Preparedness for when

dandy-candy

Cake4brains wrote: »

Hi, can I please ask what you all think about storing canned food in a garage? I was thinking of getting my DH to build me a shelving unit but while browsing online I saw something about fluctuations in temperature can damage the cans and make the food inedible. Wasn't sure if the UK weather would be enough to do this. TIA

Unfortunately, we don't have much space in the house and what little space we have is pretty full of packs of spaghetti I bought really cheap!

I rang Heinz last year to ask this and they said they don't recommend keeping their tinned goods in unheated out buildings as the cold can shorten the life of the food so the death date will be inaccurate.

katep23

We're self-insuring our older cat as the cost of insurance is astronomical and she mostly stays in the house but the younger cats are insured as they go out more and are more likely to get injured or ill.

We took one cat to the emergency vets when he had a number of cuts on his legs (we think he had fallen into a barb wire fence) on a Sunday and the vets charged us £12 just to fill in the insurance forms which the insurance company wouldn't pay. This was after charging a huge consultation fee as it was a weekend.

Our own vets filled in the forms for free for the follow up visits.

thriftwizard

dandy-candy wrote: »

I rang Heinz last year to ask this and they said they don't recommend keeping their tinned goods in unheated out buildings as the cold can shorten the life of the food so the death date will be inaccurate.

I think I'd treat that statement with a large pinch of salt, dandy-candy; naturally they're not going to want you to keep it, but throw it out & buy some more! If I remember correctly, tinned goods found with the remains of Scott's Antarctic expedition were found to still be perfectly edible, 80+ years after being abandoned. It's pretty chilly down there quite a lot of the time. I might be suspicious that the plastic they use now to line the tins with would degrade over time & with temperature fluctuations, mind you.

[Deleted User]

I'd be less concerned about the temperature in the garage/shed, than the moisture, which could cause the cans to corrode.

thriftwizard

We have a number of animal companions of one sort or another, many of them rescues, and don't have vetinary insurance. We also have two vetinary practices in town; one high-tech, shiny, re-assuring & very, very expensive, the other a pair of delightful brothers who really seem to care about the animals & their owners, who will let you pay in instalments if you have problems & give a discount for rescues & multiples! Needless to say, they are the ones we go to. When Senior Puss & Tiny One's third sister was terminally ill a couple of years ago, one of them said to me that they could run a battery of expensive tests (circa £1,500) and possibly prolong her life by maybe 3 months with aggressive treatments, and that's what the insurance companies would want them to do if we had insurance. But it was hardly in her best interests, as there was no hope at all of a cure, though it might be "nicer" for us to have her with us for longer; it would be 3 months of feeling grotty, not being able to scamper up her favourite tree, too sick to look menacing for her place at the food bowl, etc. etc. So we let her go then & there, peacefully & swiftly and with no further suffering. The bill came to just over £50 & we were able to lay her to rest under her favourite willow tree, wrapped in her favourite blanket.

They're not avian specialists, but one keeps a few birds himself & they do occasionally treat my chickens, if I think one is sick, isn't responding to my herbal efforts, but stands a good chance of recovery. But they've taught me how to administer treatment, if needed, so all I need to do now is ring up, describe the problem, and go & collect any treatment.

We could do with more vets like them, and less stainless steel, high-tech diagnostic equipment & vast bills.

Broomstick

I think this might be relevant - enjoying being pet owners, SHTF and the cost of vets bills. By chance I came across an organisation called The Cinnamon Trust - a national charity for the elderly, the terminally ill and their pets. http://www.cinnamon.org.uk/ and thought I'd post the link just in case it's of help to any of you lot. If anyone wants to use the service to ensure long term care for their pet, it seems to be necessary to make arrangements in advance of need.

Basically, the Trust seems to exist to enable people to continue to be pet owners for as long as they are able by providing volunteers to exercise or clean out pets, shop for food, provide foster care for hospital stays and rehome pets when their owner has to go into residential care full time or dies. Reading through their website made me think that offering foster care might be what I'd offer to do if I wanted to have a dog again. For long term care, the Trust says it covers all vets bills and provides holiday cover.

I'd be interested in hearing from anyone with experience of using them in whatever way.

B x

katep23

thriftwizard wrote: »

They're not avian specialists, but one keeps a few birds himself & they do occasionally treat my chickens, if I think one is sick, isn't responding to my herbal efforts, but stands a good chance of recovery. But they've taught me how to administer treatment, if needed, so all I need to do now is ring up, describe the problem, and go & collect any treatment.

I thought I was the only one to take a bird to the vets! We had a duck with a broken toe who was young and otherwise healthy and the vet worked out the dose of metacam and gave us a big enough bottle to treat any other ducks at home who get injured.

Very amusing moment when he asked what her name was for the system and OH and I looked at each in bemusement and said "duck?"

Every time I go in now he asks how "duck" is .

Frugalsod

Cake4brains wrote: »

Hi, can I please ask what you all think about storing canned food in a garage? I was thinking of getting my DH to build me a shelving unit but while browsing online I saw something about fluctuations in temperature can damage the cans and make the food inedible. Wasn't sure if the UK weather would be enough to do this. TIA

Unfortunately, we don't have much space in the house and what little space we have is pretty full of packs of spaghetti I bought really cheap!

I would also be careful to make sure that they do not start to go rusty. That seriously weakens the cans and can allow bacteria to enter. If you see that then bring them in and use up. Replace them and you will have a back up.

GreyQueen

katep23 wrote: »

I thought I was the only one to take a bird to the vets! We had a duck with a broken toe who was young and otherwise healthy and the vet worked out the dose of metacam and gave us a big enough bottle to treat any other ducks at home who get injured.

Very amusing moment when he asked what her name was for the system and OH and I looked at each in bemusement and said "duck?"

Every time I go in now he asks how "duck" is .

That's nothing to the point when Mum and me (and the first marital cat, a plain black moggie) were in the vet surgery and vet asked us the cat's name to write on the pill bottle.

Mum and I exchanged a look and she just said "P U S S Y"?

"How original," drawled the vet.

I have never quite established why it was impossible to name me and a cat in the same year, and why the shortfall was not corrected later, but he was The Cat with No Name for his whole ten year life. All others have been named. One kitten was named twice when it turned out that she was a he.:p

S'pose I should count myself fortunate that I'm not an only child or I'd prolly be called KID.:rotfl:

jk0

Love the story about P*ssy GQ.

It made me remember my wondering if all cats know they are all generically called 'Puss/P*ssy'.

When I meet a cat on the street I don't know, I automatically call him 'Puss', and they seem to know who I am talking to.

Am I mad?