First responders with Trent Lakes Fire Rescue are now equipped to save the lives of family pets affected by household fires.
Invisible Fence Brand of South East Ontario has donated four pet oxygen mask kits to the department, and also provided personnel with pet-saving tips including pet first aid and CPR.
“When a family suffers the tragedy of a fire, lives are turned upside down,” says Ed Hoyt, Director of Invisible Fence Brand. “Pets are valued family members, so we want families to know that their pet can be cared for if tragedy strikes.”
It’s estimated that between 40,000 and 150,000 pets perish in fires each year, most succumbing to smoke inhalation. Because emergency services are designed to help people, first responders are generally not equipped to deal with animal victims of fires.
The pet oxygen mask kits — each kit contains a small, medium, and large mask — allow emergency services personnel to give oxygen to pets who are suffering from smoke inhalation after being rescued from a fire.
The Trent Lakes donation is part of Invisible Fence Brand’s “Project Breathe” program, which has the goal of equipping every fire station in the U.S. and Canada with pet oxygen masks. Since the company established the Project Breathe program in 2007, it has donated more than 15,000 pet oxygen masks to fire stations all over the U.S. and Canada, saving an estimated 170 pets.
In 2008, Invisible Fence Brand of South East Ontario donated pet oxygen masks to Peterborough Fire Services and, in 2012, to the Humane Society of Kawartha Lakes.
“We realize that humans are the first priority, but in many cases, pets can be saved if firefighters have the right equipment,” Hoyt says. “Project Breathe is simply a way of giving firefighters the tools necessary to save pets’ lives.”
Based out of Tennessee with 289 dealerships across seven countries, Invisible Fence Brand produces electronic containment systems to keep pets out of harm’s way and prevent unwanted behaviors throughout both the home and yard.
For more information about Invisible Fence Brand’s Project Breathe program, visit www.invisiblefence.com/O2. Local fire personnel can also visit the website to make a request for their own departments.
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