With Hurricane Season here, Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M. wants to save human and pet lives, “We know that people will not leave their pets. We had many people that we lost. Remember Hurricane Katrina more than 1,000 of our citizens perished,” he explains, “Many did not leave and it became a rescue mission because they wouldn’t leave their pets.”

That’s why the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry is calling June ‘Pet Preparedness Month’. And this year, they’ve teamed up with New Orleans musician Johnette Downing and provided a way to help people be more aware. The LDAF launched a music video called “Take Your Pets With You”.

“I said you need a leash and a collar and all of these things are required when you evacuate with your pet to a shelter, so I said ‘presto’ we need a song. We have a song parents will remember and children will remember and it’ll make it a little less stressful,” says Downing.

Strain says he has high hopes for the impact the song can bring, “[It’s] good way to educate the kids and look, this is a wonderful, fun video. So if the kids know about it, mom and dad will know about it, the whole family’s gonna know about it.”

To listen to the full song, click here.
For a pet-preparedness checklist provided by the LDAF, click here.

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