TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Breathe, Fido, Just Breathe

ADVERTISEMENT

By KEITH MORELLI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 11, 2008

TAMPA - Kirsten Simenson's fourth-grade class at FishHawk Creek Elementary School has embarked on a pet project that is just purr-fect for emergency workers who have to resuscitate smoke-filled animals.

The first responsibility of firefighters, naturally, is to rescue humans from burning buildings and vehicles. They also want to preserve the lives of pets. In the past, it hasn't been easy getting oxygen to the lungs of dogs and cats. After all, face masks are called face masks for a reason. They are not snout masks.

Simenson's class wanted to make a difference. So students researched smoke inhalation and its effect on pets. They discovered there are oxygen masks for dogs and cats.

This morning, the class presented masks to Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Chief Bill Nesmith, Chief Todd Carnell and an engine company that tagged along.

The idea of delivering oxygen to pets overcome by smoke is not entirely new. Veterinarians long have used masks to give pets anesthetics before surgery, and the same basic design was used in masks now used by fire departments across the country, according to PetEducation.com.

The trend started in Florida four years ago, according to a post on the Web site, when the death of a pet dog from smoke inhalation sparked an effort to equip fire departments with animal masks.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT