Art Cordell of Furry Friends Therapy Dogs Inc., places one of the Coos Bay Fire Department’s new animal oxygen masks on his 6-year-old collie, Tut, outside Fire Station 1 on Tuesday. -World Photo by Alex Powers

What about the dog?

In house and apartment fire, people often scramble out safely. Often it’s pets that are the victims of smoke inhalation. The local group Furry Friends Therapy Dogs Inc. is donating equipment to help firefighters aid those pets. Furry Friends donated a set of elongated oxygen masks in three sizes that can be used to help resuscitate animals pulled from fires.

“We’re all dog people, and are interested in benefiting dog safety,” Furry Friends President Connie Hare said. “We’re really thrilled to be able to do this.”

The masks are used to supply animals with pure oxygen, which Coos Bay Fire Chief Stan Gibson said could mean the difference between life or death for dogs and cats pulled from structure fires.

“The quicker you can get an animal 100 percent oh-two, the better it is for them,” he said. “This will really help the survival rate of an animal that has been exposed to smoke.”

The masks cost $75 for a set, and Furry Friends is trying to raise funds to supply other local fire departments with the equipment.

“The whole county is our long term goal,” Hare said.