World Animal Protection - Animals in Disasters Blog

Preventing animal suffering in future disasters

We’re just back from Panay island in Central Visayas, Philippines where we completed the last phase of our nearly year long work following Typhoon Haiyan last November.

North Cebu, November 2014. ©World Animal Protection 2013

You’ll remember the devastating stories from that time and thanks to you, we were able to help over 17,000 animals in the immediate aftermath.

Disaster veterinarian Naritsorn Pholperm administers vaccinations to a cow. North Cebu, November 2013. ©World Animal Protection 2014   

But the work did not stop there. Since then, we’ve equipped a mobile veterinary unit with bikes and motorcycles along with veterinary kits so the remotest villages can receive help for their animals during emergencies whe car and truck travel is not possible.

    
Mobile veterinarians can reach remote or otherwise inaccesible communities following a disaster. ©World Animal Protection 2014

We’ve also been working with communities, helping them create risk maps to identify hazards in their area and create plans for themselves and their animals for what to do and where to go in the event of another major disaster.

Mobilising entire villages and their animals, and practicing evacuations, while alerting other communities with SMS messages so they can take action as well were some of the elements of this week’s rehearsal. We also shared techniques with farmers how they can secure their animal structures so they are not destroyed or blown apart by high winds.

    
Animals and people alike practice evacuating to safe ground. Antique, Central Visayas. September 2014. ©World Animal Protection 2014


Securing roofs of animal enclosures prior to disasters means animals can shelter from the elements and farmers do not need to rebuild each time diasters strike. ©World Animal Protection 2014

As Maria Juliette Catipon of San Jose, Antique told me, “We never were able to save our animals before. Thank you so much for this. Now my community, their livelihoods and their companions can all evacuate together and we know what to do”.

    
Maria Juliette and her neighbours young goats get ready for the evacuation drill. ©World Animal Protection 2014

With your help, we’re making sure thousands of animals and the people who depend on them have a plan and a much better chance of surviving future disasters.

Happy healthy animals on a disaster-resistant farm

Last November, one of the saddest stories we encountered was the Inamarga farm. They’d lost all of their animals and had little hope for the future.

We knew we had to help and looking at the damage that was everywhere, it meant starting over from scratch.

Buildings were torn apart or blown away, pigs, chickens, cattle and water buffalo drowned or later died from exposure to the harsh sun. The animals had nowhere to go and suffered through the largest recorded typhoon in history.

Since then, working with the family, we reconstructed animal shelters using removable roofs made of local materials. Now when they know a major storm is coming, they can easily remove and secure the roofs so the structures are not destroyed.  

On this visit, we conducted a rehearsal of how to cope with a disaster - made all the more real by the tropical storm passing over us.

Director of Disaster Managment, James Sawyer beside the natural pig shelter with removable roof panels. ©World Animal Protection 2014

Members of our global disaster response team work with the farmers to remove and secure the roofs in the disaster simulation. ©World Animal Protection 2014

We also created underground shelters for pigs, chickens and cows so they can evacuate safely and stay beneath the whipping winds. The shelters were built with roofs that do not blow off and the floors are angled so they do not flood.

 Jennifer Inamarga leads her cows out of the underground shelter. ©World Animal Protection 2014

Jennifer Innamarga told me she feels so much safer and is grateful to you, our suporters who have made this work possible.

We also saw an opportunity to create a healthier environment for the pigs and instead of using the typical concrete and steel pens that are such miserable ways for sentient, curious animals to live in, we created a multi-layered, natural floor made from coconuts husks, dirt, vegetable matter and other organic compounds.

Partial view of natural floor with cement bathing tub in background. ©World Animal Protection 2014

It is cheap, requires a lot less work from the farmer to clean and recycles itself and the pigs waste. The biggest indicators that this is an ideal environment for the pigs was the lack of smell. Any of you who have passed an industrial pig farm know how awful they smell. This natural system and the pigs themselves did not smell at all.

Best of all, the pigs were running freely, rooting in the ground and expressing natural behaviour. Jennifer said the difference is remarkable. “These pigs are so happy, they are healthier and I work less as the system cleans itself.”

Happy pigs run between their natural enclosure and the underground shelter. ©World Animal Protection 2014

Disaster-prepared, healthy animals living happy lives. What more could you ask for? We're working with local governments and vets to make sure this model is soemthing that can be replicated across the Philippines and other countries vulnerable to typhoons, cyclones and hurricanes.

We couldn't do any of it with you. Thank you for helping us help the animals!

Mount Mayon Volcano Alert – advice for owners: protect your animals during a disaster

Most of our global disaster team were in the Philippines last week working on the conclusion of the relief work we began last year following Typhoon Haiyan.

Mount Mayon erupting in 1984. Image credit: public domain.

While we were there, Alert Level Three was raised for Mount Mayon, a volcano in the Philippines surrounded by many human and animal communities. We knew this volcano from a previous eruption in 2001 where we put into place mass evacuations for animals affected – something that had not happened previously.

World Animal Protection was leading a community evacuation drill with people and animals in Central Visayas,
Philippines as evacuations were underway around Mayon. ©World Animal Protection 2014

Local media reports described large-scale evacuations underway for thousands of people. We were very happy to learn that animals were being evacuated as well. It’s great to know that work we did over a decade ago with these communities and governments, is still being practiced today, protecting animal lives and the lives of people who depend on them.

We know from 50 years of responding to disasters, if people include animals in their plans, fewer animals and people die. Protecting animals also helps people rebuild their lives following a disaster.


Millions of animals suffer and die each year as the forgotten victims of disasters, while many animal owners put their own lives at risk to rescue or care for their animals during emergencies. Preparing your animals for a disaster can help avoid this.
 


©World Animal Protection 2014

To help animal owners caught up in this eruption, we shared the following tips with media, and several newspapers and radio stations in the area have already shared these with their audiences:
 


Mount Mayon - advice for pet owners:
 


Prepare for your pets with these emergency survival items:
 


Food:
 Try to provide the same food as you would normally feed your pet so as to avoid stomach upsets. Do not put their food on volcanic ash covered surfaces – it can be toxic and should not mix with their food.
 


Water:
 Ensure that you have enough safe drinking water for your pet in addition to the water you need for your family (remember an animal can drink more water than usual when under stress). Plus you will need extra water to clean up after your pet.
 


Medicines:
 Store any extra supply of medicines your pet needs in a waterproof container, as well as any special dietary needs or supplements.
 


Veterinary/Medical Records:
 Store copies of any medical and vaccination records safely including your vet’s name and telephone number (in case you have to shelter your pet or place them in foster care).
 


First Aid Kit:
 Prepare a first aid kit. Talk to your vet about any specific requirements such as tick/flea prevention, antibiotic ointment and saline solution (for example: eye wash solution separate from your family's supply) 
  


Mount Mayon Volcano – advice for livestock owners:
    


If it is safe for you to do so, move your animals to a designated safe place:
    •    Check water to ensure it is not contaminated by ash – animals need clean water
    •    Check feed for signs of contamination from volcanic ash. Wash feed clean of ash before             giving it to animals
    •    Shelter them inside buildings during heavier volcanic ash fall periods
    •    Prepare an emergency kit for your animals (this may include animal identification and            records/documents/important contact numbers/first aid)
   

 
If you have no choice but to leave your livestock behind:
    •    Before evacuating, leave them enough food and clean water for 72 hours
    •    They will need protection from the elements and shelter
      


This is a message from World Animal Protection.