7 On Your Side: How to create a disaster preparedness plan for your pets

You may already have a plan in place in case of a natural disaster -- what you need, where you will go, who you will contact.

If you have any pets, you may need to add a few extra steps to your emergency plan.

You'll want to have important documents on hand, just like you would for your human family members.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests printing out vet records, medical test results, vaccinations, prescriptions, and adoption or ownership documents. Put those in a waterproof container, along with recent photographs, microchip information and contact information for you and other relatives.

There's a form on the CDC's website you print to easily write all this information on one sheet of paper. The agency recommends also packing an emergency kit for essentials.

Include a two-week supply of food, water and any medication. Print any feeding instructions, and don't forget the food and water bowls.

The agency also suggests packing a one-month supply of flea, tick, and heartworm preventative, as you don't know where you and your pet will end up.

Other supplies you may want to include:

These may all seem obvious, but it's easy to forget when there's an emergency. Plus, packing ahead of time means you and your family can get to safety faster.

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