My apartment building caught fire last night

vibiana

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Thank God, there were no injuries or fatalities. The fire began in a basement storeroom and was contained before it could spread anywhere, but the building was full of smoke and the Fire Dept. evacuated everybody.

Next time I'll know -- put Cushie in the carrier FIRST. She is not a pick-up-and-hold cat, and while I got the other two in their carriers fairly easily, Cushie hid under a bed and wouldn't let me get to her. I breathed in enough smoke trying to catch her that I had to spend half an hour in an ambulance being given oxygen and trying to get my heart rate down from 150 BPM. Yes, I'm the type who panics. LOL

The first thing I am going to do this morning is make a sign for my door that says SAVE MY CATS, THE CARRIERS ARE ON THE TOP SHELF OF THE EAST BEDROOM CLOSET. A firefighter managed to catch Cushie after they'd made me go downstairs and outside, but I had a few anxious minutes not knowing how bad the fire was or whether she was okay.

I had to post this so all of you would remember to BE PREPARED for fires. I was sure glad I had carriers. I know a lot of people with pets who DON'T have one for each animal.
 

lillekat

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oh that's awful!! I'm so glad you and all your kitties are safe! I can't imagine what I would do if I had to be placed in that position. Cushie must have given you the scare of your lifetime!

to you and your babies!
 

fwan

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oh god! i am so glad nothing bad has happened to you guys!
I have to buy another carrier, a bigger one because we have two cats and a bunny! and we only have two carriers..
 

eilcon

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What a scary experience that must have been! I'm so glad you and your furbabies are okay.
 

gardenandcats

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I am glad to hear you and your cats are ok. What a horrible thing for you to have to go through.
 

leto86

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Good thing no one was hurt!

I already have a plan or the furbabies for if there was a fire. But we still need a 'Save my pets incase of an emergency' Sticker on the door.
 

jennyr

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I can't imagine anything worse. How awful for you. But thank you for hte wake-up call to think through what each of us needs to prepare for.
 

miss mew

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Oh my goodness!!, I'm so happy that you and your furbabies are ok...how terrifying for all of you!!. That is such a good reminder to all of us.
 

ollyextra05

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How scary! Thank god you are all okay. We have stickers on our windows that say "in case of fire, save cats" and we have carriers for each of them...but now that I think of it the carriers are kind of shoved in the back of a closet. I'm thinking I'm going to take them out and put them somewhere more accessible.
 

ryn

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How horrible that must have been for you!
I'm glad no one got hurt.

A fire is one of my worst nightmares, especially since I've only got 3 functioning carriers for 4 cats: one doesn't have a door, and it has already taken 10 months for the spare part to arrive from Italy.
 

beckiboo

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Originally Posted by Ryn

How horrible that must have been for you!
I'm glad no one got hurt.

A fire is one of my worst nightmares, especially since I've only got 3 functioning carriers for 4 cats: one doesn't have a door, and it has already taken 10 months for the spare part to arrive from Italy.
Our petstores sell little cardboard carriers. In a pinch, a kitty would fit into one. Or try CarolWrightGift.com, their current catalog has a rolling carrier that zips up, for $19.99. I don't know if they ship overseas, but if they do, that is a good price.

I'm glad you and the kitties are ok, now, Vibiana. What a terrible scare!

I will heed your warning, and start working harder at getting Jasmine to come when called and to let me pet her. If I had a fire today, there would be no way I could catch her!
 

ryn

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Originally Posted by Beckiboo

Our petstores sell little cardboard carriers. In a pinch, a kitty would fit into one. Or try CarolWrightGift.com, their current catalog has a rolling carrier that zips up, for $19.99. I don't know if they ship overseas, but if they do, that is a good price.
I don't think we have those here. Perhaps I'll check that site out. Thanks!
 

jcat

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I'm glad everybody is okay, Vibiana. Yes, a fire is really frightening. We had one almost two decades ago, and since then, we've had stickers for our side of the house and our neighbors' side, specifying the number of pets and the species, and I keep my carriers (the current ratio is 1 cat/3 carriers
, because I need the extras for the shelter ) where I can grab them in a hurry.
 

sharky

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so glad all are fine...

I need to move a carrier for Kandie to moms side of the house.. currently we have three kids and 5 carriers... but i have no fish plan
 
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vibiana

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Another thing that occurred to me this morning -- I am going to attach each cat's collar and tags to her carrier handle. Ordinarily I keep those in a glass bowl on top of the microwave, but they should be with the carriers. The cats aren't collared unless they're going to the vet anyway.
 

gailc

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What about taping the name, address and phone # of the vet and perhaps a relative/friend to contact too?? I only have one carrier for 4 cats-I should at least get another good one and two cardboard ones.
I have the window sticker also.
 
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vibiana

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I like that idea Gail. I already have my name and numbers, but it's a good idea to have backup. My greatest fear is for something to happen while I'm gone. *shudder*
 
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