I was very appreciative of the vet telling me about the pillowcase thing for the cats. There is no way to carry them safely otherwise, unless you have an animal carrying cage, and those can be VERY cumbersome. Not to mention, if you only have one cage, and more than one cat, the cats can hurt each other in their panic. So the pillowcase is a great thing to know about, as it keeps them from seeing (and alleviates their panic) and/or escaping, while allowing them to breathe.

Good idea to keep certain important things in a handy, easily accessible place for emergencies, which should of course be near the doors. Of course, in a housefire where you don't have warning (as opposed to the approaching wildfire scenario) I think the priority has to be people first (and they are unpredictable enough as it is in a crisis), and pets last. There really aren't any other priorities for me in a house fire scenario, except to get all the people out safely. Pets will behave very unpredicatably in these circumstances, and so it isn't a good idea to think you can always save them.