Donation to Waupaca firefighters helps save animals
Submitted Photo
While fire departments are ready to battle blazes and rescue victims at a moment’s notice, not every fire department is equipped to assist pets affected by smoke inhalation.
With new pet oxygen masks donated by Invisible Fence’s Project Breathe Program, the Waupaca Area Fire District will be able to help pets on the scene of a fire and hopefully reduce the number of pet fatalities.
In addition to the donation of the pet oxygen masks, Waupaca also received a donation of an oxygen cylinder/regulator system from Gold Cross Ambulance Service, which also serves the Waupaca area.
Each year, it’s estimated more than 40,000 pets die in fires, most succumbing to smoke inhalation.
In most cases, first responders lack the equipment to resuscitate and save these animals.
Since Project Breathe’s inception in 2006, a total of 24,000 masks have been donated to first responders and nearly 200 animal lives have been saved.
After a recent call to the Waupaca Humane Society, department staff started to investigate these special oxygen masks for pets.
Waupaca Area Fire District Safety Officer Tim Banaszak found information online about the Invisible Fence’s Project Breathe Program.
Saving anxious pets
“Animals tend to hide in a fire and owners can’t always find their pets,” Banaszak said. “Once our crews locate them, these masks go a long way to giving us the tools we need to be able to revive a pet.”
Waupaca Area Fire District received one reusable mask kit. It includes three slip leashes to secure the animals and three sizes of masks to rescue a wide range of distressed pets, from rabbits to Rottweilers.
Also included is a laminated sheet explaining steps in using the masks as well as CPR techniques for animals.
The donation was made by Invisible Fence by Golruck Pet Consultant Tina Dubois, who brought her stuffed dog along to help firefighters learn how to use the masks.
Dubois said that the masks are easy to use on animals – from dogs and cats to rabbits and gerbils – if they are unconscious, but that it gets trickier if they are awake. Putting an unknown object near an animal’s face if it is already anxious and panicked can induce a fight-or-flight response.
When the animals engage in self-defense, they may end up harming those who are trying to help them.
“It’s all about watching how stressed the animal is, and not contributing to that,” Dubois said.
Along with teaching firefighters how to use the oxygen masks, Dubois also demonstrated how to perform CPR on dogs and cats.
According to Captain Steve Fenske the Waupaca Area Fire District is grateful for the donations of the pet masks and oxygen cylinder/regulator.
He emphasized that this equipment will only be available at Waupaca Fire Department emergencies, such as house fires or car crashes where smoke could be inhaled.
For other pet emergencies, residents should call a veterinarian or animal hospital.