Thanks to Invisible Fence and the Pet and Wildlife Rescue (P.A.W.R.), 19 fire trucks in Chatham-Kent will now be equipped with pet oxygen masks.
Gayle Bailey of Invisible Fence donated the 19 mask packages – one for a truck from each fire station in Chatham-Kent – Friday at Station 1 in Chatham. She said the donations come from Project Breathe, a program put on by Invisible Fence to help outfit firefighters with better means to resuscitate pets overcome by smoke.
“Every year at least 40,000 pets die in North America due to fire,” she said. “We’re just a drop in the bucket, but we’re trying to do our part.”
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So far, six dozen of the kits have been handed over to fire departments across this part of the province.
“We have donated 72 kits to 43 fire stations in greater southwestern Ontario,” Bailey said. “These are surgical grade.”
Myriam Armstrong of P.A.W.R. said the group initially came up with the idea to fundraise to pay for the oxygen masks and approached Invisible Fence for support.
“We decided to raise funds to pay for the masks. Gayle jumped on board and asked that we continue raising money and donate to the Farley Foundation,” she said.
Bailey and Invisible Fence stepped up to cover the full costs under Project Breathe. On Friday, P.A.W.R. gave $1,000 to the Farley Foundation, which was established in 2002 by the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association to assist people in need by subsidizing the cost of veterinary care for sick or injured pets.
Ric Scharf, an assistant fire chief for CKFD, said the department appreciates the pet masks donation, adding one unit will be placed on the main pumper truck at each station in Chatham-Kent.
Bailey showed Scharf that the kit also comes with a leash, something she advised using.
“You may want to put this on the pet before you resuscitate him. He may wake up a bit skittish,” she said.
