Horses

ESF-16, animal health

Primary: Hanover Animal Response Team (HART)

Support: Local Veterinarians; Upper Valley Humane Society; Hanover Health Officer; American Red Cross Central Vermont-NH Valley Chapter; Public Information Officer; Volunteer Coordinator; Hanover Department of Public Works; NH State Veterinarian; NH Fish and Game; NH Department of Public Health.

I. Introduction

A. Purpose

ESF 16 establishes procedures to create an Animal Response Team for Hanover, which will coordinate volunteer groups, mutual aid, emergency responders, and veterinary medical personnel to respond to the needs of animals affected by disasters. The Animal Response Team provides:

1) The coordination of local resources, emergency collection, veterinary triage and supportive care to animals during and after a disaster, prior to activating additional services and personnel.

2) A coordinated response in the management and containment of a communicable disease resulting in an animal health emergency affecting the health, welfare and safety of Hanover’s wildlife, livestock, and Town population.

  • Scope

Under the direction of the local emergency authorities, the HART will respond at the request of an emergency response agency to crisis situations.

Once activated, HART will provide for emergency veterinary care, evacuation, identification of strays and return to owners, and transportation to veterinary clinics or alternate housing sites and temporary care of animals. Services may also involve diagnosis, treatment and control of disease of public health significance and the burial of dead animals.

Emergencies involving wildlife are under the jurisdiction of NH State Fish and Game.

ESF 16, Animal Health provides the framework for managing and coordinating the activities and resources required to effect the rapid containment of any reportable and/or communicable disease that poses a significant threat to the health and welfare of animals and people.

Hanover Animal Response Team activities are separate and independent of the Animal Control Officer’s responsibility. This ESF does not address animal rescue, only matters of shelter, health care and transportation.

For the purposes of this ESF and plan, it was agreed to start with a plan and capability for 10 large and 10 small animals in Hanover.

It is anticipated that the local plan for the Town of Hanover will evolve into a regional Animal Response Network within the Upper Valley.

II. Situation and Planning Assumptions

A. Situation

There are approximately 10 farms with livestock in Hanover including horses, cattle, sheep, and poultry. The Town of Hanover registers dogs. In 2003, 935 licenses were issued. It is estimated that there are at least the same numbers of cats (which are not required to be registered) in Hanover. The Morton Farm on Laramie Road belongs to Dartmouth College and has approximately 33 horses. The Upper Valley Humane Society serves as the designated, primary shelter for Hanover.

Pets are not allowed in Red Cross operated shelters, other than those animals used for special needs assistance.

There is no designated Animal Control Officer for the Town of Hanover; it is a function of the Police Department who help as they can.

B. Planning Assumptions

  • Disasters occur that require citizens to evacuate their home and property. This may necessitate the sheltering of many of the disaster victims some of whom own domestic animals/livestock such as horse, cattle and exotic animals.
  • Some residents of Hanover will not enter shelters without their pets.
  • Up to 25% of pet owners will not evacuate because of their pets. This 25% represents 5-10% of the total population directed to evacuate.
  • Approximately 30-50% of pet owners leave their pets behind even if they are given advance notice to evacuate.
  • Approximately 50-70% of those who leave their pets behind attempt to rescue them later.
  • There is frequently a bond established between animal owners and their animals to the point that the owners may risk their lives to save them. Because of this, it should be anticipated that persons with animals may be reluctant, if not uncooperative, when asked to evacuate without their animals in times of an emergency. Separation of animals and owners may cause traumatic separation anxiety that may generate conflict and delays.
  • During the short-term absence of an owner, animals remaining at home must be supplied with assistance.
  • Facilities designated as animal housing facilities prior to a disaster may be destroyed or rendered inoperable by the disaster itself, thereby necessitating additional measures to humanely house and care for animal victims.
  • Utility, water, sewer, and other infrastructure systems may not be available at housing facilities for several days following a disaster, thereby necessitating alternative arrangements to insure the maintenance of a healthy living environment for the animals.
  • In an emergency involving livestock, the livestock community is well prepared and coordinated to respond, having their own alert networks, and response and support capabilities. This is not as true of the horse community, which is generally fragmented, and unprepared for emergencies.
III. Concept of Operations

A. General

HART will coordinate with local authorities in the establishment of emergency aid stations and staging of emergency relief and for evacuation. It will also provide an organizational structure, chain of command and outline of duties of animal-care personnel involved in the implementation of the response to a disaster.

  1. A current directory of recognized animal health care providers and licensed veterinarians practicing in the Hanover area will be developed and maintained.
  2. There will be close communications with the NH State Veterinarian.
  3. Coordinate with EOC in matters of equipment use, provision of transportation, and public information operations to communicate alert status, volunteer mobilization and damage information.
  4. Emphasis should be placed on having prior arrangements for evacuation, including routes and host sites. Residents with animals need to enact their own personal animal disaster plan in advance. The Public Information Officer may assist in developing such a program.
  5. All persons participating in the collection and supervising care of animals during an emergency will be credentialed and identified as competent by the Animal Coordinator.
  6. Red Cross operated shelters do not take animals. The Public Information officer will notify the public of the designated animal shelter site(s). In addition, transportation may be available from the Red Cross shelter to the animal shelter.
  7. Collection sites may be established for the purpose of giving the public easy access to places to drop off their animals during an emergency. Transportation will be provided from these sites to the actual shelter sites.
  8. Stranded animals: In the event that animals cannot be brought to shelter due to the emergency situation, food and medical assistance may be delivered to the animals when possible.
  9. Disaster Welfare Inquiries: Lists of animals and copies of intake forms will be provided to the Team responsible for inquiries about lost/missing pets.

B. Functional Areas of Responsibility

The primary components and responsibilities of the Hanover Animal Response Team are:

  • Communications Unit Coordinator
    • Identifies types of communications to be used. (radio/cell)
    • Coordinates with the ham radio volunteers. (SGARES, Southern Grafton Amateur Radio Emergency Service)
    • Serves as a contact person for animal transportation.
    • Ensures essential team members can communicate with one another.
  • Shelter Unit Coordinators
    • Inventory supplies.
    • Train and supervise volunteers.
    • Responsible for shelter set-up, maintenance, and cleanup.
    • Posts signs for shelter area.
    • Implements Animal Intake Procedure.
    • Identifies a Small Animal/Exotic Area.
    • Identifies an Infirmary Area/Quarantine Area.
    • Identifies a Morgue called “AREA TWO”.
    • Assigns responsibilities for exercise schedule, feeding, and care.
    • Schedules work hours of shelter staff.
    • Supervises recovery activities (tear down of Shelter, cleanup of cages, crates, stalls, catalogues supplies/equipment, inspects shelter before formally closing, evaluates shelter activities).
  • Transportation Unit Coordinators
    • Maintains lists of volunteers, vehicles, and equipment.
    • Ensures animal transportation is provided from the incident site or to and from Collection Sites.
    • Coordinates with the Department of Public Works for use of large vehicles to bury dead animals.
  • Veterinarians and Trained Volunteers providing emergency health care
    • Coordinates “medical backpacks”.
    • Provides training and materials regarding shelter layout and prevention of spreading disease to humans and animals.
    • Defines first aid supplies to be carried by team and volunteers.
    • Performs triage and decides if animals should be transported to medical facilities
    • Assumes authority for all decisions regarding additional medical assistance.
    • Makes shelter inspections to ensure health and safety and wellbeing of animals.
    • Provides temporary small animal shelters in Veterinary offices.
    • Provides medical documentation.
    • Provides medical care instructions on released animals.
    • Reviews medical supplies and equipment for restocking.
    • Reviews incident for improvement.
  • Upper Valley Humane Society
    • Provide shelter for small animals.
    • Assist in the recruitment of volunteers.
    • Offer training for shelter volunteers.
  • NH Department of Public Health
    • Investigates human/animal health issues, including the transmission of zoonotic diseases and potential rabies exposure.
    • Provides guidance for the diagnosis, prevention and control of zoonotic diseases.
    • Investigates potential bioterrorism events, which may include human/animal health issues.
  • Public Information Officer
    • Notifies the public of appropriate shelters to drop lost/stray animals, animals they cannot care for, or animals that need medical assistance.
    • Delivers instructions to the public to prepare their pets for an impending emergency.
    • Initiates a system to direct inquiries on lost pets to the appropriate animal shelters.

C. Organization

  • Functional Organization of ESF-16

Organization Chart

Organization Chart

2. Interagency Coordination - The Animal Response Team follows the incident command system and makes recommendations to the Incident Commander for additional support at the State level which is, specifically, the State Veterinarian. The team acts independently to support the care and sheltering of animals.

Coordination with other ESF’s includes:

*ESF 15 - Volunteers and donations: refer volunteer personnel and donated items to appropriate locations or contacts.

- Coordinate efforts to provide food, water and shelter for animals, and store and distribute animal food and medical supplies that may arrive via mutual or State aid.

* ESF 14- Public Information, providing public information regarding animal shelters, and other animal related matters before and following a disaster.

A large part of ESF 16’s effectiveness will be determined by pre-disaster education and community outreach training of citizen groups concerned with animal welfare.

*ESF 8 – Health and Medical: Assist with the prevention and control of diseases of animals which have public health significance (i.e. investigate animal bites and provide rabies control). Provide disaster mental health services to members of the community and animal team members.

*ESF 6 – Shelter (people): Because no animals are permitted in Red Cross Shelters, there will be alternative arrangements available at the Red Cross Shelters and through public information efforts to designate shelters for animals.

3. Specialized Teams/Units - The HART is the specialized team with specific skills and training to support animals during a disaster.

There are five teams established:
1. Transportation
2. Veterinarian/ Medical support
3. Shelter (large animal)
4. Shelter (small animal)

5. Communications(within the Animal team and to the IC)

VMAT- Veterinary Medical Assistance Teams

A federal resource assisting local veterinarians in providing care for animals at the site of a Presidential declared disaster.

  • Operational Facilities/Sites–

a. Small animal shelter (kennel area)
b. Large animal shelter (barn area)
c. Collection sites

. Activation and Notification

The Incident Commander will activate the HART through the 911 dispatch emergency systems. The HART may make recommendations to the IC to request the assistance of the State Veterinarian. The information will be shared with the other support organizations and services as needed. Each Unit Coordinator will create and maintain an Emergency Contact List for their unit.

E. Communications

A short wave radio operator ,through the Southern Grafton County Amateur Radio Team, will be assigned by the local OEM manager to the HART during an emergency. Hand radios will be assigned to functional team members for inter-team communications. The ham radio operator will dedicated to interagency communications.

F. Emergency Response Actions

1. Mitigation:

  • Measures are handled at the Town, State or Federal levels.

2 . Preparedness:

  • Assemble an animal response team which has evaluated the high risk threats to Hanover and the surrounding areas.
  • Support the training and drill exercises to enable the team to respond effectively.
  • Create shelter signs.
  • Identify volunteers to work in the individual teams.
  • Organize resources (i.e. crates, forms, locations for food donations).
  • Coordinate with short wave operators for disaster planning.
  • Identify shelters for large and small animals.
  • Design forms for use in shelters.
  • Identify resources for shelters including potable water, food, medical and cleaning supplies.
  • Identify means of transportation for large and small animals.
  • Conduct public education programs for disaster preparedness for large and small animals.
  • Veterinarians:
    • provide training and consultation on shelter layout, and the prevention or spreading of disease to animals and humans.
    • Educate and consult on water and food contamination, vaccinations, and infectious disease isolation procedures.
    • Identify medical (i.e. vaccines) recommendations for teams and volunteers.
    • Defines first aid supplies to be carried by team and volunteers.
  • Identify burial sites for animals on Town or private land.
  • Maintain lists of volunteers, skills, vehicles, and equipment.
  • Identify a network of animal response teams in other communities. Establish mutual aid agreements.
  • Develop a “telephone tree” for emergency notifications and activation by the team members.

 

3. Response

  • When ESF-16 is activated, the Animal Response Team Leader (or Communications Unit Coordinator?) will report to the EOC.
  • Animal Response Team leader performs on-site evaluation(s).
  • Define incident level and activate appropriate Team members.
  • Recommend to Incident Command whether Mutual Aid or State assistance is needed.
  • Communications Coordinator ensures all team members can communicate with one another.
  • Notify Red Cross shelters of animal shelter and sites.
  • Shelter Coordinators establish shelters.
  • Veterinarians
      • perform triage, and assume authority for all decisions regarding additional medical assistance and mutual aid.
      • conduct shelter inspections to ensure health, safety and well being of animals.
      • Administer, direct, and provide animal medical care on-site and at Shelters.
        • Transportation coordinator ensures animal transportation is provided from the incident site and establishes collection sites.
        • Maintain complete logs of actions taken, reports, and resource capabilities and needs.

Animal Intake Procedure

  • Complete a HART Intake and Release form for each animal.
  • Each animal shall have an ID tag, linked by a number to the Intake form, and the cage or location of the animal.
  • All forms will be filled out and signed by both the owner and the HART volunteer before HART takes custody of the animal.
  • The last four digits of the responsible person’s pre-disaster telephone number shall be uses as identification for pickup.
  • All paperwork will be put into a plastic pouch and remain with the animal until the animal is returned to the owner.
  • In the Shelter, the animal(s) receive:
    • Safe shelter
    • Food and water
    • Emergency medical care
    • 24 hour observation
    • Exercise as directed by veterinarian
    • Grooming as possible
  • Dogs without rabies tags will be isolated from other animals

4. Recovery

When the incident is declared over by the IC, the Shelters will be closed and animals returned to their owners or to ______________________________________________.

Procedure for Returning Animals :

The individual claiming the animal must have personal identification, and must leave a phone number where they can be reached. If the Team Member has serious doubts about someone claiming an animal, a Team Coordinator is to be notified immediately, and a joint decision will be made.

  • If someone other than the owner is there to claim the animal, the volunteer will check for a documented record from the owner regarding who is designated to claim the animal. If no one has been designated, every effort must be made to contact the owner before releasing the animal.
  • Initiate foster pet care.
  • Ensure all medical records and medication go with animal.
  • If an animal is transferred to another facility (i.e. Humane Society), this information is noted in the _________________________________________.

H. Deactivation

Deactivation of ESF 16 occurs when the incident is declared over and all animals have been claimed or transferred. Team members will help with the tear down and clean up of the area used, cleaning of the equipment, and transportation of equipment back to storage areas.

I. Debriefing:

The incident review will include the following information :

  • Where did incident take place?
  • What kind of incident was it?
  • Who was involved?
  • Number of animals handled?
  • How long did incident last?
  • Follow up forms going to any officials.
  • Photographs documenting the event.
  • Resources needed.
  • Lessons learned.
  • Summarize medical problems, deaths and disposition of animals
  • Suggestions for future response efforts, and for preparedness activities.
  • Personal debriefing for team members will be offered by the Disaster Mental Health team.

V. Resource Requirements

Animal Team SET UP Box :
(Stored in the EOC)

Name tags
Shelter signs
Forms
List of Upper Valley Veterinarians

Equipment:
Cages
Xerox machine
Phones
Radios
Food for animals
Portable horse stalls
Portable fence

VI. ESF Development and Maintenance

The Hanover Director of Assessing is responsible for maintaining this ESF and will review and update it annually.

VII. References

A. Plans
NH Emergency Operations Plan
VT Emergency Operations Plan

B. Standard Operating Procedures/Guides (SOPs/SOGs)

C. Interagency Agreements

  • Upper Valley Humane Society
  • Area Veterinarians

VIII. Attachments

A. Forms

  • Animal Disaster Response Volunteer Contract
  • Volunteer Request Survey
  • Veterinary Personnel Resources
  • Call-in List for Volunteers
  • Sign-in Sheet for Volunteers
  • Master Intake/Registration List for Animals
  • Animal Relocation Log
  • Animal Intake Form
  • Lost Pet /Found Pet
  • Animal Rescue Request Form
  • Animal Release Form
  • Housing Unit/Animal Care Log
  • Supply Resource List
  • Supply Checkout List
  • Controlled Drug Log
  • Site Survey

Phone numbers:
NH State Veterinarian
NH Department of Agriculture
Concord , NH
Clifford W. McGinnis, DVM
email: cwmcginnis@agr.state.nh.us
phone: (603) 271-2404