Once it is safe, tell shelters, animal control and your microchip company, post flyers and search wider, since animals may be moved far from the storm area.
What to do once it is safe
The CDC gives a clear list for a pet lost in a disaster: notify shelter caretakers, contact local humane societies and animal control, update your microchip company and post missing pet flyers once conditions are safe. Do those in that order, and do the phone calls even while you still cannot get home. Your own safety comes first. Ready.gov says to return home only when authorities say it is safe. Do not wade through water to look for your pet. Floodwater can be contaminated, can hide dangerous debris and can be electrically charged by downed or underground power lines. Use text and social media where you can, since Ready.gov notes phone systems are often down or busy after a storm. If you are at an emergency shelter, tell the staff there first.
Who to contact, and what to say
Use this wording and repeat it: My dog went missing on September 12 from 400 Bay Street during the flood. She is a black lab mix, with a blue collar and a microchip, number ending 4471. I am staying at this number. Then work through this list: the emergency shelter where you are staying, your county’s animal control and local humane society, nearby county shelters, your microchip registry, and your vet. Ready.gov tells people to contact their local emergency management office, animal shelter or animal control office for advice. In Florida, the State Agricultural Response Team lists county contacts for animal disaster response. Ask each one: Where are animals from this storm being taken, and is there a temporary shelter? Keep notes, and call back every day or two.
Update the chip now, not later
If your phone, address or home is no longer reachable, a chip that shows the old details will not bring your pet back to you. Call your registry, report your pet missing and add a number that works, along with a contact who lives out of the area. Ready.gov advises listing an emergency contact outside your immediate area for this reason. If your phone may die, give a relative’s number. If you do not have the chip number, look in saved emails and vet invoices, or ask your vet. Our post on how to look up your lost pet’s microchip and report it missing has the steps.
Why you should look beyond your county
Animals may not stay where they were found. Rescuers move them, and shelters clear space. The University of Florida Shelter Medicine Program notes that evacuating shelter animals after a disaster can make room for lost pets displaced by a storm, which means animals are moving out of the area. In a Los Angeles County example, the animal agency has mutual assistance agreements with other animal agencies inside and outside the county. After Hurricane Katrina, a Great Dane taken to a Louisiana shelter ended up with an adopter in New Jersey. So ask each shelter where its animals have gone, which rescue groups it is working with, and whether transfers are recorded. Then check neighboring counties and any shelter that has received transports.
Searching flooded streets
When officials open your area, go carefully. Pets may be confused and lost, since the CDC says familiar scents and landmarks may have changed. Look around your home and the routes your pet knows, and check high spots and sheltered places. Watch for sharp objects, spilled chemicals, exposed wiring, snakes, other wildlife and downed power lines. Ready.gov warns that snakes and other animals may be in your house. Wear boots, and do not touch wet electrical equipment. Keep your own other pets on leash or in a carrier, and stay out of standing water. Do not break into any property or enter a damaged building. Leave a note on your door with your phone number, in big print, and ask neighbors returning to the street to check garages, sheds and porches.
Flyers after a storm
Paper helps when internet and phone service are patchy. Post flyers only once conditions are safe, as the CDC says, and add the storm date and area. Put them at shelters, relief centers, supply distribution points and stores that have reopened, along with any spot where neighbors are gathering. Include a second contact phone number, in case yours goes down. If you have a photo of you with your pet, use it. Ready.gov says such a picture helps document ownership and helps others identify your pet. Leave out your full address, and use cross streets. If your flyer falls apart in rain, our post on how to make a lost pet poster survive rain can help.
When you find your pet
Assume your pet has been through a lot, and take it to a vet. The CDC warns about leptospirosis, a disease spread by contact with urine or contaminated water, soil and food, so tell the vet your pet was in floodwater. Keep your pet out of stagnant water. Keep it on a leash or in a carrier outdoors, and away from strays and wildlife. It may act differently, and the CDC says to monitor it closely and see a vet if you notice stress, discomfort or illness. If it bit someone, report that right away to medical staff. Bring ID and proof of ownership to the shelter, since records may be all you have. If your papers were lost, ask your vet for copies.
If your pet was adopted or moved
Disasters can make ownership messy. If a rescue has placed your pet, call it at once, and ask for a manager. In Arguello v. Behmke, a New Jersey court ordered the Great Dane returned to its Louisiana owner, in part because a shelter promised to call her and she never gave up searching. Keep every note and call log. This is general information, not legal advice. On planning, the federal PETS Act of 2006 requires state and local emergency plans, under FEMA standards, to account for people with pets and service animals. It does not mean every shelter takes animals. Ready.gov says many public shelters do not, so ask ahead.
Sources
CDC, Pet Safety in Emergencies: cdc.gov/healthy-pets/emergency-preparedness/index.html. Ready.gov Pets: ready.gov/pets. Ready.gov Floods: ready.gov/floods. Ready.gov Hurricanes: ready.gov/hurricanes. Florida State Agricultural Response Team: flsart.org. Los Angeles County Animal Care and Control, Emergency Response: animalcare.lacounty.gov/emergency-response. PETS Act, Public Law 109-308: govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-109publ308/html/PLAW-109publ308.htm. Arguello v. Behmke: animallaw.info/case/arguello-v-behmke.