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Pet Paranoia


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I want peoples opinions, thoughts, and if in place, emergency plans for house bound pets. Up until my last 2 dogs, I never kept any animal caged in the house (except birds, hampsters, and fish when I was a kid).

 

I was reading a newspaper article about a house fire the other day where a woman had her dog in a crate inside.

 

it scares the living crap out of me to leave my house for extended periods of time when I cannot take the dogs and have to leave them in their crates, for this very reason. I am also the type of person that when my horses are inside during the winter I have to check every couple of hours on them! I am paranoid of fire.

 

 

Whenever my dogs make a peep at night I am up and checking, you should see when the woodstove is going, I can only sleep 40min at a time....

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I don't have any suggestions for you worry about the wood stove when you are home, other than putting it out or letting it burn out before you go to bed. But for when you are gone, I know that here the fire department has special stickers you can put on your front door or window that alerts them that there are pets inside. You should call your fire department and ask, perhaps it would make a difference. I know the concern about fire and pets inside has made me much more cautious about checking/unplugging appliances before I leave the house.

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I have that same fear. But still no help on what to do other than the stickers and tell everyone aorund that he's home. With the grass as dry as it is and fire danger as high as it is I worry about Black Jack when I'm gone if he can't come with me. Although he's not in his crate he's in a locked porch. It's scares me to no end but we just try to get home faster if he can't come. Actually we have to run our truck up to get fixed Friday so Black Jack can't come. I'm already worried about it.

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I too have concerns about crating dogs unattended. But the likelyhood of a fire compared to the destruction you dog might do on a daily basis causing you to want to actually kill your dog weighs heavily. hehe. My dogs are all crate trained but roam the house freely since they have earned it.

 

I worry more about leaving my dogs in my car when I go anywhere because I usually leave the windows all the way open if I have to leave them in the car. I am concerned someone will steal my cute cute dogs.

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I too have concerns about crating dogs unattended. But the likelyhood of a fire compared to the destruction you dog might do on a daily basis causing you to want to actually kill your dog weighs heavily. hehe. My dogs are all crate trained but roam the house freely since they have earned it.

 

I'm with you. I crate train until they are reliable in the house. When I have a puppy or new dog, I like the assurance that he is safe and sound in his own little crate rather than loose where he can create messes or get hurt. I've had puppies chew through electric cords, one of which would have started a fire if I hadn't been right in the same room. The carpet was starting to singe by the time I unplugged the lamp within a minute of his biting into the cord. Currently, the Sheltie and Border Collie are left uncrated. The Lhasa who tends to mark, especially over the outrage of needing to tolerate a Border Collie in his house, is crated when I'm gone. In addition to the destruction an uncrated dog can cause, he can also end up very sick, needing surgery or even dead from ingesting pieces of things he should not be eating.

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I was really concerned about that too when I first got my dogs. We also live in a new development with a lot of dry grasses (and stupid neighbors who light firecrackers in their backyards off into the dead grasses).

 

Now, I know this won't work for everyone, but I actually got an alarm system installed that is also fire monitored and I have that sticker in my window with the pet information.

 

I love it because I not only have the peace of mind that my house is protected from burglers but my pets (and myself!) are safe from fire too. It's worth every penny of the service fee.

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Unfortunately, it won't matter if your dog is loose or crated. A number of years ago I lost a beloved dog to a house fire. Her body was found under my bed, her "safe place". So I don't think a dog loose in the house will try to escape the house (we can always hope, though), but will try to get to their safe place whether that's a crate, under a table, behind a sofa, in the corner of the laundry room, or, as my dog, under a bed.

 

We can drive ourselves crazy worrying about what may never happen. All we can do is make our house safe as possible. Vickkers monitoring system sounds like a good idea.

 

Sorry if I sound like doom and gloom. :rolleyes: It was devasting. RIP, Katie.

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Deb, I can relate. Only my ending is different. When I was a teenager our house caught fire. Mom and I were burned. Brother escaped injured. Dad was at work. At the time, we had a chihuahua.

 

When the firemen arrived, we asked them to rescue the dog. They told us she was probably dead. She wasn't. She had crawled under a sofa cushion.

 

Bula's Lady, I can understand your concern but you can't let your worry consume you. Stickers are a good idea. The alarm system is a good idea. My mom now lives with us. Her bedroom is downstairs and the boys are crated in the living room. (DH & I sleep upstairs) My mom is a 79 yr old smoker. She smokes in bed. Do I worry? Absolutely. Am I going to let it eat away at me? No. You can only do so much. The rest I leave to 'The Powers That Be'. If anything should happen, at least with my boys crated, I know where they are and if I or DH can get to them, they will be going straight out the back door. If DH and I have to climb out the 2nd story window, we will also need new french doors because a picnic table bench will be thrown through the one we have now. Make an escape plan. When you go over in enough in your head, it will become 2nd nature/instinct. I found this out when our house caught fire because my clothes did to. Without realizing it until I was outside I had rolled around on the floor until the flames went out.

 

Making an escape plan will also give you a sense of empowerment. I hope and pray you will never have to use it.

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Our neighbours don't like us much, and the one that does lives across the river about a mile away. But he'd come and get Black Jack if I called him. He's really good at helping with stuff like that.

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I have firefighters for neighbors, next door and across the road, I also have stickers on my doors and windows alerting the firefighters about my dogs.

 

Both of my neighbors laugh and tell me not to bother with the stickers. In their mind animals are not top prioirty and won't take time to look for them unless time allows. It's not a comforting feeling to say the least. :rolleyes:

 

I don't know if all firefighters are like this or not but the ones I have met through my neighbors say the same thing. There is always too much to do to take the time to look for animals. Bottom line they are there to save human life and put out fires.

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I have firefighters for neighbors, next door and across the road, I also have stickers on my doors and windows alerting the firefighters about my dogs.

 

Both of my neighbors laugh and tell me not to bother with the stickers. In their mind animals are not top prioirty and won't take time to look for them unless time allows. It's not a comforting feeling to say the least. :rolleyes:

 

I don't know if all firefighters are like this or not but the ones I have met through my neighbors say the same thing. There is always too much to do to take the time to look for animals. Bottom line they are there to save human life and put out fires.

 

 

I am from the UK and hubby is a firefighter here. His watch will and do put themselves out to rescue a dog. Hopefully any firefighter would, not sure whether they are trained to go in to save a doggie from a fire or told not to as too risky, but from my experience of them i would say most would. Thankfully :D Especially when they are animal/dog lovers themselves.

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Just spoke to the hubby and according to him ( a UK firefighter)

 

 

Firefighter duties are -

 

Preserve Life

Protect Property

and render humanitarian aid to - ALL LIFE.

 

 

 

So that is good. :D

 

 

So i would put your messages up if you feel happier doing so and make sure neighbours know what pets you have at home. Fire does unfortunately happen too often. :rolleyes:

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I was married to a firefighter whose father was also a firefighter. I think in general, while they will risk their lives to save human lives, they aren't *expected* to risk their lives to save animal lives. I think there are always some among them who would try to save animals, and others who would not, and I can't really fault the latter as it is very dangerous work. But I do hope that if I ever have need, I am lucky enough to have some of the former show up at my house (and that there will be time for them to do so).

 

At any rate, it doesn't hurt to put the stickers up--just don't expect that they will automatically mean your pet will be saved.

 

J.

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In theory, you can train your dog to exit the house at the sound of the fire alarm (provided you don't crate your dog). I haven't tried it, but those looking for new things to train could try it out. No reason why it can't be done :rolleyes:

 

 

That would be a good idea for those with doggie doors, i haven't got one but if i did i would be trying that. You could record a fire alarm noise and play it lower to train then then keep turning it up so they are not so freaked out by it when it's loud.

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I know a woman who was heavily fined and almost thrown in jail. Her crime? Going back into a burning building to rescue her pets because the fire fighters would not. This was in California. She did save her pet(s). The authorities were NOT pleased.

 

The to-crate-or-not-to-crate in the house thing is like the one for crating in the car. I know a woman who crashed her car in a ditch and the dogs drowned because they were crated. OTOH, I know several people who have crashed their cars and their dogs have gone through the windows only to be killed by cars on the road. So no resolution is ever perfect.

 

I cannot begin to imagine the pain of losing any loved one to a house fire :rolleyes:

 

RDM

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At least if your dog is in a crate you can find it quickly and (presuming there's time) get it outside.... if the dog is loose in the house it could be hiding anywhere, and if it's frightened enough it might not come when called. If I had a fire here (God forbid!) I could pretty much throw Kenzie outside crate and all and (hopefully) grab the other dogs out by their collars and throw them outside as well. (Kenzie being the one with the worst recall and the hardest to catch, throwing the entire crate outside seems like the most expedient approach.) A firefighter could also get a crate outside or reach into one and grab a dog, circumstances permitting... at least they'd know there might BE a dog in there, as opposed to wondering if the dog is hiding under the bed, under the couch, in a closet, etc., or (alternatively), not even knowing there's a dog on the premises.

 

My cats would be the ones I'd worry about the most. I think they'd hide somewhere inaccessable. I crate my "at-home" dogs (whoever is not travelling with me that day) when I'm gone (since I prefer to come home and find the house still standing and all appliances and other belongings in their original condition, not to meniton all DOGS in their original condition and without GI foriegn bodies, lacerations, or other unfortunate additions). :rolleyes: If I were to wake up to or come home to or otherwise encounter fire, flood, earthquake or other disaster, I'd be able to lay my hands on them quickly. They are my most valued "posessions", so they're what I'd want to get out of the house. Everything else is secondary.

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Preserve Life

Protect Property

and render humanitarian aid to - ALL LIFE.

So that is good. :D

So i would put your messages up if you feel happier doing so and make sure neighbours know what pets you have at home. Fire does unfortunately happen too often. :rolleyes:

 

I don't know if it's different here or not but I will continute to keep my stickers on the doors and windows in hopes that someone will see them and help my dogs if needed.

 

Unfortunately the 2 neighbors that are firefighters work for the city and we live in a township so we have volunteer firefighters. But as luck would have it I know most if not all of the voluteers. My girls are not usually far from my side at any given time so if anything bad should happen I would hope we all could get out safely.

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I know a woman who was heavily fined and almost thrown in jail. Her crime? Going back into a burning building to rescue her pets because the fire fighters would not. This was in California. She did save her pet(s). The authorities were NOT pleased.

 

RDM

 

 

Bloody hell, that's terrible, that would be me, i would have to be fined then. No one is going to tell me i can not risk my own life for my pets.

 

Over here ( i know it is different everywhere) in the UK i don't think the firefighters are expected to risk their own lives for anyone, animal or human. They try and rescue from fire or whatever anything be it human or animal if it is presumed safe to do so. Saying that they do take risks all the time so it has to be down to the circumstances and what they are ordered to do. This is my thoughts though, hubby's out so haven't actually asked.

 

I do remember though years ago my dad who is a retired firefighter telling us of a job where firefighters went in to a house fire especially to rescue a doggie that was hiding under a bed. My dad was outside the upstairs window and when the other firefighters passed the poor little thing through to him, it repayed him nicely by doing a poop on him. It went all down his tunic as the little thing was so scared. Good news though as it did servive.

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