Preparing for a Hurricane

[BluuWolf]

Okay, so I'm in Florida and we might get hit by hurricane Irma with weekend or the next. It might not happen or might not reach where I am in northern Florida but it's always better to prepare. But how should I prepare with my snake?

Like if the power goes out or something or I like near the beach so I might be evacuated. I have a little insulated box and pillow case and stuff all ready already (I'm moving next month and already had that ready in preparation) but if this is bad enough I might not be able to come back for a while so how long can he be okay out of his optimal conditions? And if the power goes out what should I do or how can I prepare for that?

I know this is a weird kinda unique situation but I'm nervous about it and I want to make sure if we do get hit he makes it out of this okay too.

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[bcr229]

Don't feed for a week before the storm is expected to hit, in case you can't supply heat for a day or so, your snake won't regurge its last meal.

Have a planned destination if you do have to evacuate, not just a hotel or government shelter, as they may not accept pets.

Get a minimal setup packed and ready: sterilite tote with locking handles, heat pad, t-stat, plastic hide, water bowl, newspaper. Snake goes into a bag which goes into the tote for security while in transit.

[BluuWolf]

Don't feed for a week before the storm is expected to hit, in case you can't supply heat for a day or so, your snake won't regurge its last meal.

Have a planned destination if you do have to evacuate, not just a hotel or government shelter, as they may not accept pets.

Get a minimal setup packed and ready: sterilite tote with locking handles, heat pad, t-stat, plastic hide, water bowl, newspaper. Snake goes into a bag which goes into the tote for security while in transit.

Okay, he ate on Sunday but that should be digested before anything happens. I'll get that setup ready as you suggested but I really don't have anywhere to go. My closest family lives in Oklahoma. What if I end up staying here and the power goes out? Will he be okay for a few days as long as he hasn't eaten? It is Florida so humidity and temps are pretty high just naturally but he won't have any sort of gradient

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[ebbanflo]

Okay, he ate on Sunday but that should be digested before anything happens. I'll get that setup ready as you suggested but I really don't have anywhere to go. My closest family lives in Oklahoma. What if I end up staying here and the power goes out? Will he be okay for a few days as long as he hasn't eaten? It is Florida so humidity and temps are pretty high just naturally but he won't have any sort of gradient

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I am so sorry that this is a situation you are dealing with right now. I wish the best for you, your family/close ones and of course your BP.

I think he will be okay for a few days without the optimal settings. Remember that snakes do survive and live in the wild (albeit not as long as in captivity) so there shouldn't be an issue with him being either in a travel set up or not in his ideal home for a few days. This is a situation in which you don't have a lot of control, so just the fact that you're being careful is probably the most important thing.

If your closest family lives in Oklahoma maybe you should attempt to reach out to friends who may live closer to you? Maybe there is someone on this forum who lives in the somewhat nearby area who could help you or hold your snake in a safe location until you are ready for him back. Unfortunately I live quite far away, but I wish could help in any way possible.

[wolfy-hound]

Have your items ready in case you DO decide to evac, so you can stuff him in a bag, grab up a tote and go, without having to gather items. Remember to put his paperwork(if you have any) in a ziploc and drop it in the bin too, then you don't have to worry about it.

If you don't have to evac, watch the temps in the cage. If it's too hot in the cage, you can bag him and bring him out to a cooler spot. Don't feed him. Mostly you have to watch for overheating. If it were winter, you can heat water on a grill and make hot water bottles for a snake, but that shouldn't be an issue right now.

[bcr229]

He should be fine for a few days if the power is out, most likely you'll be worrying about overheating versus being too cold anyway. That's the opposite problem I have, typically when the power goes out it's because an ice storm has dropped power lines.

If you're staying put get some empty plastic bottles, fill them with water, and use them to fill up any empty space your refrigerator/freezer as that will help your food stay cold longer. The ones in the freezer should be filled partway so they don't burst. Otherwise I would be eating up as much frozen meat as I could between now and this weekend.

[BluuWolf]

Alright, thank you all so so much for the adice. I have the supplies for him already packed up just in case and I did but lots of water bottles but I hadn't though about freezing it, thanks for the idea!

It's reassuring to know he should be okay for a few days, and I will be sure to watch to make sure he doesn't overheat.

Thank you again for the advice, being able to make a plan and prepare for the worst just really helps me keep a level head in these sorts of situations. Hopefully nothing to bad will happen but I want to plan for the worst.

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[hollowlaughter]

Roomie works at the electric company and if you're just having a short electrical outage the recommend using hand-warmers as interim heating solutions for snakes. Filling a sock with rice and heating it also works for additional heating in winter like ice brownouts.

[Craiga 01453]

I think the most of the advice I would have given has been mentioned above, so...
Sending best wishes your way, stay safe!

[BluuWolf]

Roomie works at the electric company and if you're just having a short electrical outage the recommend using hand-warmers as interim heating solutions for snakes. Filling a sock with rice and heating it also works for additional heating in winter like ice brownouts.

Thank you, I will keep that in mind. I don't think it will get cold enough to warrant this but I wanna prepare for it anyways

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