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FRISKY PEBBLE, THE beagle, helped Kelly Stancato and Peotone firefighters demonstrate the new pet oxygen mask donated recently by Invisible Fence of Chicagoland. The company, whose innovative ''fence'' system keeps dogs safe in their own front yards, has been donating the $60 oxygen mask sets to midwest first responders since 2006. photo by Karen Haave
Donation of pet oxygen recovery masks  Share
Animal lovers in Peotone Fire Protection District Ð and their pets Ð can breathe a little easier, courtesy of a donation of pet oxygen recovery masks from Invisible Fence. The innovative fencing company, which helps train and protect dogs by keeping them within the safe boundaries of their own yards, donated the masks last week. Two $60 kits, containing pet masks in small, medium and large sizes were accepted by members of the PFPD staff. Although statistics are sketchy, animal safety groups estimate that some 40,000 pets perished in fires in 2006. ''And as many as 500,000 pets are affected by home fires,'' said Kelly Stancato, pet consultant with Invisible Fence. ''We were following the statistics, and when we heard about this, we wanted to make a difference,'' Stancato said.
''We are extremely happy to be able to be doing this, to be able to make it possible to save pets who are affected by fires. ''And we think they (the masks) will help stop people from running back into (a burning building) to rescue pets,'' she added. Peotone Fire Department staff last week participated in the training session for use of the specially-designed oxygen masks made by SurgiVet of Waukesha, WI. Participating were Lt. Randy Sterling and Firefighter/Paramedics Jay Young, Emily Wortman, Matt Sutkus, Tom Oliver and Scott Vrabel. Stancato demonstrated how the masks are used, with the help of her furry ''assistant,'' Pebbles the Beagle, from the Animal Welfare League. She told the group that ''it takes about 15 to 20 minutes to bring an animal back to consciousness.'' Scott Vrabel, the fire department's public education officer, noted that most pets lost in fires are victims of smoke inhalation. ''Three or four years ago, we had a fire...and we pulled out five or six mastiffs. We just took our face masks and used them,'' he said, adding that many other mastiffs on the breeding farm had already perished because of smoke and heat. Vrabel said the fire department has oxygen masks designed for the human face, and while they do sometimes help resuscitate an animal, they don't fit as well and are not always as effective. So the Invisible Fence donation of pet oxygen masks are a welcome addition to fire protection and rescue equipment, he said. ''We don't have to pull pets out very often, but it does happen,'' he said. ''So we're very happy to have this new equipment.'' The kits will be stored on two of the department's fire trucks. Invisible Fence has been donating the kits to first responders since 2006, and 10 pets in the midwest have been saved as a result. For more information about the Invisible Fence Brand animal recovery mask program, contact Kristin Rogers, donation coordinator, at 440-729-1780, extension 126, or go to krogers@ifco-igb.com. And if anyone is interested in adopting Pebbles (just a temporary name, Stancato said, ''because she didn't really have a name and she needed one''), she is seven years old, very friendly and playful. She is available at animalwelfareleague.com. Karen Haave is a reporter for Russell Publications.
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