Horse Owners Preparing for Natural Disasters and Emergencies

This was sent to me with a request to share..."10 Rules to Live by in Evacuations with Horses from Wildfires or Natural Disasters". All good advice with the intent to get you to think what you would do in an emergency. My comments are in Italics.

1. TEACH YOUR HORSE TO LOAD (and tie)! And I mean ...immediately step into a trailer.
I have previously written and did a short video about blind fold training your horse which would be useful for moving them through some situations like fires.

2. Take at least one bale of hay and a BUCKET, you never know where your horse is going to end up.
Taking a water supply is a good idea as this will give you some time to find a water source as you re-locate. There are many options here with various space saving trailer water containers. I use 5 gallon military style plastic jugs and I always keep four of them full and loaded into my primary trailer and I have a collapible 55 gallon blivet for my truck which was intended to use to lay a wet line for grassfires, but could easily be a mobile water source for livestock. Having temporary panels or the ability to make a high-line to tie your horses to when you get some place safe would be something to consider.

3. No matter what, if you take your horses or not, MAKE SURE you take your proof of ownership/BRAND INSPECTIONS! This will help you prove the horses are yours later on! Photographs of your horses should work in non brand inspection areas.
I keep a file folder with all the vet records and current Coggins tests and Health Certificates on our horses. The new Coggins (EIA) test results will have profile photographs of the horse, as opposed to drawings, making recognition/identification/proof of ownership easier.

4. If you CANNOT TAKE your horse, TURN THEM LOOSE! They have great survival instincts, its better than dying in a locked barn.
I have a hard time envisioning a scenario where I have to turn my horses loose, then drive out to safety. I think that bringing your horses out by ponying them or hooking them into a pack string would be an option.

5. IF YOU TURN THEM LOOSE, write your phone number on them in some way! Spray paint/shoe polish, whatever you can find.
I never thought of this. Maybe a shoe tag with your contact info tied into their tail would work?

6. If you turn them loose TAKE THEIR HALTERS OFF! Imagine all the debris your horse is going to encounter! You don't want them caught on!
Speaking of halters, another thing to consider is ensuring halters and leads are close at hand if someone else has to evacuate your horses if you can't make it back to your property.

7. If you turn them loose, LOCK THEM OUT OF THEIR BARN/PEN/STALL/YARD. They WILL go back!

8. If you take your horse to an evacuation center, it is still a good idea to have your horse marked in some way. Sometimes evacuation centers have to evacuate!

9. If you take your horse in a trailer, PLEASE tie them if you safely can! I cannot count how many times we were evacuating and found a loose horse we needed to load with ours, if the horses are loose in the trailer that is a disaster waiting to happen.
I always keep a couple spare halters and a lariat iny my truck as well as in my trailer. I use a tie ring I developed to make it easy to hook and secure horses to D rings on trailer.

10. If your horse is in a large pasture area, cut the fence in corners and leave gates open! When horses can't find their way in smoke/debris they will follow fence lines.

For more info go the Colorado State University website and a printable Wildfire Preparedness for Horse Owners List.