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Include Your Pet in Your Family’s Emergency Plan
photo of dog and cat
Brush and forest fires aren’t often a concern in the city. This week suburban, farm and agricultural communities in Bonney Lake and Sumner were caught off guard by a fast spreading fire that has caused evacuations, property damage and danger to people, farm animals and wildlife. If you live in a suburban community or a high rise city condo, you need a pet emergency evacuation plan.
You may already have an earthquake kit or an emergency “go-bag” with flashlights, water, food, etc. Maybe you’ve practiced a family evacuation plan. Whether you live in a high rise condo, a suburban single family community or rural farm . . . have you included your pets in your family’s emergency plan?
Your pet needs it’s own emergency “go-bag” with supplies (and medications) for 3-5 days. It should include food, bowls, treats, extra harness, collar and leash, plenty of water, doggy poop bags or kitty litter, vet contact and Rx information, a towel or blanket to warm or comfort a pet or provide a resting spot. If you evacuate by car, a crate is great to have to keep your pet safe, calm and confined while traveling. If you have no choice but to leave a pet behind, put pet alert signage in a window with the number/type of pet and your contact information so emergency personnel know to search for your pet and how to contact you.
We always think the worst won’t happen, but so far 2020 has shown us that a lot can happen that we haven’t planned for. For more information, human and pet emergency safety tips visit www.redcross.org.
Summertime – Must Be Time to Go “Phishing”
photo courtesy flickr/gotcredit.com
Over the past week I’ve suddenly received several phone and email “phishing” solicitations. I’d like to blame it on a full moon, but that was nearly three weeks ago.
I’ve been contacted twice and advised my Amazon account had been locked due to suspicious activity. Two different people have called to tell me a credit card was being used in another state, that the police had been contacted, and they would need additional personal information to verify they were really talking to the cardholder so that they could assist me. I reached out to both credit card companies – no suspicious activity or security breach reported on my accounts. I also had a call trying to sell me new windows for my home. Told that caller my home has no windows. (You have to have some fun with these calls.) The best calls have been the three from people representing “investors” who are ready to purchase my house immediately – for cash. I had to play along with these calls too. Turns out the caller didn’t know anything about my home including where it was located, when it was built, the number of bedrooms, baths or square footage. After no doubt frustrating the caller for a few minutes, I let them know I was a Realtor® and that when it came to sell my home I had that covered.
Maybe with everything going on in the world scammers think this is an easy time to take advantage of people who might be feeling stressed or vulnerable. In my business escrow and title companies, banks and lenders continually deal with wire fraud. Bad people have figured out how to hack into emails, secure bank and corporate websites and anywhere else they think there might be a quick and dirty way to make money and defraud innocent people.
Be very careful. Be suspicious of phone calls and emails you don’t recognize or can’t verify. Caution and educate your children, parents and friends. If you question something, whether it’s from a friend, relative, business associate, bank real estate broker, escrow or title, and especially if you’re involved in a real estate transaction . . . verify the sender. It only takes a few minutes to protect yourself. It also only takes a few minutes for a wire transfer sent to a criminal recipient to empty a bank account, and those funds can be impossible to retrieve.
We have enough to worry about these days. Be safe. Verify. Verify. Verify. And while you’re at it, wear a mask. Take care of yourself, your family and friends.
Stay Home – Stay Healthy – Stay Safe
Like many of you, I have been working from home for the last two weeks. Though technology allows for viewing photo galleries and virtual tours, locating neighborhoods on Google maps, reviewing documents and digitally signing documents, real estate is a person-to-person business. While the State of Washington recently determined real estate is an essential business and may continue, the guidelines and restrictions that must be followed make it difficult to continue in a safe and healthy manner for buyers, sellers and brokers.
As many of us shelter and work from home, new routines, procedures and boundaries have been created. I no longer have children living at home – I can’t imagine the time management challenges and logistics needed as you try to fill the role of teacher, parent, spouse and employer/employee. My newly hired assistants have been a big help. Their phone and texting skills are a little rough, but they’re easily compensated with walk breaks throughout the day and frequent treats.
The coronavirus health crisis has changed our lives in unimaginable ways, and will likely impact us for the rest of our lives. If your job permits, stay home, stay healthy and be safe. Be kind to one another, this is a stressful time for adults and children. If you are one of the many people putting yourselves at risk and working tirelessly to make sure our medical and practical needs are met – doctors, nurses, technicians, grocery and pharmacy employees, veterinarians, transit drivers, police, fire and emergency personnel – you are my heroes. My hope is that you, your family and friends remain safe and healthy.
