Disaster Response for Animals: Preparedness and Welfare in Emergencies

Natural disasters and emergencies displace millions of animals annually. Preparedness planning and coordinated response can dramatically reduce suffering in these increasingly frequent events.

Key Facts

An estimated 600,000 pets were displaced or killed during Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
The Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act, passed in 2006, requires emergency plans to include companion animals.
Large animal evacuation during wildfires, floods, and hurricanes requires coordination between animal welfare and emergency management agencies.
Animals left behind during evacuations are exposed to drowning, fire, disease, and starvation.
Pre-registration of animals in local emergency management systems helps responders locate and rescue displaced animals.
Animal emergency response teams (AERT) are trained to respond to large-scale animal disasters.
Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of events that displace animals, making preparedness more urgent.

Welfare Considerations

Animal welfare in disasters is directly proportional to preparedness: communities with pre-positioned animal emergency plans, registered animal populations, and trained response teams recover animals more quickly and humanely than those responding ad hoc. The lesson of Hurricane Katrina was devastating: hundreds of thousands of companion animals died because evacuation planning had not included them, and many people refused to evacuate without their pets. Post-Katrina legislation requiring animal-inclusive emergency planning in the US represents a significant welfare advance, but implementation is uneven. Large animal welfare in disasters — particularly for livestock and horses — remains seriously under-resourced. Preparedness at the individual level (microchipping, emergency supply kits, evacuation planning that includes animals) and at the community level (local emergency management animal components) together reduce disaster welfare harm substantially.

What You Can Do

Create an emergency kit for your companion animals including food, water, medications, and records.
Microchip and register your animals and keep contact information current in local shelter databases.
Learn the animal evacuation procedures for your county and register your animals with local emergency management.
Support animal emergency response training programs and volunteer opportunities.
Advocate for animal-inclusive emergency planning requirements in local and state government.