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Copyright 2006 The Columbus Dispatch
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Critters saved after people rescued, risks weighed
By DANA WILSON
The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio)
They don’t like to advertise it, but firefighters and paramedics often rescue four-legged friends in the course of their duties.
They’ve heard the same frantic plea many times after rescuing people from burning houses: “Can you save my pets?”
“I’ve made the decision in both directions,” said Rob Farmer, Delaware County’s EMS supervisor. “I’ve transported pets, but I’ve left pets behind as well.”
Emergency workers put people first but, when possible, they try to save dogs, cats and other critters caught in disasters.
They understand that many people see their pets as children.
“I’ve had runs where people have called up saying, ‘My baby’s hurt!’ and you get there and it’s a dog,” said Lt. William Piwtorak, of the Liberty Township Fire Department in Delaware County.
Like children, panicked pets often crawl into closets and hide behind furniture when a fire breaks out.
Generally, firefighters make every attempt to rescue them but won’t risk their lives to do it, said Mark Horton, of the Ohio Association of Professional Fire Fighters.
“If you’re involved in firefighting and everyone’s tied up, then those things have to wait,” Horton said. “We’re not going to put a pet in an ambulance.”
Still, he said, most rescuers are empathetic. A veteran firefighter in the Cleveland suburb of Elyria, Horton is proud to have pulled birds, turtles, hamsters and even fish to safety.
“All these animals are very important to people. They’re members of the family.”
Battalion Chief Doug Smith, of the Columbus Division of Fire, said his crews have encountered their share of pets over the years. They’ve gone as far as performing CPR on cats and dogs.
“Their anatomy is a little smaller so it gives our medics good training,” Smith said.
His department and others don’t hesitate to treat animals for smoke inhalation.
Delaware County’s emergency teams recently received a donation of two oxygen masks designed to fit over snouts. It’s not something Farmer would have considered buying, but the masks will be put to good use, he said.
For departments that can’t afford such equipment, pediatric oxygen masks work just as well.
“It’s nice to have that available to you,” said Capt. Jack Wortz, of the Tri-Township Fire Department in Delaware County. He once pulled 16 cats from a burning house.
“There were two rooms on fire,” he said. "(The cats) sounded like people screaming. . . . There was a few of them that didn’t make it, but quite a few did.”
Rich Bednarski, director of Ohio State University’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital, said police and humane officers occasionally bring in rescued animals.
“We’ve seen everything from severe burns to animals that have just been through smoke inhalation and need some time with oxygen therapy,” Bednarski said.
But, he added, “You can’t save everything.”
In those cases, a social worker trained in pet bereavement helps owners deal with grief.