What would you do in case of an emergency?

Emergency preparations are SOOOOOOO important. What arrangements you
make
depends on the type of emergency, of course -- here are just a few
tips.

1) MOST important -- find a good rat vet now, BEFORE you need one.
When
your rat is gasping desperately for air or bleeding profusely is NOT a
good time
for you to be searching through the yellow pages trying to find a vet
who
treats rats. Find a good vet and if you can, bring a rat to see him,
for a
Wellness Exam, so you and the vet can meet. That way he will have
some idea who
you are if you call up hysterical because your rat is so ill.

2) If there is an emergency vet clinic near you, find out WHERE it is
ahead
of time. Also, check their policies about letting owners be with
their pets
during euthanasia. The emergensy clinic near me does not allow owners
to be
in the room, so of course, I could never bring a dying rat there to be
pts.

3) Have enough travel cages on hand so that you can get ALL of your
rats and
run if you have to. You should have enough so that they can live in
the
travel cages for a couple of days without being TOO crowded. Have the
cages set
up with everything you need -- bedding, water bottles, food dishes,
etc. If
you use the travel cage, make sure you restock it before you put it
away, so
that it's always ready to go.

4) Pack a small bag with water, dry food mix and extra bedding and
keep it
near the travel cages. And don't forget the paper towels -- you can
never
have too many paper towels!

5) Make a plan. You might feel silly thinking of all the things that
can go
wrong, but don't let that stop you. For instance: we have 3 cats, a
dog and
up to 7 rats. Although my car is VERY small, I can indeed fit
EVERYONE in
-- I know, because I've done it. I practiced. Each cat would have a
separate
carrier, the rats would be in two good-sized travel cages and the dog
would
have his own seat. I could, if I had enough time, even pack a small
suitcase
for myself and a bag of supplies for the animals and fit them in. Of
course, this is assuming that I had to get out while Mark was away --
if he was
around we could pack his car too. But, everyone CAN fit in my car,
and if we
were forced to go to a shelter where pets weren't allowed, they would
LIVE in
my car for the duration. Yes, they'd be miserable and crowded, but
they'd be
SAFE and with me. NO WAY would I leave them behind. Those of you
with many,
many pets, well, you have to do what you can. THINK ABOUT IT, that's
the
first step.

6) Write a letter detailing what should happen with your pets in the
event
of your death. As scary as it is to think about, every time we get
into a
car, we could be dead a few minutes later. I recently wrote just such
a letter,
mostly to help my loved ones deal with my pets after I'm gone. I
wrote down
the phone numbers of people who might be willing to take my pets,
should
family members not be able to keep them. I did contact those people
first,
asking them if this was OK. I put the letter in a fireproof safe,
along with my
other important documents and I told my partner and my sister just
where this
is.

7) Put aside some money. Think about it -- in today's world, you are
most
likely not going to be too far from a drug store, restaurant, motel,
kennel...
If you have some MONEY, you won't need to go to a shelter. You can
travel
far enough away from whatever disaster has driven you from your house
and
find a more comfortable place to stay, for you and your pets. Get a
credit card
and set it aside for EMERGENCIES ONLY. Or just keep some cash on
hand. It
will make life MUCH easier, if the worst happens.

It can be uncomfortable thinking about all that can go wrong -- but
THINKING
about it is the first step. Hopefully you will never have to do more
than
that.

More tips and tricks for planning ahead!


It a GREAT idea to get your rats used to as many things as possible
BEFORE a
'situation' arises. I teach all my rats to 'drink' out of a syringe
when
they are young. I use pancake syrup and they LOVE it. This way, if
they ever
need medicine, they already know that the syringe is GOOD.

You should also make a travel cage and get them used to it. Let them
play
in it during free-range time. Then take them on short trips that end
up at
home -- not at the vet.   This way when you do have to transport them
somewhere, they won't be stressed about it. My rats LOVE to travel!

Plan ahead as much as you can. Find a GOOD vet now, BEFORE an
emergency
arises.   Find someone who can transport you to the vet if you don't
have a car.
Offer to do chores in return -- I'd GLADL.Y take you anywhere if
you'd do
my ironing! Make plans for emergency evacuations, if ever your house
is on
fire or in danger of floods. Find a pet sitter and have her come over
a few
times to play with the rats BEFORE you are in the last minute rush to
get ready
for your vacation. Save money so you will have it when your rat needs
surgery or meds.

Teach your rats to come when called. Teach them to 'relax' on command
-- it
CAN be done.

Plan ahead -- you will never regret it!!

Cathy & the girls, plus one -- Viv, Isabeau, Pepper, Bizzy & Dandy
RIP: Sandy, Tippy, Kissabelle, Ziggy, Misty, Jazzy, Spark, Whisper, &
Breeze
Connecticut, USA
If your rat has a tumor, it needs to be removed.