Emergency Planning
No one wants to think about what would happen during a natural disaster. And yet being prepared for the worst is something that every Colorado horse property owner should be doing. If you are a Colorado horse owner, make sure to have a contingency plan in place for your home first. Then prepare a plan for your horses. Your horses are very important, but you have to have your own home in order first. Here is a list (provided by the Red Cross) of items that you should have available in case of a horse emergency.
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- Water
- Non-perishable food
- Manual can opener
- Crank or battery-operated flashlight and radio
- Extra batteries
- Extra keys for house and vehicles
- First aid kit
- Cash in small bills
- Personal hygiene items
- Important family documents
- A copy of your Home Emergency Plan
Horse Emergency
After you have taken care of your own needs, now it’s time to prepare your animals. All of your horses should have a halter and lead rope near their stall. Think about adding extra halters and lead ropes in multiple locations in your stables. Other things that you can do is store extra feed buckets, bedding, pitchforks, shovels, and wheelbarrows. You don’t want to clutter your barn, but having these extra items could come in handy in an emergency. Consider bringing the following:
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- Horse ID papers
- Horse insurance papers
- Photographs of your horse with your and your vet’s information
- Luggage tags with the same information
- Spray paint or etch the hooves
- Auction crayons for tagging
Photo by Nikolas Noonan on Unsplash
