Veterinary clinics are often the first organizations pet owners turn to for guidance, support, and care when disaster strikes. However, while many practices invest time in preparing their staff and facilities, as well as educating their clients, a critical area of long-term preparedness that can often be overlooked is building relationships with local disaster response partners.
Whether natural or man-made disaster, response efforts are coordinated through an intricate network of local governmental and non-governmental partner agencies. Each country has local emergency management that coordinates all efforts at emergency operations center (EOCs). Common coordinating and responding agencies for animals include municipal animal care and resource organizations in coordination with local, state, and national animal welfare organizations, the FVMA, the AVMA first responders, and public health officials. Establishing relationships with these organizations early will help facilitate communication and coordination during an emergency, giving your practice, staff and clients access to information, resources, and support.
The 72 Hour Rule and Practice Preparedness
According to Florida emergency management protocols, it can take up to 72 hours to clear, roads and deploy aid post-disaster, which means your clinic’s business continuity plan must account for being completely self-sufficient within that timeframe (including medical water, food, and backup generator fuel), before municipal ESF-17 or FVMA relief can physically reach your facility.
Before disaster strikes, ensure your clinic has evaluated its own practice readiness and established its network of community and national partners:
Practice Preparedness: Capabilities and Continuity:
- Practice response capabilities: Define what services can be safely maintained.
- Business continuity plan: Formalize protocols for staff safety and 72-hour self-sufficiency.
- Back-up power: Secure alternative energy sources and fuel for medical equipment and climate control.
- Client communication pathways: Establish alternative channels to reach pet owners.
- Data management: Backup medical records securely via off-site or cloud storage.
- Staffing: Outline emergency shifts, communication trees, and team safety plans.
- USDA accreditation: Ensure credentials are up to date for signing health certificates.
- Mobile capabilities: Determine if your team can provide care away from the primary facility.
Community & National Partners:
- Local emergency manager contacts.
- Local animal care and resource organization contact (Usually the Emergency Support Function (ESF) 17 contact).
- Local Health Department.
- Local fire and police contacts.
- Local animal welfare organization contacts.
- National animal welfare organizations (ASPCA, AHW, etc.).
- Local emergency animal hospitals.
- Local animal transporters and transport organizations.
- Local American Red Cross chapter contacts.
Don’t Wait Until the Storm is On the Radar
During an emergency, people need tangible resources and easy-to-find information. The FVMA’s customizable preparedness resources, including the new “FVMA General Evacuation Planning and Safety Guide”, to make it easier than ever for clinics to deliver valuable guidance while strengthening client relationships.
Drawing from established disaster preparedness recommendations, this streamlined checklist is designed to help your clients understand what supplies, documents, and essentials they should have ready before an emergency occurs. The handout also includes space for clinics to add their own branding, contact information, and emergency phone numbers, creating a customized resource that keeps the practice connected to clients when they need support most.
When disaster strikes, veterinary clinics are often called upon to provide answers, reassurance, and support. The best way to meet those expectations is to begin the conversation long before a storm appears in the forecast.
Through educational outreach, accessible resources, digital communication, and community partnerships, veterinary practices can empower pet owners to make informed decisions and take meaningful action.
By leading preparedness efforts today, veterinary teams can reduce uncertainty tomorrow, helping protect pets, support families, and build more resilient communities throughout Florida.
How to Get Involved at the Local and State Levels
It is vital to understand the difference between local emergency responses and state deployment:
Local Volunteering: For immediate community impact right after a storm hits, your staff should integrate directly into your county’s local animal response networks and municipal shelters.
The best way to do this?
- Attend local meetings: These organizations frequently host preparedness workshops, planning committees, and community exercises that welcome local stakeholders. Setting aside one afternoon a year can go a long way toward forging these vital partnerships.
- Designate a liaison: If your schedule is packed, designate a trusted staff member to serve as the clinic’s emergency preparedness liaison. This individual can maintain contact sheets, attend local meetings, and serve as your primary point of communication during emergencies.
State Activation
Florida Veterinary Corps: The Florida Veterinary Corps is a state-level asset managed by FDACS. Volunteers are specifically credentialed and are only activated in response to state-declared disasters.
Understand Your Role and Be Part of the Solution
As discussed in our June blog, “Disaster Relief Starts with Preparedness” veterinary professionals are eager to help during emergencies but are not always certain how they fit into the larger emergency management structure. At the same time, local emergency managers may not fully understand the capabilities, or limitations, of veterinary practices.
Once you establish a clear line of communication with your local partners, the next step is outlining the services your clinic can realistically provide. Consider sharing your availability for:
- Emergency medical treatment and animal triage
- Temporary emergency shelter support
- Animal identification and reunification services
Practices should be equally transparent about limitations related to staffing, facility capacity, or available resources. When emergency managers understand your capabilities in advance, they can better integrate veterinary resources into community response plans.
Expand Your Knowledge and Scope of Action
Building relationships is important, but understanding the language of emergency management makes those partnerships highly effective.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) offers free Incident Command System (ICS) training courses online. These courses introduce command structures and explain how agencies coordinate resources during emergencies.
In Florida, completing this training opens the door to joining the Florida Veterinary Corps. These trained volunteers play a critical role in supporting animal response efforts during state-level disasters:
https://fvma.org/tools-resources/disaster-relief/florida-vet-corps-application-form/
Finding Your Local Emergency Contacts
Not sure who to contact? Start with your county emergency management office. Most county governments maintain emergency management websites with contact sheets, local emergency operations center details, and community planning schedules.
You can also connect with state-level resources, including:
- Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM)
- Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS)
- State Agricultural Response Team (SART).
- FEMA responder training: IS-100.C, IS-200.C, IS-700.B, and IS-800. D.
- AVMA Veterinary First Responder Certificate Program
Strong emergency preparedness is about becoming part of a larger network dedicated to protecting the entire community. By building local relationships today, your practice can respond with confidence tomorrow.