Preparing pets for hurricanes after Katrina

This item was a news page on the former site, captured in 2010. It opened with Hurricane Katrina, which hit Louisiana and the Gulf Coast on 29 August 2005. The group recalled pets stranded on cars and roofs, pets dead in houses, and animals wandering streets for food.

Its message was that people prepare their homes for hurricanes and should prepare their pets too, and that a little common sense goes a long way.

The checklist it gave

• Separate first aid kits for you and your pet.
• A vet's phone number, copies of vaccination and ownership papers, and a poison control number.
• Bandages, gauze, cotton, tape, clean towels, and blunt-tipped scissors and tweezers.
• Sterile saline, a rehydration drink, and other items like an antiseptic wash.
• Bottled water, your pet's usual food, and a few blankets.

The item did not name its sources or a veterinarian who checked the list. Today Ready.gov says to talk to your vet about what a pet first aid kit should hold. See Pet disaster planning.