As you pack your own bug out bag – remembering what you shouldn’t pack and why, and then understanding what you should pack in your own bag, we need to discuss a third category when it comes to packing Bug out Bags – how do we pack them for those in our families with special needs.
As I took stock of what kinds of specialized Bug Out Bags we should be packing, I want to discuss Bug Out Bags for babies, the elderly, special needs, homeschoolers, and pets.
Babies
Do you have an infant or are you pregnant? Fortunately, since we plan for bugging out to be in a vehicle, the thought of having two bags shouldn’t be TOO intimidating. And chances are you already have a good start on a bug out bag for your little one. Do you have a diaper bag – I mean a Bug Out Bag for your baby. Cause they really can function together as one.
Diapers and Wipes
You’re probably just going to need to expand it a bit. If we’re assuming 72 hours – in most cases that’s enough time. Then how many diapers will you need for 72 hours? If you usually use cloth diapers, you may want to consider keeping an emergency stash of disposable diapers for an emergency situation. You’ll also want wipes for obvious reasons.
Formula – Breast Milk Considerations
If you bottle-feed, you’ll want to make sure that you have what you need for 72 hours – formula, bottles, bottled water. If you breastfeed, do you already have a nursing cover in your bag – if you use one? Is there anything else for the Bug Out Bag that you need like nursing pads or Lansinoh cream?
Baby Toys
Do you keep small toys in your bag that your baby enjoys – teething toys, small crinkly blankets, small board books. Make sure that you have a couple of things to keep little one happy.
Bug out Bags for the Elderly 
Whether you are helping someone who is elderly, or you yourself are elderly and you’re preparing. First off, even though I mentioned this in the last article, I want to mention it here again – please make sure that you have at least 2-weeks worth of your medicine in your BOB at all times.
Walking
Remember, two weeks ago, I talked about how bugging out means that we need to leave for a short time and that we plan to come home – like in the case of a hurricane. So you won’t necessarily be walking more than usual, but if you need assistance walking at home, you should have that assistance with you when you leave the house to bug out. Then, if you walk with a cane, do you have something like a folding cane that you can put in your bag? It’s always better to have a spare. There are also folding walkers if you need one of those.
Incontinence Helps
I know as people age, sometimes there are incontinence issues from something as simple as leakage when you sneeze to more complex issues. If there is any chance that you’ll need them, make sure that you have any incontinence supplies in your bug out bag.
Day to Day Aids
So I’ve been talking with my Mom about bugging out, and she gave me a couple more ideas for this post that others may not think about.
My mom suffers from dry mouth because of medicines. She can’t drink all the time, so she keeps mints, losenges, or gum in her bag so that if her mouth gets too dry, she’s taken care of.
Also, because she is older, her skin gets dry very quickly. And, as we all know, dry skin cracks and gives bacteria a way to get into our systems. Because of this, she carries hand cream with her to keep her hands moisturized.
One other thing that she mentioned is that she likes to keep a package of “Wet Ones” or “Wipes” in her bag so that she can clean up a mess on her or on someone else or on something that has gotten sticky.
Food Specific
Something else to consider for our older family members is for them (or for us as we help them to prepare) to have something along the lines of Powdered Ensure. Because it’s powdered, it’s much more shelf stable for periods of time. Also it’s lighter to carry, so if you are throwing a couple of cases of water bottles into your vehicle before you pull out between that and the Ensure Powder, older family members can make sure that they get adequate nutrition.
Homeschoolers’ Bug Out Bags
If you’ve ever homeschooled your kids, you know that everything that we do is an opportunity to learn! We homeschoolers are kinda weird that way!
Bringing Your School Books
I also know from experience that if my children are occupied when we have to bug out, things tend to go much more smoothly. I also have kids who would get very upset if they had to do school later in the year because we took time off if we bugged out. So all of this leads me to say that if you’re a homeschooler and you are going to bug out – take your school with you!
So what would that look like? Again, since we’re leaving in our vehicles, throwing another bag full of school supplies, books, and a laptop is usually a doable situation.
Not Bringing School Books
If you can’t do that, use the situation to your advantage. Last week, I talked about the fact that each of my kids has a composition book, colored pencils, clicker pencils, and a reading book in their bags – besides travel games. Take them to a park near the location to which you are bugging out, and let them draw local flora and fauna. Have them write an essay on how this place “sounds different” than home does. Play educational games like Bananagrams, Scrabble Slam, Money Bags, Dominoes, Race Across the USA.
Videos
If you’re staying somewhere with WIFI and bringing a laptop, there are so many educational videos out there on so many different platforms, you could easily keep your child busy from sun up to sun down watching really good educational videos! If you need some ideas for some educational shows, you can find some here, here, and here.
Pets’ Bug Out Bags 
Now that we’ve covered how to help different people, let’s talk about how to help our pets.
Food and Water
Whether you have a cat, dog, bird, or other animals every animal needs to eat and drink. One of the things that I love is a collapsable bowl for animals. You’ll need two – one for food and one for water.
Also, make sure that you’re packing food for your animals. Since you should be bringing water for your family, make sure that you are also bringing water for your pets. Maybe if you would empty your pet’s water bowl and fill it with part of one water bottle, see how long it takes your pet to go through one water bottle. Then use that to make a determination of how many water bottles you need for your pets for 2-4 days.
Dealing with Excrement
Just like we would be up a creek without a paddle if we couldn’t use a restroom, the same goes for our pets.
We have a dog. And whether we’re at home or we’re on the road, he needs to poop. So make sure that you have extra poop bags on hand for your dog in his Bug Out Bag.
When we’re dealing with cats, it’s much more of an issue, unfortunately, but it’s definitely doable! Did you know that there are foldable travel kitty litter boxes?!? How cool is that! So I went in search of what we could use for pet bug out bags. I found a travel litter box that folds down completely flat! The other thing that you need to take into consideration when traveling with a cat is that you want LIGHT kitty litter. You don’t want to be lugging around a 10-15 pound fox of kitty litter! So I found a lightweight kitty litter for your cats grab and go bag.
Traveling with Pets in a Car
Some people travel with their pets lose in the car, while others keep their pets contained. Make sure that if you don’t want your pets running around – and maybe getting underfoot, then make sure that you have an appropriate carrier for your pet.
Letting pets out
Whether you have a cat or a dog, you may need to have a leash so that if you need to walk them, you have a way to do that.
Pet Toys
Do your pets have a specific toy that they love playing with when they are at home? It’s like having a small child. If they have a special lovie at home, you should have a duplicate for your pets’ bug out bags. If your dog or cat has a special toy, then you should probably have a duplicate for the time that you have to bug out.
What about you?
Have you taken all of the special people and pets in your life into consideration? What other items would you add to the list or what would you change? Share with us below in the comments so that we can all be better prepared.
Together let’s love, learn, practice, and overcome.
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