what if you have to evacuate?

[snowboardmandy]

I had a strange/scary dream last night...I dreamed that something bad happened to my house (not sure what,exactly) and I had to get out right away. I was trying to figure out how to get Obie with me without freezing... (it's snowing as I write this!) I couldn't find anything to use to keep her warm, and then I woke up.

This got me thinking, what do you keep on hand in case you have to emergency evacuate? I have a bird carrier, but I need to find a good way to insulate it (blankets would do the trick) to take Obie outside now that it's so cold!

Then that got me thinking, what about normal first aid? I have all the items I need around the house should anything ever happen to my fid, but it's certainly not in a central location. I am going to try to put together a first-aid kit...what do you suggest I include?

[bellarains]

Mandy,

First thing that came to mind was a hot water bottle, that is if you can get hot water fast enough, or if you have water?

Second, you could wrap him up in blankets until you could get the car warm enough to keep him warm, and have a place you have prearranged to go to if need be quickly.

More ideas??? We can always use good ideas to keep our babies safe in case of emergency.

[linda040899]

If you have to evacuate and don't have much time, put Obie under your jacket and leave! There's no quicker way to do it, considering you only have 1 bird.

When I first got married, my husband and I had a Quaker parrot and we lived on the second floor of a 5 story apartment building. One morning around 1 am, we heard yelling in the hallway that the apartment building was on fire and we had to get out quickly. I grabbed our Quaker, put her under my jacket and we evacuated down a fire escape. The firefighter that helped me was made aware of what I had under my jacket and he could not help me by holding me where I had the bird! As it turned out, the fire was in the apartment directly underneath us so that made it even more important that we leave ASAP! There were no injuries and the fire was controlled in about 30 minutes but I couldn't think of any other way to save all of us and I sure as heck was not leaving my baby behind!!

[Eliza]

This reminds me that I really need to get my animal-ER kit together... Right now it's just me, Beetle and Cricket (my rabbit) but it never hurts to be prepared!

One thing to do is work on getting your animals used to being put in their carrier as quickly as possible. Easier said than done, of course, but better safe than sorry. That and keep the carrier nearby.

I used to have African pygmy hedgehogs as pets. They are EXTREMELY temperature sensitive and even a slight dip below 70deg can send them into hibernation, which can be fatal. I always keep those instant hand and foot warmers on hand, as I figure they would be helpful in a no-heat situation. Wrap 'em in a sock once you've activated the pack. You can easily tuck them into a carrier or travel cage to keep your critter warm. There's also something called a Snuggle-safe heat disc, I believe...

I'm sorry that you had such a scary dream about Obie, Mandy.

-e-

[Janie]

What about the first aid kit? I would love to see that list in the Lovebird Resource Library. I have several items that I've read about here but would really like to have a complete list of "kit" items if possible.

Yep, my first thought for removing a lovie or parrot in cold weather would be to stick it inside my shirt/jacket and run like heck.

[snowboardmandy]

Actually, I thought of the instant hand-warmers after I woke up. They would probably work OK and I certainly have an abundant supply (gotta stock up for snowboarding season!!) I would just have to find a way to insulate it somehow, those things get darn hot! I actually burned my foot on one last year when I had it inside my boots.

I agree with Janie, we should add a list of "first aid" items to the resource library, or somewhere on the board!

[DebSpace]

Sorry about your dream - those can stay with us for a while. One good thing about it is that now you (and several of us) will be sure to make a plan. I love the idea of the handwarmer; a first aid kit list here on the board's LRL certainly makes sense. You could use a plastic container that repels water, but I'm thinking of using my little transport cage and also placing one of those small bottles of water, snack-size ziplock bags of pellets, seeds, a little millet (changed out seasonally), maybe a tiny amount of cornstarch and/or a few antibiotics. Could also throw in a hand- or finger-tip towel that could be used to insulate the hand warmer or even cover the portable cage. ;)

I just found this posting by Linda B. from the Red Cross that might help us as we prepare: http://www.lovebirdsplus.com/community/showthread.php?t=4287