By Marcy Ost
National Pet Fire Safety Day takes place every year on July 15th.
According to the American Kennel Club (AKC), “One of the hallmarks of responsible dog ownership is keeping pets safe and planning for unexpected emergencies, including house fires. Pet proofing the home, developing pet-friendly escape routes, and alerting rescuers of your pet’s presence with window clings is the best way to keep your four-legged family member from harm.”
With a day dedicated to learning how to keep pets safe in case of fire there are a lot of great messages we can push to our communities. A lot of the posts on our socials will be coming from the NFPA Educational Messages for Fire & Life Safety Desk Reference. A couple of examples are:
- Pets are curious. They may bump into, turn on, or knock over cooking equipment. Keep pets away from stoves and countertops.
- Never go back inside for pets in a fire. Tell firefighters if your pet is trapped.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) also has a tip sheet here.
Other tips shared by the AKC are:
- Extinguish Open Flames – Pets are generally curious and will investigate cooking appliances, candles, or even a fire in your fireplace. Ensure your pet is not left unattended around an open flame and make sure to thoroughly extinguish any open flame before leaving your home.
- Pet Proof the Home – Take a walk around your home and look for areas where pets might start fires inadvertently, such as the stove knobs, loose wires and other potential hazards.
- Secure Young Pets – Especially with young puppies, keep them confined away from potential fire-starting hazards when you are away from home.
- Keep Pets Near Entrances – When leaving pets home alone, keep them in areas or rooms near entrances where firefighters can easily find them.
- Practicing Escape Routes with Pets – Keep collars and leashes at the ready in case you have to evacuate quickly with your pet or firefighters need to rescue your pet.
- Since Pets Left Alone Can’t Escape a Burning Home – Use monitored smoke detectors which are connected to a monitoring center, providing an added layer of protection beyond battery-operated smoke alarms.
- Affix a Pet Alert Window Cling – Write down the number of pets inside your house and attach the static cling to a front window. This critical information saves rescuers time when locating your pets.
- Keep Your Information Updated – Firefighters are familiar with pet alert window clings, so keep the number of pets listed in them updated. Knowing the accurate number of pets in the house aids rescuers in finding all your pets.
Pets or wild animals have a part in starting about 750 home fires per year. These involve cooping equipment, fireplaces and chimneys, space heaters, lamps, bulbs, wiring and candles.