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There are no recent, nationally compiled statistics on house fires in Canada and no data on resulting pet fatalities.
However, there were 10,733 fires resulting in injury, death or dollar losses in Ontario alone, in 2013.
Considering that almost half of Canadians own at least one pet, it is fair to assume that hundreds, if not thousands, of cats, dogs, birds and other animals die in fires every year.
Firefighters who manage to rescue the furry or feathered inhabitants of a home will often do their best to revive them and treat them for smoke inhalation, but they are not always successful.
A gift, a chance
Now, pets in Sydney and Sydney River, Nova Scotia, have a better chance of pulling through.
The family and friends of a local area resident and longtime volunteer firefighter who passed away in June raised money to give fire departments four reusable oxygen masks specially designed to fit animals.
They plan on continuing to sollicit donations in order to buy all the city’s fire departments some masks.
Project Breathe
Animal rescue kits have been added to firefighters’ arsenal in other Canadian municipalities as part of “Project Breathe”, a donation program by an American pet safety company.
The Invisible Fence Brand’s goal is for every fire station and rescue unit in Canada and the United States to be equiped with pet oxygen masks.
Fire departments are eligible to receive one kit per station — all they have to do is fill out a request form.
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