Beginning this week, Cranbrook Fire & Emergency Services will begin carrying three O2 Fur Life pet oxygen kits on their first responder vehicles, thanks to a generous donation by One of the Family Pet Care Centre.

Firefighters have been trained on the kits, which allow pets involved in smoky fires to receive immediate oxygen therapy on scene, to combat poisonous carbon monoxide and greatly increase their chances of survival. Each kit comes with three sizes of masks to get the best fit for the animal, whether it is a dog or cat. The orange bag can also be used to restrain cats to pull them out of dangerous situations and not get scratched and to administer oxygen.

“In the past we have on occasion needed to use our own oxygen masks,” says Jack Magro of Cranbrook Fire & Emergency Services. “Now we can provide pets involved in a fire with a more efficient supply of oxygen, when it’s needed. This is a great kit and we thank Gary and Sharon for their generous donation.” One of the Family Pet Care Centre has donated a total 15 O2 Fur Life kits to all the fire departments in the region including three for the City of Cranbrook department.

“We first heard about these oxygen kits after watching a program from Ontario,” says Gary Marasco, owner of One of the Family Pet Care Centre. “We were able to get a number of kits here and donate them to the various departments in the region to use.”

Cranbrook Fire & Emergency Services will begin tracking the usage of the kits to determine how often the kits are used.

Photo cutline:  (Left to right) Sharon Marasco, owner One Of The Family Pet Care Centre; Captain Jack Magro, Cranbrook Fire & Emergency Services; Vinnie, Matt Carson, Cranbrook Fire & Emergency Services; Gary Marasco, owner One Of The Family Pet Care Centre.

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