DISASTER PREPAREDNESS FOR HORSES

 

            Make arrangements in advance to have your horse trailered in case of an emergency.  If you do not have your own trailer or do not have enough trailer space for all of your horses, be sure you have several people on standby to help evacuate your horses.

            Know where you can take your horses in an emergency evacuation.  Make arrangements with a friend or another horse owner to stable your horses if needed.  Contact your local animal care and control agency, agricultural extension agent, or local emergency management authorities for information about shelters in your area.

            Inform friends and neighbors of your evacuation plans.  Post detailed instructions in several places—including the barn office or tack room, the horse trailer, and barn entrances—to ensure they are accessible to emergency workers in case you are not able to evacuate your horses yourself.

            Place your horses’ Coggins tests, veterinary papers, identification photographs. And vital information –such as medical history, allergies, and emergency telephone numbers (veterinarian, family members, etc.)—in a watertight envelope.  Store the envelope with your other important papers in a safe place that can be quickly reached.

            Keep halters ready for your horses.  Each halter should include the following information: the horse’s name, your name, your telephone number, and another emergency telephone number where someone can be reached.

            Prepare a basic first aid kit that is portable and easily accessible.

            Be sure to have on hand a supply of water, hay, feed, and medications for several days for each horse you are evacuating.

            It is important that your horses are comfortable being loaded onto a trailer.  If your horses are unaccustomed to being loaded onto a trailer, practice the procedure so they become used to it.

            There may be times when taking your horses with you is impossible during an emergency.  So you must consider different types of disasters and whether your horses would be better off in a barn or loose in a field.  Your local humane organization, agricultural extension agent, or local emergency management agency may be able to provide you with information about your community’s disaster response plans.

 

 Also, from the Pajarito Riding Club:

I have talked to Eldon Reyer (466-6280) from the Northern New Mexico Horsemen’s Association.  He and Tom Johnson along with the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Posse, have worked with the State of New Mexico to set up a plan for horse evacuations in the area.  There are facilities available at the NNMHA facility to house horses in box stalls.  They have a listing of trailers and drivers approved for evacuating horses and can be called upon in the case of an emergency.  471-6654 or 466-6342.  You can also call the Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society at 983-4309.  The NNMHA has printed the following tips.

            Do not count on others to rescue your horse.

            Evacuate your animals before they become panicked by smoke.

            Know where you can take your horses.  If you have no other safe place, you can take horses to Northern New Mexico Horseman’s Association located at the Rodeo & Fairgrounds on Rodeo Road.

            Tell your friends or neighbors about your evacuation plan.

            Keep your horse’s important papers with you.  You may need them to prove ownership of your animals.

            Keep you horses haltered; attach emergency information to halters: your name, horse’s name and your telephone number.

            Be sure your horse will load.  Rescuers may not be able to take the time to load an unruly horse.

 

 

The County of Los Alamos has Emergency Response Team Managers including Phil Taylor, Dhartma Khalsa and Charles Lujan.  I will provide them with a map of Pajarito Acres and La Senda with residences that have horses.  I will also include a list of trailers and their sizes.

 

Another recommendation would be to have a copy of your travel papers, Coggins papers, and additional identification including a picture of your horse or horses, preferably with you standing with them, kept in a safety deposit box or location away from your home and trailer.