Remember when the Wilmington Kennel Club donated pet masks to all of the fire departments in New Castle County? That covered upstate, and almost immediately -- in late May 2006 -- there was a benefit when the masks were used by the Minquadale Fire Company to save cats at a house fire.
Earlier this year, the Mispillion Kennel Club partner with the Cat Fanciers' Association to buy pet oxygen masks for every fire company in Kent and Sussex counties. That made Delaware the first state to have the specialized masks -- in small, medium and large -- in every fire station.
Those masks were used Tuesday when the Felton Community Fire Company was dispatched to a two-story house fire near Felton. Cheryl Costello of the Wilmington Kennel Club (that's her in the photo demonstrating the masks) shared this account from Tucker Dempsey, president of the Delaware State Fire Chiefs Association, about what happened next:
"After the fire was knocked down, an unconscious dog was located inside the home. It was covered in soot and barely breathing. Firefighter/EMT Glenn Whitt attempted to revive the pet with a special pet oxygen mask that had been donated recently by the Mispillion Kennel Club" and the Cat Fanciers' Association.
The dog was revived and taken to a vet, but its injuries were too severe and it had to be put too sleep. It's a sad ending, but the dog wouldn't even have had that chance without a pet oxygen mask.
The new goal is to get a set of pet oxygen masks on every firetruck and emergency responder vehicle in Delaware through a program called Adopt-a-Truck. If you're interested in adopting a station or company, or firetruck or emergency vehicle, call Phyllis Roby at 945-6634 or e-mail her at saveourpets@yahoo.com
No comments:
Post a Comment