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In Case of Emergency

Butch

Butch

New member
Do any of y'all know what you would do if your power was knocked out for a couple days? I got to thinking about it this afternoon as typical Florida afternoon thunderstorms keep intermittently knocking our power out. I'm not to concerned by it as our climate is prime for corn snakes and thats all I have but with some of y'all having more exotic critters and not so reptile friendly tempatures just wondering what y'all have in preparation.
 
I'm planning to order a whole bunch of the hot packs that are suitable for shipping before winter. My apartment doesn't go over 90F at the worst so I don't think I need to worry about heat.
 
No Idea.

It's supposed to be 110 on Thur. I just have to hope things work.

My brother is trying to set up a notification system for when the temperature gets too hot. It would send him an email or something. I'll do the same if he gets it working.

Then I'll know at least, but once I know...?
 
I've got a gas operated furnace attached to a rather large propane tank outside that I only use during power outages. Otherwise, heat usually isn't a concern up here.
 
I have loads of hot and cool packs for that reason. This winter we lost power for three days and my indoor temps stayed in the 40's:( I put a hot pack under the aspen in each hide twice a day and suffered no regurges or deaths which was a blessing:) Stock up it's totally worth it:)
 
I have a small "Camping Generator" ($130 at Kragen's) just in case.
After the issues TandJ had a couple yrs ago when their
power got KO'd, I figured better safe than sorry..
 
If just our power went out, I'd take the snakes to a friend's house until we got it back.

If the whole city lost power for a long time, I'd use as much evaporative cooling as I could, which wouldn't do much. I'd probably toss all the snakes in tied bags, toss all the bags in a bin, and float the bin on a tub full of water, which I could change periodically.
 
Fire up the fireplace and close off unused spaces to keep warmth in.

In the heat, cold packs. Showers for the birds and dogs, baths for the snakes.
 
We have a generator because of the hurricanes, so if we ever had a real emergency that is our back up plan. We can run what we need plus whatever we need for out 1 snake no problem off a generator. But just like you said being in Central FL we probably don't have to worry to much.

I did buy a small shoe box container suitable as a travel home for Zelda, so that way if we ever have to evacuate we can bring her with us. I keep a couple paper towel tubes and an unopened bag of aspen sealed in it, so it will be quick to set up before we have to leave. And since tubes are so light I know that nothing in it will hurt her if anything gets jostled during transport. Of course if a hurricane were to threaten here I would postpone any feedings that might take place during a move.
 
tsst said:
Whole house backup generator.
Click to expand...

That's what I would love to do, but it's just not in the budget right now. Not to mention the crappy housing market in Detroit - I would double the value of my house if I put one in!

We just lost power for about 30 hours over this past weekend. I wasn't so much concerned for the snakes as I was for my freezer full of rats and mice. I moved some of the snakes into a downstairs bedroom, and they were fine. However, I had just purchased about 1500 mice and rats a couple of weeks ago, and was worried about losing some of them.

Anyway, the freezer was packed completely full, so the frozen animals acted as ice packs, and they were still frozen solid after 30 hours. In the winter, I have a back-up propane heater, and also stock up on heat packs. I am seriously looking into at least a portable generator that will run my fridge, and the rodent freezer.

Good thread, and great ideas for dealing with power outages!

Kathy
 
If you live in a hot, dry climate like Az...

and especially if you only have a dozen or so animals, you could have large water bowls in reserve. Fill them full, put in the cages, and have some battery operated fans blowing into the cages. I bet the evaporation would keep them cool enough to do fine until the power is back on. If you have A LOT of herps, you would just have to go with the oversize bowls and hope that would be good enough. You could always put some ice cubes in the bowls if you have lots of ice cubes made before the power goes out.
 
Moist bedding might help a cornsnake stay cool in hot dry weather. Don't they go under things to get out of the heat in the wild? I would offer moist hides if the temp gets >90F. I have never seen temps higher than that in my apartment without the airconditioning, and during the 1 day so far we got to that point everybody migrated to the cool side hides or into the waterbowls and was fine. If I lived in a hotter climate, I think I would invest in cold packs as well as hot packs.

I also have a bunch of pillowcases ready to go, with rubberbands to close them. If I ever have to evacuate, everybody gets bagged separately then all the bags go in a tub. At my current 10 snakes everyone will fit in 1 big tub. 3 cat carriers & a big tub will fit in my car no problem, with the ability to secure them with seatbelts in the event of panic stops.
 
Well, it actually gets pretty hot here in New Hampshire during summer. Especially since we live on the third floor. We have a small air conditioner for just the bedroom, which is where Cornwallis and Rivet live. That way it doesn't get too hot for them. If we lost power and it was really hot, well, I guess I'd soak them a lot to help them stay cool. We don't lose power much up here in the summer though. Winter is a bigger concern. Someday I'd like to have a backup generator, but money's tight right now. When we had a bad storm this past winter and lost power for a few days, we went to live with my parents for the duration. They have a woodstove. With two snakes, a fish, and two cats, it's doable. Something to think about though. If we had a lot of animals moving them wouldn't be very practical.
 
Hail_Britannia said:
Well, it actually gets pretty hot here in New Hampshire during summer. Especially since we live on the third floor. We have a small air conditioner for just the bedroom, which is where Cornwallis and Rivet live. That way it doesn't get too hot for them. If we lost power and it was really hot, well, I guess I'd soak them a lot to help them stay cool. We don't lose power much up here in the summer though. Winter is a bigger concern. Someday I'd like to have a backup generator, but money's tight right now. When we had a bad storm this past winter and lost power for a few days, we went to live with my parents for the duration. They have a woodstove. With two snakes, a fish, and two cats, it's doable. Something to think about though. If we had a lot of animals moving them wouldn't be very practical.
Click to expand...

There are some motels that allow cats. A day in a motel would be cheaper than a generator (although more expensive than your parents' house). And the motel never needs to know there are snakes, you just carry in a bunch of nested tubs!
 
wstphal said:
There are some motels that allow cats. A day in a motel would be cheaper than a generator (although more expensive than your parents' house). And the motel never needs to know there are snakes, you just carry in a bunch of nested tubs!
Click to expand...

Just don't forget the "Do Not Disturb / No Moleste" sign. Can you imagine the cleaning staff's reaction? :eek1:


I live in Kentucky, which is just about the center of corn snake territory. Summer wouldn't be a problem unless it's a horrific heat wave. Winter, I've got friends I could go to.
 
That's a good point, Wstphal. I read an article once about a woman who had TONS of reptiles in her house (I think she did animal research) and power went out for like a week during one of those big ice storms. They had to smuggle hundreds of animals into a motel with them. They had tortoises in the bathtub. I think they did end up losing a few, though.
 
Hail_Britannia said:
That's a good point, Wstphal. I read an article once about a woman who had TONS of reptiles in her house (I think she did animal research) and power went out for like a week during one of those big ice storms. They had to smuggle hundreds of animals into a motel with them. They had tortoises in the bathtub. I think they did end up losing a few, though.
Click to expand...

A few is a lot better than all! It would be worth a motel bill, and as long as housecleaning doesn't come into the room, it should be OK. It's not like reptiles are likely to poop on the floor, after all!
 
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