
Types of Identification:
 Take any extra cages/

Collar Tag (a piece of
tape applied to the back
of the collar tag can
provide evacuation site
information—use waterproof ink).

Microchip

Tattoo

Temporary Neckband

Waterproof pouch attached to collar with
identification information
inside

Clear identification on
cage/housing for confined
animals.
carriers s these will
serve as temporary housing for you pets if
needed.
 Be sure to take all your
veterinary medical records and any medications.
A Disaster Plan should consist of the following:
 Assemble an Evacuation
Kit.
 Develop an evacuation
plan and practice the
plan.
 Keep written directions
to your home near your
telephone. This will
help you and others explain to emergency responders exactly how to
get to your home.
Evacuation Kit:

2 week supply of food

2 week supply of water

Batteries (flashlight/radio)

Cage/carrier per pet (w/ID)

Manual can opener

Copies of veterinary records
 Keep all vehicles well

Emergency contact list
maintained and full of
gas.

Familiar items to make pets
feel comfortable

First Aid Kit

Flashlight/Radio

Leash/collar/harness
 Identify alternate
sources of food and water.
 Keep emergency cash on
hand.
5707 Leesport Ave.
Reading, PA 19605
www.willowcreekvc.com
610-378-0192
800-838-9224
FUN FACTS ABOUT DOGS
 Dogs only sweat from the bottoms of their feet, the only way they can discharge
heat is by panting.

Dogs have about 100 different facial expressions, most of them made with the ears.

Dogs have about 10 vocal sounds.

Dogs do not have an appendix.

There are more than 200 different breeds of dogs.

Dalmatians are born spotless: at first pure white, their spots develop as they age.
 Contrary to popular belief, dogs aren’t color blind; they can see shades of blue, yellow, green and gray. The
color red registers on a grayscale in a dog’s vision.
 Most domestic dogs are capable of reaching speeds up to about nineteen miles per hour when running at full
speed.
 Using their swiveling ears like radar dishes, experiments have shown that dogs can locate the source of a sound
in 6/100ths of a second.

Domesticated for more than 10,000 years, the dog was one of the first animals domesticated by humans.
FUN FACTS ABOUT CATS

Cats do not have sweat glands.

A cat can jump as much as seven times its height.

Cats have five toes on each front paw, but only four toes on each back paw.

Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds, while dogs only have about ten.

A pack of kittens is called a kindle, while a pack of adult cats is called a clowder.
 An adult cat can run about 12 miles per hour, and can sprint at nearly thirty miles per
hour.
 A cat's tongue is scratchy because it's lined with papillae—tiny elevated backwards
hooks that help to hold prey in place.

The nose pad of each cat has ridges in a unique pattern not unlike a person's fingerprints.
 Cats' bodies are extremely flexible; the cat skeleton contains more than 230 bones (a human has about 206),
and the pelvis and shoulders loosely attach to the spine. This adds to their flexibility and allows them to fit through
very small spaces.
 Cats have better memories than dogs. Tests conducted by the University of Michigan concluded that while a
dog's memory lasts no more than 5 minutes, a cat's can last as long as 16 hours—exceeding even that of monkeys.