Safeguarding Your Furry Friends:
Protecting Pets from Fire and Carbon Monoxide Hazards
Discover how to keep your beloved pets safe from potential fire and carbon monoxide risks. With pets present in 70% of American homes, taking precautions is essential for their well-being. Further research shows that people who own pets reap a variety of positive benefits, so it’s only natural that owners take the precautions necessary to keep their beloved animals safe.
According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), nearly 1,000 house fires each year are accidentally caused by homeowners’ pets. Investing in a professionally installed and monitored life-safety system can be a lifesaver for both pets and loved ones during a house fire, whether you’re at home, asleep, or away.
Help prevent your home and pets from becoming a statistic
Professionally monitored security systems can alert authorities and homeowners to intruders, fire, or carbon monoxide on the premises, all of which are important whether anyone is home or not. For pets, a monitored system is especially critical because when no one is home, they are locked in and can’t call for help. If your house catches fire, how will your pets escape the blaze? A security system that is serviced with UL-certified professional monitoring 24/7 can ensure that help is on the way fast.
Since pets can’t dial 911 in case of an emergency, consider the safety tips below to help prevent a potential house fire accidentally set by your pets while you are asleep or away.
- Secure young pets. Safeguard young pets by keeping them in secure areas, away from potential fire hazards when you’re not at home.
- Kitchen Safety. Ensure kitchen safety by keeping stoves and countertops clear, reducing the risk of pets causing accidental fires. Pets are curious and can bump into, turn on, or knock over cooking equipment. More fire safety tips here.
- Extinguish open flames. Consider using battery-operated flameless candles.
- Evacuation Plans for Pets. Integrate pets into evacuation plans and avoid re-entering a burning building for their safety. Tell the firefighters if your pet is trapped in your home. Additional family emergency escape plan information here.
- Emergency Kit for Pets. Prepare an emergency kit for pets, including essentials like a leash, medication, vet documents, food, and a recent photo and description of your pet.
How A Professionally Monitored System Works:
Smoke alarms provide an early warning of a fire and offer families precious time to escape to safety. But the NFPA found that in 2009-2013, smoke alarms did NOT sound in about half (47%) of the home fires reported to U.S. fire departments mostly due to battery issues (i.e., missing, disconnected or dead batteries).
Although legislation varies by state, a battery or AC powered smoke/CO detector is typically required by law, and the NFPA suggests that batteries are checked every six months. A professionally monitored system offers greater protection when you’re home, asleep or away because it can detect smoke and deadly Carbon Monoxide (CO) and alert the central monitoring station of an issue while your family escapes to safety. The central monitoring station can also notify you if a smoke/CO detector has a low battery.
The process is simple: first the system detects, and then it dispatches first responders, if needed. When smoke or CO is sensed in your home, the detector will send a message to your system, causing the sirens to sound. With professional monitoring, the system will relay the emergency signal to your monitoring center. Dispatchers at the monitoring center are trained to manage the alarm process: from receiving the signal, verification of the alarm and if needed, first responders will be dispatched to your home, whether you are home, asleep or away.
Additional Benefits for Pet Owners
A professionally installed and monitored system offers value beyond the life-safety component. You can add cameras to your system to see your pets in real-time. You can even add motion sensors to your system without worrying about setting off false alarms. Resideo’s Indoor MotionViewer has passive infrared technology that can detect the difference between an intruder and a pet – letting animals up to 100 pounds move freely without triggering an alarm.
With Resideo’s Total Connect Remote Services’ easy-to-use app, you are connected anytime, anywhere, from your mobile device. The two-way voice feature of the Total Connect cameras allows you to see, hear and speak to your dog or pet sitter at your house and know what your pet is up to—all with the swipe of a finger. The system can even let you know if outdoor gates are left open or if kitchen cabinets with dangerous chemicals are ajar. With interior and exterior cameras, you can keep connected to your pet 24/7/365. Professional monitoring, together with mobile control puts the things that matters most in the safest hands.
