BART Curriculum Gains National Approval

On March 3, 2008 the Federal Emergency Management Agency/US Department of Homeland Security (FEMA/DHS) approved the curriculum for the Basic Animal Rescue Training (BART) Small Animal Basic Life Support course. Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management approved the course for delivery in Minnesota in 2007 and assisted the Basic Animal Rescue Training organization with the FEMA course approval application process. FEMA approval makes the BART class a national standard course for training first responders in safe pet handling and rescue on the scene of emergencies. FEMA approval also makes BART and departments we train eligible for federal funding to help cover the costs of holding classes.

Why did BART pursue FEMA approval? BART has received training requests from over 30 states and is pursuing national expansion. The American Veterinary Medical Foundation has granted BART $50,000 in matching funds to aid our expansion to 5 new states. As an almost completely volunteer organization, BART realizes our Minnesota trainers cannot personally train all the first responders in the nation. We needed a way to standardize our course and FEMA provided the route. BART was able to require that our course can only be taught in other states when the State Veterinary Medical Association and Board of Veterinary Medicine approve, and that the trainers have to be in the veterinary profession and certified by BART to teach our class. This will ensure that the course continues to meet our high standards, no matter where it is taught. BART plans to travel to other states to hold Train the Trainer classes and teach veterinary volunteers how to deliver the BART courses.

For the full story on FEMA approval, see the March 2008 Special Edition of BART’s newsletter The Siren.

For more information and an application for bringing BART to your state, click here.

Posted: April 11, 2008 at 3:23 am · Filed under Announcements, General

Puppy Saved from Hudson Home Fire

Mary Ann Land
On November 7th, 2007, St Croix EMS Chief Eric Christensen arrived at a fully engulfed house fire in Hudson, Wisconsin and was handed a lethargic, burned puppy that had been pulled from the flames. Remembering his BART training, Eric checked the puppy’s vital signs and bundled the wet and cold animal into a blanket, placing him in his vehicle to protect him from the freezing weather. Eric then used the equipment in his BART emergency medical kit to treat the puppy’s second-degree burns and administer oxygen, until the pet could be transported to a local veterinarian. The puppy’s owners were injured in the fire and had been taken to the hospital.

“After BART training, I was confident on my assessment of the puppy whereas in the past I was not sure of what to do.”- Chief Eric Christensen, St Croix EMS

The puppy revived considerably due to Eric’s care on the scene and was alert and responsive when Kathi Pelner, the Animal Warden for the Hudson area, arrived in response to Eric’s call. Kathi transported the puppy from the home fire to veterinarian Dr. Nelson in North Hudson. Dr. Nelson declared the puppy’s lungs clear of smoke inhalation, and provided further treatment for his burns.

Eric did an excellent job in assessing and stabilizing this dog, even though it was his first time doing Basic Animal Rescue. He also knew where to get further help, which is an important goal of BART training. Kathi attended the BART training in Hudson and the relationships developed from that class helped make this rescue a smooth team effort.

What happened next? Kathi took the puppy to the Woodbury Humane Society for sheltering until his owners could take him home. Kim Barrett, manager of the Woodbury Humane Society, received the puppy. Kim is not only a dedicated veterinary technician, she’s also one of our BART volunteers who trained St. Croix EMS! She was very proud to learn that this puppy was rescued by people she had helped train. She taught the pet assessment and first aid station with her dog Hunter, who sadly passed on soon afterwards. Kim has fond memories of her time with Hunter at the Hudson training.

This success and rescue would not be possible without the generous support of our donors. Dr. Brenda Bray of the Animal Care Center of Hudson was kind enough to donate the full cost of training the St Croix EMS department. Dr. Bray also came to the training to meet her local first responders, observe the class, and be an ambassador from the Hudson veterinary community. We can’t thank her enough for making this training possible!

The St Croix EMS BART training empowered and equipped Eric, Kathi and Kim to do what was needed for this puppy to be saved. Stories like these show that the BART mission works, one community at a time.

View the WCCO news video now.

View the FOX news video now.

Posted: December 26, 2007 at 11:32 pm · Filed under General, Rescue Stories

Fundraising Competition at Argosy University Benefits BART

BART President and Founder Dr Janet Olson got a nice surprise when she opened the BART mail last week - an unexpected $500 donation to the program, courtesy of some of the students and staff of Argosy University. During National Vet Tech week in October, Veterinary Technician instructor Tracey Kitching and her students raised $500 to donate to BART by selling Ozark Lollipops for 50 cents each, for a total of about 2000 suckers! They had a booth set up in the atrium at Argosy and made it a competition with rewards for different levels of accomplishment, such as different pieces of clothing and an IPOD as the Grand Prize for the most dollars raised.

Tracey first heard about BART from a student last year, and immediately set out to learn more and help spread word of the program to the Argosy veterinary technician students. She invited BART along with the Minnesota Veterinary Reserve Corps and Veterinary Medical Assistance Team - 5 (VMAT-5) representatives to come give an informational presentation at Argosy University on all three animal emergency preparedness programs and how veterinary technicians and students can become involved. This presentation was well received at the Student Chapter of the National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America meeting in February 2007.

Following the presentation Tracey asked if she could help BART in any other way, just as BART was trying to figure out where to hold Train the Trainer classes for our new volunteers. Tracey asked Argosy to let BART use a room, and two BART training classes were held there on April 2nd and April 9th. About 60 people attended including several Argosy students.

Tracey says she loves the quality of the instructors at Argosy University. There are 8 full time and 18 part time Veterinary Technicians, as well as 2 full time and 6 part time Veterinarians that teach at the school. About 450 students per semester attend Argosy, and the curriculum provides them great opportunities for hands on learning with about 100 animals. They have 30 dog kennels and 22 cat facilities along with room for rabbits, guinea pigs, rats, ferrets, and even degues, a South American rodent - think of a big mouse with a different kind of fur and a fluffy tail, that Tracey says can move really fast!

Tracey is an inspiring example of a volunteer who finds great ways to help BART outside of being a trainer. She has a very full schedule - in addition to teaching, she attends school part time for her Master’s degree in Education. She also stays busy curling with her girls, hanging out with her Bassett Hound, Amazon parrot, cat and Whippet- and even once in a while with her mathematician husband Gary, in between all of their activities and school!

Thank you Tracey, and all of the Argosy students involved, for sponsoring such a great fundraiser for BART!

Posted: November 24, 2007 at 9:04 am · Filed under Featured Donors, General

BART Receives Grant for National Expansion

Basic Animal Rescue Training has been awarded a $50,000 matching grant from the American Veterinary Medical Foundation (AVMF) to be used toward expanding the training program beyond Minnesota and starting chapters in 5 new states. This money will be used toward purchasing training equipment and holding Train the Trainer classes for new BART volunteers in chapters outside of Minnesota.

BART requested financial assistance from the AVMF for national expansion in response to interest from multiple states in starting the training there. People in twenty five states have contacted BART thus far.

To date, this AVMF grant is the largest amount of funds donated to BART. Dr. Anna van Heeckeren, chair of the AVMF Grants and Awards Committee, said the caliber of BART’s written national expansion proposal was stellar. “They obviously put a lot of effort into thinking about the program and how to put that across on paper,” she said.

The $50,000 grant to BART is one of the highest amounts of money that the AVMF has awarded from its Animal Disaster Relief and Response Fund, aside from the grants provided to the AVMA Veterinary Medical Assistance Teams.

To learn more about starting a BART chapter and how to apply for the AVMF matching funding, contact us or call 612 282 2608.

Read the related story in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association

Posted: July 14, 2007 at 3:52 pm · Filed under Announcements, General

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