Cal EMA and Walmart Host Pet Preparedness Fair
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- Created on Tuesday, 16 October 2012 20:14
- Written by IVN
Torrance, California - The California Emergency Management Agency (Cal EMA) and Walmart teamed up today with the American Red Cross Los Angeles Chapter, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region IX, Los Angeles County Animal Care and Control and other agencies to provide pet owners with information and resources that will help them and their companions survive and recover from the next major disaster.
The Pet Preparedness Fair event held at Walmart's Hawthorne Boulevard location in Torrance - also featured more than a dozen displays staffed by pet and emergency preparedness experts.
Pet owners attending the fair were able to obtain Bark Code Tags, learn about pet adoption, and get educated about other aspects of emergency preparedness. Free pet emergency preparedness kits were provided to the first 200 attendees courtesy of Cal EMA.
"Pets and service animals are an important part of our lives and our families," said Cal EMA's Interim Southern Region Administrator Pat Dennen, noting that 60 percent of the America's households have domestic pets. "It's important that pet owners understand that the primary responsibility for evacuating and caring for household pets in an emergency rests with them and they must take steps to prepare themselves and their pets for the next major emergency."
"At Walmart, we are proud to be a part of the communities we serve," said Kim Sentovich, Pacific Division Senior Vice President. "We are honored to partner with Cal EMA and other emergency response agencies to prepare our customers on how to best plan for and respond to any type of disaster that may strike so that together we can all live better."
Other participants in today's fair included Cal EMA/California Animal Response Emergency System (CARES), the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management, the Los Angeles County Fire Department Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) K-9 Unit, the City of Torrance/Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and California Veterinary Medical Reserve Corps (CAVMRC), and other local veterinarians.
Additional information about pet emergency preparedness is available at www.calema.ca.gov.