|
Now you can help The Animal Rescue Site choose
which eligible Petfinder.com animal rescue organizations will receive special funds to help
animals! Voting is simple: just select your Country and (if U.S. or Canada) State/Province. All
other fields are optional and accept partial (but not misspelled or inaccurate) information.
You can cast one vote every
day...
Vote for Tail Wagger's
today!
January 24, 6:52
PM
Examiner.com:
Tail Waggers helps people keep the animals they love - Rev. Claudia Barber
It started as a simple promise to a beloved aunt. Twenty years later Tail
Waggers has grown into an organization devoted to helping people help animals. Instead of
rescuing animals themselves, they help other people rescue animals.
Tail Waggers was begun in honor of Jean Polka, and animal lover, rescuer and all around animal
advocate. She and her husband Ted operated a bar in Detroit for many years and she would often take
in the strays, feed the hungry, spay/neuter the wandering and care for the injured, all using her
own funds.
Before Jean passed away, her niece Laura promised her that she would take care of Jean’s
animals. In order to do so, Laura decided to have a one-time event to raise funds.
That one time event is now the annual Tail Waggers Ball! To further their mission, Tail Waggers has
focused on community needs where pet food assistance, spay/neuter funding, low-cost vaccinations
and emergency services.
Tail Waggers holds vaccine clinics at various locations around the city to help people get their
pets vaccinated and keep them healthy. Their Pet Food Assistance Program is
designed so families’ who are struggling to keep their pets can get food to feed their animals. All
food is donated. For a list of collection spots to donate food, check out the Pet Food Assistance section of Tail Waggers’ website.
Tail Waggers is also working on a Spay/Neuter Program and
Emergency Assistance Program which will provide financial
assistance to families who are in need when a pet is in a crisis. Their goal is to work with
families to offset some of their medical costs or pay for services so that euthanasia can be
avoided.
And finally, there’s Tail Waggers Breath of Life Program. This program donates
specially made oxygen masks for use with dogs and cats to area fire departments. Founder Laura Zain
had a vision three years ago to equip local fire fighters with these masks after hearing about how
Matt Schaecher, a Detroit Firefighter and Tail Waggers board member, had to carry a dog out of a
house fire in Detroit. Schaecher put his own life at risk by using his own oxygen mask to save the
dog and suffered minor lung damage because of it.
Pets are at a greater risk than their owners of suffering smoke inhalation during a home fire
because they hide rather than leave the house. Last year, more than 40,000 family pets died in home
fires across the United States. Mask sets cost $50 each and to date, twenty-nine sets have been
purchased. So far, Tail Waggers had donated these special oxygen masks to fire departments in
Westland, Redford, Garden City and Inkster. Donations can be made specifically to the Breath of
Life Campaign so that Tail Waggers can continue to equip the Fire Departments that are in need.
Tail Waggers is making a difference in the lives of people and the animals they love in the
metro Detroit area. Check their website for information on coming events and ways you can help them
help people and their pets. You can donate online or by mail. Donations are tax-deductible.
For more info: If you need help or know of a family who needs help with their
pets, please contact Tail Waggers by e-mail at tailwaggers.1990@yahoo.com or by phone at
734-560-4660.
January 10,2010
Redford Observer: Pets in peril to get breath of fresh air By Pat Murphy • OBSERVER STAFF WRITER •
For centuries, dogs have been considered man's best friend.
With a little help from Livonia-based Tail Wagger's, firefighters in Redford,
Westland and Garden City are now better equipped to return the favor by helping pets breathe a
little easier.
“I think every firefighter has been called on to rescue a pet,” said Rob Pepper,
EMS director for the Redford Fire Department. Now firefighters might have a better chance of being
successful, he said Friday, when he accepted four sets of oxygen masks for pets. Departments in
Westland and Garden City are also slated to get them courtesy of Tail Waggers.
“Saving lives is our first priority,” fire Chief James Gomulka said. “But after
that, we do what we can for pets.”
Dogs are the most common pet rescued, the chief said. But EMS people are also
called upon to rescue cats, rabbits, parrots, gerbils and other critters.
“Dogs are the easiest to work with,” Pepper said, “but cats don't always
cooperate.”
The cone-shaped animal masks work much like those designed for humans, said
Keith Barthauer, a paramedic with the Westland Fire Department. They fit over the nose and mouth,
he said, and air is forced into the lungs. He and other paramedics won't need special training,
Barthauer said, because the animal masks are so similar to those already in use for humans.
The masks come in three basic sizes: Large for animals weighing more than 35
pounds, medium for smaller animals and small for cats and other critters.
“These masks will be very useful,” said Mandi Coppola, a 2007 graduate of
Churchill High School, who is studying to become a paramedic at the Michigan Academy of Emergency
Services.
Pets can be at greater risk of smoke inhalation than humans, said Laura Zain,
executive director of the local Tail Waggers chapter. “Sometimes they hide,” she said, presumably
because they can't get out of the building. Last year, more than 40,000 pets died in house fires
across the United States, she said.
The masks, made in Michigan, cost about $50 each, Zain said. Tail Waggers was
inspired to buy them after reading about Matt Schaecher, a Detroit firefighter who used his own
oxygen mask to save a dog during a house fire and may have sustained lung damage in doing so.
Funds were raised primarily through the Tail Wagger's Bowl, an annual bowling
fund-raiser. The year's event is Nov. 13 at Woodland Lanes in Livonia.
Posted: 6:51 p.m. January 7, 2010
Unquestionably, these are challenging economic times for many people in Michigan! What’s
often forgotten is that these are tough times for pets, too! We all know that cruelty and
neglect are sad examples of society's ignorance or unwillingness to understand the needs of
the animals with whom we share our homes and communities. But now, with so many people
feeling the stress of a difficult local economy, even well-meaning families are wondering
how they'll continue to feed and care for their animal companions. In an effort to help
people help animals, Norton's Flowers & Gifts has teamed up with TailWaggers to collect
donations of food, toys, litter, stainless steel bowls, pet supply gift cards and whatever
extras you have that might be useful to those people and animals in need.
TailWaggers is a local, 20-year-old, volunteer organization that prides itself on effective
and meaningful work, with 100% of donations being spent on animals in need. Additionally,
all donations made in Washtenaw County are distributed in Washtenaw County! Please show
your compassion with a donation of food, supplies or cash that will help save a cold or
starving animal this winter! On the other hand, if your animals need help, we’d like you to
know how TailWaggers programs can benefit you and your pets. So whether you can afford to
be generous for the benefit of others or whether your animals need help you are unable to
provide, this is a productive and meaningful opportunity to get familiar with TailWaggers.
To learn more about TailWagger’s philosophy, fundraising, and assistance programs, please
feel welcome to visit their website (www.tailwaggersusa.org).
At Norton’s Flowers & Gifts, we are very proud to be the exclusive drop-off/collection
locations for TailWaggers donations in Washtenaw County. If you'd like to contribute any
much-needed supplies to the TailWaggers cause, please drop them off at either of our convenient
locations:
Norton’s Flowers & Gifts
Ypsilanti - 2900 Washtenaw Ave. (1 mile east of US-23)
Ann Arbor - 2577 Jackson Rd. (in Westgate Shopping Center )
Tail Wagger's
is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and your contributions are
tax-deductible.
Local Fire Departments Receives Life-Saving Tool For Pet
Rescue
January, 2010 - When fire strikes, family pets can be injured or die from inhaling smoke.
Because human oxygen masks don’t fit over animals’ snouts, local firefighters and rescue personnel
can’t do much to help them. Until now.
Pet owners in Westland, Redford and Garden City can breathe a little easier - and so can their
pets - because firefighters are receiving sets of specially-designed oxygen masks for use on dogs
and cats - thanks to the generosity of Tail Wagger’s.
The fire department’s newly-acquired masks operate much as human masks do, but are cone-shaped
to fit over an animal’s snout and come in three sizes - large canine mask, small canine mask and
feline. Their design makes them more effective at delivering oxygen to family pets who have
suffered smoke inhalation during a home fire.
Tail Wagger’s heard about the oxygen masks and was able to purchase them primarily due to the
generous donations and support from their recent Tail Wagger’s Bowl - their signature fundraising
event held every November.
Founder Laura Zain had a vision three years ago to equip local fire fighters with these masks
after hearing about how Matt Schaecher, a Detroit Firefighter, had to carry a dog out of a house
fire in Detroit. Schaecher put his own life at risk by using his own oxygen mask to save a dog and
suffered minor lung damage because of it.
Pets are at a greater risk than their owners of suffering smoke inhalation during a home fire
because they hide rather than leave the house. Last year, more than 40,000 family pets died in home
fires across the United States.
More cities can receive the masks if animal lovers step forward to contribute to the Tail
Wagger’s Breath Of Life campaign. Mask sets cost $50 each and to date, twenty-nine sets have been
purchased and will be distributed to neighboring cities in need.
Contributions can be made through www.tailwaggersusa.org or by mail at 27859 Oakley St., Livonia,
MI 48154.
Tail Wagger’s is a 501 (c)(3) Non-Profit Organization, committed to helping people help animals.
It is their ultimate goal to be able to support dedicated pet owners who are in need of assistance
along with providing necessary funding for those animals in emergency situations.
###
|