Fire Safety for Pets

About 40,000 pets die in residential fires each year, most from smoke inhalation, and half a million pets are affected overall.* Read below for steps you can take to get your family and your pets out faster. There are also safety measures you can implement to help prevent a pet from starting a fire in the first place.

Preparation

Make An Escape Plan:

Every family should have one. This handy chart from the National Fire Protection Association makes it easy.

Assign Family Members to Account For Each Pet

Know your pet’s favorite hiding spots, so that when the alarms sound, you can grab them and go.

Keep An Emergency Kit or Crate Near the Door

Packed with their food, medication and a leash – it can be a literal lifesaver.

Train Your Dogs to Correctly Respond to Alarms

As many pet parents know first-hand, pets may become unsettled or anxious once a smoke alarm sounds, hiding rather than exiting. Dogs can be trained to respond appropriately to smoke or carbon monoxide alarms going off, and either come to find you when it happens or escape outside themselves.

Tips for Pet-Proofing Against Fire

• If you like candles, get the flameless kind. Cat’s tails are notorious for knocking over the real ones.
• Keep pets away from space heaters or lamps.
• Get guards for your stove knobs, the child-proof kind, so paws can’t turn them on. Or even take them off entirely if you’re leaving the house.
• Keep leftovers & flammable items off the stovetop, so pets aren’t tempted to jump up.
• Use a metal or heat-tempered glass screen on a fireplace and keep it in place.
• Some pets are chewers. Watch and deter them from chewing through electrical cords.

_{*avma.org (American Veterinary Medical Association), When Fire Strikes Home}