Stop Drop & Roll

[Lindsey, Lee, Whopper and Simba]

Last night at just after 2 AM, we were rudely awakened by the blaring sound of our apartment complex fire alarm.  I quickly got out of bed to see what was going on and within ten seconds, the alarm had stopped and I returned to bed.  As my husband and I tried to go back to sleep we heard the fire truck sirens nearing our building.  As we drifted off to sleep, we then began to smell smoke.  I again jumped out of bed.  I went to check the door knob to the hallway with Simba close behind.  He knew something was going on.  It was cold so I looked out the peep hole and then opened the door.  The hallway was covered with a haze of smoke and the smell was intense.  I quickly closed the door to keep the smoke from entering and told my husband that we needed to get their leashes on and get out because I was unsure what was going on.  Why had the alarm ended so quickly but our hallway was full of smoke?  I leashed the dogs making sure they both had their tags on (inside we don't have collars on so they don't get tangled).  We went into the hallway where we ran into a fireman.  Simba of course barked like a madman because that's his latest greeting that we haven't trained out of him yet.  We asked if we needed to evacuate and he told us that someone had a small fire in their bathroom which was now out and that we should stay in but keep our door closed to prevent the smoke from coming in.  We did just that.

 

So...what's the point of this...during the winter months there are so many sad stories as a result of fires.  While nothing really happened last night, it made me realize that with pets, there are definitely extra things to think about.  Do you always keep their leash and tags in the same place so you can find them easily?  Is this place on your path outside?  Do they sleep in the same area as you or if there was a fire, are they in an area that is far and could be hard to get to?  Is where they stay on the way to an exit or will it take you out of the way if you need to get out?  Also, if you are in trouble, will first responders even know you have a pet, and if so, will they know what type and how many?  There are decals you can buy and place on your window that let police and firemen know just that information but do you have one? 

 

I hope this discussion just gets everyone thinking about ways to be prepared and how to protect our furry family members too.  I'm sure others will have more insight and tips on how to handle these situations.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

So glad everyone is ok. Thanks for the discussion. You raised a lot of good points.

[Sharon & Monty]

Recently we were testing our smoke alarms.   Every time it would go off, I leashed Monty and took him outside till it stopped.  I was doing it because it hurts our ears, but then it dawned on me that is a good way for him to know it's a signal to go outside!  So we did another practice session or two.  We keep a leash at every door in the house, but now I think I'll keep one where we all sleep too.  Thanks for the post. Glad all went well.

[Lindsey, Lee, Whopper and Simba]

I never thought about conditioning dogs to the sound of a smoke detector or fire alarm going off.  In an apartment complex we can't really do this but I'd be curious how quickly dogs can be conditioned to respond in a certain way.  I'd imagine that service dogs must have this type of training.

[Sharon & Monty]

i would like to think that  you certainly could condition a dog in an apartment.  You just might have more false alarms and the harm in that is........... i used to live in a condo and worried a lot about that stuff.  Lets empower our dogs to help us?

[Nina, Phil, Harlow & Lacey]

Wow what a good idea.  I had never thougth of that.

[Sharon & Monty]

i do think that we can all program our dogs to want to go out for the terrible noise. we have a crappy one near the kitchen (we moved here about a year ago) I've since found out that some smoke alarms are better in high sensitive areas ( like kitchens) and we are replacing all ours)  i think one in the bedroom wont hurt either.

[BG and Gavin]

First off, glad everything is ok and you now have a plan together for escape.  I was thinking this morning about this very thing.  On the days when both DH and I work dayshift, it is nearly impossible to wake Gavin up to go for a 6:30am walk.  I drag him, pull him, call him, tug his collar, shake him, everything to get him going in the morning, but he is very reluctant to leave his spot beside our bed.  This morning he was particularly comical and I said to DH - "What if there was a fire?  I would never get him moving."  DH suggested this morning that I just go and open the back door (jingling the bells) - which worked; Gavin jumped up and made his way to the back door. 

 

My freind (a police officer and dog lover) was coming home from the night shift a month ago and saw a house on fire.  She banged at the doors, threw stuff at the windows and roused the family dog whose barks alerted the family.  She got them all out safely, but the dog presented a real challenge.  She bravely went in after him and in the end was successful.  But that incident made me think of having a solid plan.  Luckily Gavin does not wander far from our bedside at night and is generally always in the same room as us during the day as well - so it would be easy to at least lay hands on him (even if I can't move him in the morning - panic may give me that super human strength that allows mother's to lift cars off their babies and I would be able to pick up my big baby).

[Camilla and Darwin]

Great discussion. I was just barely thinking about this very topic. With the help of our in-laws, we have begun to construct 72 hour kits for not only us, but Darwin. Just in case that something every happened, like an earthquake, or whatnot. We have a backpack for him, with a space blanket, an extra leash, some medicine (line pain killers we had left over) and his shots records.. (have no idea if we'll need them). Oh and his microchip number. I want to put food in there but I'm unsure how to do so without having to switch it out all of the time. Would it go bad quickly? Is there anything else I need in there that I'm not thinking of?

 

Something I am very fearful of is a fire at my apartment, because of Darwin. We work and go to school during the day, what if my building was on fire during that time? He doesn't wear his collar in the house but it sits right on top of his crate, where he is. I have seen signs that alert fireman to a dog being present, and I need to purchase one of those. But I'm still worried. There are so many things that could go wrong, including them not getting to him in time or him getting away from them. Thank heavens he has a microchip, in case he did get away

[Sharon & Monty]

i've been trying to talk Don into ADT.  that would alert the fire company in our absence.  it seems expensive on the front of it,,,,,,,but.  the fire alarm would go off if we were not home.  I'm trying to train Monty to leave the house when he hears the smoke alarms, but what if he were home alone, what do i do now, teach him to jump thru windows? Geez, these issues just make me nuts considering all the possibilities.........

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I do have those decals, but they may not do any good anyway, because in our area, the policy is that first responders will not risk their lives to go in after pets. There is even a publcation from our local fire department stressing that in an emergency, you must not think about anything other than human life and getting the humans out of peril. Check the fire department policies in your area.

We did have a fire in my former home years ago, and my cat survived it, but was there was no way the firemen were going to go looking for her. Fortunately, she was hiding under the bed on the top floor, and the fire itself was in the basement. My dog got out with me.

This makes it even more important to have a plan in place for saving your pets. Thanks for starting this discussion, Lindsey, very important indeed!

[Jane, Rooney & Stuart]

Here in FL where I live - ditto - your house would burn to the ground - the fire department doesn't go in to even fight the fire, they only go in if there are people inside the building.  Scary thought.  I'm going to buy a cheap collar and leash and keep them in my night stand for just such an emergency.  Lucky for us we have a sliding door in our bedroom and would have a quick, easy escape route snatching Rooney off our bed as we go.

[Camilla and Darwin]

This is exactly what I'm worried about. That they wouldn't bother going in. I can't even contemplate how horrible that would be.