Pets in a survival situation

a reply to: nonspecific

If your small dog feeds you three to four squirrels it's already bought it's weight in food if not more depending on how small a dog.

originally posted by: Puppylove
a reply to: nonspecific

If your small dog feeds you three to four squirrels it's already bought it's weight in food if not more depending on how small a dog.

2 dogs a beddlington terrier and a whippet beddlington cross. fast as lightening and love to rag small animals.

Not sure how much would be left by the time they had finished but out in the wild I would not imagine they wold have to share our food...

a reply to: nonspecific

You don't have to let them tear it up. Clean it up, cook it, share it. The unfortunate trick is to keep them fed but lean. Enough to be healthy but hungry enough to hunt more.

I would dump any pets.

Those who say they wouldn't be able to eat their pets clearly do not possess the mindset necessary to last any meaningful length of time without their comforts.

a reply to: corvuscorrax

Why would I eat a dog that's helping me get more food then I could on my own, and is helping keep me aware of danger, and why would I ditch such an asset?

a reply to: Puppylove

1. It's a massive assumption to think that a dog is going to bring you more food/water than it consumes.

2. While you think this dog will make you more aware of danger it will also make it easier for possible bandits/predators to find you.

3. You will inevitably have to deal with the loss of this pet and that grief could possibly put your survival in danger.

I understand you're trying to bring up practical reasons to keep a dog around but the reality it's for emotional comfort of the owner. All that emotional comfort goes against you when fido gets eaten by coyotes or some other unfortunate circumstance occurs.

a reply to: corvuscorrax

The big benefit to a dog (IMO)... or other animal is mental health... if they can hunt and are good guard dogs as well... that is just bonus points.

If you don't take steps to protect your mental health as well as your physical your chance of survival drops rapidly.

When I say I would be willing to eat them... I am thinking more along the lines of help may be coming (in the event of a natural disaster) but you (or wife or child) are nearly dead from starvation... I would absolutely cook of fido. I love my pets fiercely but they are not more important than the rest of my family. (though I do consider them more important than most people outside my family that I know)

a reply to: Irishhaf

I felt like I covered that but I'll expound on this subject.

I would wager that if someone needed to have their pet in a survival situation for their mental health, then when the pet does die it's going to have the opposite effect, if not making your mental health worse than if you never brought the dog at all.

If you went into a survival situation without that crutch, you wouldn't have to deal with the loss of said crutch.

Also in reference to my first post in this thread. If your mental health is so tenuous that not having fido out there surviving with you is going to make it that much more difficult to get by. Than you don't have to mindset necessary to survive without all the comforts of modern living.

a reply to: Irishhaf

I have three dogs. One of them happens to be an aging Akita. She is old, needs twice daily medication and will run off in a straight line without coming back if she is not in a yard or on a leash when we are walking. I have to admit that I am at a loss what to do with her in SHTF scenario.

a reply to: Irishhaf

**Certified Animals in Disasters 1st Responder
Emergency Management Institute
Washington, DC

If you end up in a situation where youre accepting mass transit out of any area where it gets bad...even in the hills...youll have to dump them anyway...they wont be allowed transport.

Consider: IF something happens to you and your family...THEN who will take care of them? They will not survive or will be left on their own...

*PS I have them too...and would be devasted to leave mine behind

MS

originally posted by: corvuscorrax
I would dump any pets.

Those who say they wouldn't be able to eat their pets clearly do not possess the mindset necessary to last any meaningful length of time without their comforts.

Sounds a bit trollish or ill informed to me?

There is a reason we have pets and that is because there is a mutual benefit to both sides in a survival situation.

a reply to: corvuscorrax

Wouldn't it be better to kill your pets rather then dumping them off somewhere?

originally posted by: mamabeth
a reply to: corvuscorrax

Wouldn't it be better to kill your pets rather then dumping them off somewhere?

Not sure if mentioned in this yet but the UK government asked the people of the UK to kill there pets when WW2 started and over a million animals were destroyed to save food.

a reply to: mysterioustranger

In a perfect world I will be ready to bug out on my own... I do not want to have to wait for the fed to deliver me from harm...

currently in germany I am straight up SOL..as are my pets. Looking at the current airlift capability of the USAF in the event of a SHTF scenario... they will get my wife and any other essential personnel as well as equipment out and I dont think there will be enough room for dependents.

a reply to: corvuscorrax

I would wager that if someone needed to have their pet in a survival situation for their mental health, then when the pet does die it's going to have the opposite effect, if not making your mental health worse than if you never brought the dog at all. If you went into a survival situation without that crutch, you wouldn't have to deal with the loss of said crutch. Also in reference to my first post in this thread. If your mental health is so tenuous that not having fido out there surviving with you is going to make it that much more difficult to get by. Than you don't have to mindset necessary to survive without all the comforts of modern living.

I disagree 100%, mental health is the #1 thing to be concerned about in a survival situation in my opinion... you can have all the gear and all the training in the world...and break under the strain.

Especially if you have family bugging out with you... I have friends I was planning on bugging out with in the event of it hitting the fan before moving to germany. Once I am back stateside I plan on making a more concrete plan which means having to plan for wifes/girlfriends/kids...dogs are a great comfort in trying times.

It has nothing to do with being weak... nobody can be 100% strong 100% of the time... read up on the men held prisoner at the Hanoi Hilton... every single one of them broke, but their brotherhood helped lift them back up.

If you dont have friends that have gone through any kind of training, or have not yet been forged by fire (military/training/wilderness rescue trained etc) you have to make plans for other ways to help people pull it together.

but everyone is entitled to their own opinion... unfortunately we will never know who is right till it hits the fan.

Cats are essential if you are storing grain, or handling it for spring planting. In rural America, pet shelters are considered an excellent source for "working cats." Some of them don't last long against the coyotes, but I knew one that was 14 years old and kept the barn mouse-free.

Trainable dogs are excellent for herding livestock. Though for defending your flock at night, nothing beats a large donkey. They kill rattlesnakes and coyotes!

My Border Collie is not only my service dog but also one
of the Top in the Country for herding. These dogs can go
out 1000 yards or more if needed to bring live stock.
Also she doesn't bark but will alert me when something
is not right...another asset.

So she is a total asset & would be allowed to be transported
if needed due to being a service dog. If I lost her due to SHTF
& trying to survive, yes I would be devastated but I also know
that I would have to continue on & I would do exactly that...

Cheers
Ektar

Sorry about the paragraphs not lining up right...bugs the crap out
of me & takes forever to get them right...

It would depend n the situation, and what type of critters you have. And where and how you a going.

As was stated, cats around the house and storage are needed for rodent patrol. A small yapping dog is a huge detriment as it will make noise when you don't want. A large dog well trained dog will be worth their weight.

Have two Tibetan Mastiffs, the female woofs once when someone comes to the door. The male just walks around behind them and prepares for a snack, if required.

a reply to: Helious

This is were we differ. My dog is my brother, in the truest form. I would not eat something that would willingly risk it's life for me. I would die before this.

a reply to: LamontCranston

A working cat is an absolute must.

Small yappie mutts are useful, as well. They're usually inquisitive about what's going on around them, and will sound off when something isn't to their satisfaction. Much the same as a flock of geese, actually. A fuzzy, cuddly burglar alarm.

Couple that with a bigger, stronger dog? You've got a useful team of canines. Both of whom can, with a little work, be trained to do many other things.

My dog, or my families dogs, are much more than just pets...they're actually, in many ways, partners. We work together.

Chewie is the burglar alarm. I'm looking into getting something a tad bit larger, something like a malamute-aussie shepherd cross, much like a friend has. Smartest dog I've ever come across...and he comes fully equipped with big body, and teeth to match...and his growl has thunder in it. Loyal to the death to his family...he likes me, too, thankfully. He's the black cloud of Doom. By the time you get by him, if you do, the jig is up, 'cause we'll know you're there.

If we're walking in a shtf situation, the big boy is hauling groceries in a travois/sled/wagon, leaving us hands free to do whatever comes up. Little dog is our eyes and nose for what's going on around us. Something really cool that I discovered about little Chewie is he doesn't bark if someone is with him and he sees something suspicious...he growls very quietly, you can feel it more than hear it. Kinda neat, actually. A stealth yappie-mutt...

So they're our partners, as well as pets. Family isn't too fine a point, really.

The dogs, the cats, and us. Ready to take on the world.