Readiness and Emergency Survival For Beginning Preppers. It's not all doom and gloom. Preparedness has fun topics, too, like gardening and saving money.
I thought it would be a great idea to summarize and review the preparedness topics from this week in July. Depending on the amount of posts entered I may do this on a weekly or bi-monthly basis.
Preparedness topics covered for July 23 to July 29 2012
First Aid Training
There was a need to update the article about first aid and add information about proper training. There is a deep sense of responsibility I feel when it comes to first aid training and who should actually administer it. Expanded with some added information including a Minnie Mouse video showing her first aid practices! First aid training kits and supplies...
Preparedness And Pets
I asked some of my prepper friends on Facebook what kind of animals they had and what were their emergency prepareness plans for their furry (or feathered) friends. See the responses here: Preparedness for your pets...
Protecting Our Families
There are many ways to prepare your family. Firearms are good but they aren't always going to be available. Seek to be trained and think about other things you can do to protect your family. The spirit of preparedness - Self Defense...
I am an animal lover and the thought of not being able to take my pets with me bothers me.
I don't have normal pets like a dog or a cat. I have guinea pigs.
Now, if they were rabbits, I would find a way to bring them with me so they could be considered a food source. I know that Cavy's (guinea pigs) are a food source in some countries but I wouldn't have the heart to do that to my beloved Ms Jesse or Ms. Sunny.
I asked this question in a couple of groups and it triggered some very interesting answers.
Read on:
(edited for privacy and relevancy)
Question: How are we going to plan prep for our pets? In the event of evac I have 2 guinea pigs which unfortunately will NOT be coming with me.
What are your plans and what kind of pets do you have?
Saw an episode of Doomsday Preppers that a gal mentioned her cats and their plan was not pretty.. =(
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From: 2 Conversations on Facebook
The responses from first group were as follows:
What could you do for them, other then let them out if its not dead of winter? If you can't feed them ?..
cats will survive anything My dog however will go with me and eat what ever we can conger up for him. he will be a good assest as an early warning device..
Unfortunately they will have to be euthanized... =( the lil buggers are too noisy and fragile to bring on a run..
You must teach your dog to hunt his own food now. Not sure how you'd do that.
Dogs would be great w/ a bug out if they know how to be quiet.
Counting on some Zombie Meet..just a leg or two every now and then...lol...
meat
Uh-oh! Kiddos don't know how to be quiet.
I would tranq them then put em under. When I saw that show it broke my heart thinking bout my girls. But I can't feel right leaving them to die anyways..
My girls = my guinea pigs btw
Most dogs have a natural intinct to hunt.. but being gun shy isn't .
Ooops Instinct..
Thank goodness they aren't people girls. You scared me there for a bit.
A dog would be a great security device, that's for sure.
Or Alert other hungy people to you.. and that would be bad..
Mine are all stayin with me. I've put up vacuum sealed rations for them to last a long time
lol I saw that xxx... no am talking bout the pets. My kids ALWAYS go with me... no matter what. This has me thinking though, we really do have to think out plans for every consideration and scenario... what if is a big question!
Ya our dog don't like to let Momma out of his site. so he would go to location "C" while i fight off the Bad Guys..
I still have no specific location. Am a loner and my daughter we are it. Dad's house isn't too far but I have thought about where do I jump to from here in the city. Got ideas about gettting to the hills which will led me to xxx...
and I doubt a guinea pig would survive that hike
how big pig...lol...
lol they are about 2 pounds each. I dont wanna eat em either but if we stay in shelter at home ummm =/ ewwwww
As a beginning prepper, this is something I really haven't given much thought to. I know our dog would go with us no matter what. I'd like to take the cat, but that might not be a possibility. She's a good hunter though, so I know she would have at least a fighting chance. My sons turtle would have to be set free. I'm not sure what we would do with the Guinea Pigs. Even though they are a common food source in Peru, I don't think I could eat them.We raise goats, chickens and rabbits as a food source. Whatever couldn't come with us would have to be used as food. Ideal would be to have a bug out location where we could house at least a mating pair of each species. I can see this is something I need to give more thought to.
a Cat thats Not Declawed will indeed survive as long as small critters are around for it to catch.. mice ect.. cats will survive in the wild .. where the Dog won't on its own.. thus the reason for dogs to Pack up..
That was one group's response.
Let's see what Group Two had to say...
It's an ugly piece of the puzzle. That being said The xxx and the cat from hell will in tow.
Off to the woods they go. Sorry no room or food for pets. If I have to bug out. My plan is to stay put. Cows and chickens will become the new pets.
I would have to put my guinea pigs down
Could make a few sandwiches
my little dogs dont eat much they are my babys i would keep them as long as possible even to the fact i would share my serving size food with them but thats me
My piggies are spoiled, I mean I could bring em with me. They would eat grasses. Could pack their pellets in a container and their water bottles. But I have to stuff em in a carry along bag lol
We have a bug-out-bag for our cat and dog with enough food and water for a little more than 2 weeks (our B-O-B have the same supply of food and water). The pet B-O-B also contain food dishes and a water dish (they share the same water dish), a couple of toys, leashes, harnesses, and poop bags. We also have a carrier for the cat. Their B-O-B is stocked and ready to grab and go just like ours are.
our dog has his own bug out bag and bug in supplies....we keep adding to his stash just like our own - he is a member of our family as important as any one of us. He also is trained in many ways and his skills will be a big asset for us.
Dogs, gots and selected rabbits in portable cages come as they are all part of the plan. Food and suplies can be on the road with ud in a matter of minutes, dogs and rabbits not a problem, goats well, might be trickier, but the nanny and one billy have to come, but I'm not goin anywhere anyway.
I have room for one, one only . I cannot let them loose , that is why I rescued them in the first place. (dog) packs pillaging the neighborhoods are a bit uncomfortable.So...xxx the (dog) comes, as she is Essential Security Staff... the rest.. tacos.
(link to this info) Food! At the moment they have about 3 - 4 months of food along with remedies and supplements for them. They also have a stash of catnip for stress relief/recreation. hehe I am currently working on stocking more food for them. I would like to have at least 6 Months worth. ASAP
I plan to eat my pets. I mean why waste resource on something that is a resource.
My dogs go where I go. They are my kids. Preps include them.
If you consider your pets family or children, then prep for them the same as for your human family and children. 3-6+ months of food, water supply, any medications they need and continue to stock up and rotate their supplies just like your own.
Animals are for eating. I had a pet rabbit once when I was little and my dad told me not to play with my food
Unless the animal has a skill. It would be a burden on resource. Plus any other person roaming around will probably try to make a meal out of it anyways.
I have a supply of dog food but part of the plan for my two dogs is kangaroo jerky or any feral I can trap.
food.
In closing it is a mixed bag here. I'd say half of the pet owners will prep for their pets. From the advice shown here if you are a dog or a cat owner, setting aside 3 to 6 months of rations for your animal is a great idea. This is provided you are able to safely shelter at home. If you have to evacuate, things drastically change tune. Think about what you will have to put that animal through and really ponder this question.
(all Images: Morguefile)
What preparedness plans do YOU have for your pets in emergency?
The spirit of preparedness is that little voice that tells you to make plans for unexpected events.
A statement from trusted leaders my faith tells us to
Prepare Every Needful Thing.
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In accepting this advice thoughts and ideas have been put into action in our home through learning activities and gathering.
In planning the needs of our family we seek a comfortable, livable arrangement no matter the surroundings by understanding what we need to go through a normal day even under abnormal conditions. *
We certainly need supplies to help us eat, intake fluids, wash, and rest.
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Prepare every needful thing applies to our knowledge base as well as our supply list.
That knowledge should include self-defense.
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Though the threats of the unknown are not visible in the planning stages we need to analyse where our preparing has us covered. Develop survival skills and certain engineering skills in order to make ourselves ready for events which require us to adapt to our surroundings or circumstances. * Are we sheltering in place and what may happen if we stay in our home. Drills in preparedness have got to include many what ifs for them to be successful when it is time to use our skills.
In your planning for scenarios, ask these questions: *
What area of our home can we consider and set up as a safe room?
What if... we are the target of looters?
What if... the home we are in needs to be our safe zone in area riots?
What do we do if... people attempt to break into our home?
What do we do with our children and how do we teach them to follow us without frightening them?*
Seek ways to cover our needs in all areas. Protecting our homes and surroundings may come into reality. What can we use to help our family defend itself? This can be a practical conditioning in our minds if we think the extreme something is going to happen. This is along the lines of preparing what to do for a car accident or applying first aid. Without being a supreme paranoid think through some of the scenes in today's headlines. What will you do in a situation occurring in your life?
Preparing for anything can be done if we put aside normal times vs. survival mode necessities.
Video on self defense methods presented by Ruger:
What I found interesting about this video is the advice given of using anything that is available as a weapon, not just a firearm. Prepare ourselves for facing attackers completely. Not having to rely on any specific weapon is very important. This involves looking around our home and thinking about things that you can use in this manner. We may not have a firearm or ammunition within reach.
Self-defense courses should be on our agenda for times we may face a hand to hand life threatening challenge. Marksmanship skills need to be developed so we may properly and safely discharge a firearm in the event we need to use a gun for hunting or self-defense. Archery skills should be learned and practiced to accompany this skill set.Videos:How to Make a Bow and Arrow *
Additional methods of defense is wise information. * We should know how to use slings, bows, knives, and misc. weapons in circumstances where we may have to defend our lives and in a severe social meltdown that might involve rioting or looters, and violent people. Video: Hornet Spray in Self Defense
