McKean business owner donates pet oxygen masks to fire departments

Patty Sopp has owned a dog-boarding business in McKean Township since 1978.

Many of the dogs brought to the kennel over the years have arrived as victims of house fires. They are actually the lucky ones.

As many as 150,000 pets nationwide die each year due to smoke inhalation from fires.

Sopp, 61, has heard stories of firefighters, unable to correctly fit oxygen masks designed for humans over the faces of dogs or cats, poking straws through coffee cups to resuscitate pets.

She decided to do something about it, assisting cash-strapped fire departments and ambulance companies that carry oxygen and encounter pets needing help after house fires.

Sopp, through her ownership of Invisible Fence of Erie, began donating pet oxygen masks across the region and in parts of upstate New York during summer. By the end of the year, she'll have donated nearly two dozen pet oxygen kits to area firefighting companies.

The cost, nearly $2,000, is coming out of her pocket.

"It's good to give back. We've been fortunate in our business and have had such good customers," said Sopp, who also owns Country Liv'n Kennels with her husband, Bill.

"So many times an animal will wake someone up because they're the first to notice something is wrong," she said. "When a dog alerts their owner of a fire, it saves lives. So if we can do something to save those pets, we will."

Sopp has donated pet oxygen kits to fire departments in Erie, Corry, Harborcreek Township, Meadville, and Kennedy, N.Y.

On Dec. 13, she'll donate eight masks to fire companies in Millcreek Township.

"I've got 200 fire departments on my list that I'd like to donate to in the next year or so," Sopp said.

She said fire departments and ambulance companies can go to www.invisiblefence.com under Project Breathe to request donations of pet oxygen masks. If the companies are not in the Erie region, those requests would be forwarded to an Invisible Fence dealer in their area.

"These masks have allowed us to become more efficient in providing help to animals," said Erie Fire Chief Tony Pol. Soppy donated masks for six Erie firetrucks on Oct. 21.

"We've trained all our personnel on how to use the masks," Pol said. "They'll be very important when our firefighters rescue pets."

The pet oxygen masks come in small, medium and large sizes.

"You can put smaller animals inside the large mask to resuscitate," said Christopher Spare, marketing director for Invisible Fence of Erie. "Like pet birds, pet gerbils. They work great."


Source:  GoErie.com