SCART Shelter Planning

"This comes in the wake of the Ruth Steinert SPCA fire," SCART Coordinator Jay Woodford said Tuesday.

On Jan. 21, fire damaged a modular building at the Ruth Steinert Memorial SPCA in Pine Grove, killing two parrots. Workers managed to get six dogs out of the building and those dogs were taken temporarily to Hillside SPCA, Pottsville.

SCART is sending out questionnaires to kennels, groomers, pet shops, breeders and livestock sites, asking then to answer a series of questions that will help SCART members establish a database.

"We believe if we know ahead of time how many and what kind of animals they have and other information, we will be able to provide more help if an emergency situation should arise," Woodford said.
Woodford said the first wave of questionnaires are almost ready to be sent but it will be an open-ended process. There are about 65 facilities on the current list.

Woodford said SCART has been speaking with the Penn State Cooperative Extension in Schuylkill County which has been providing it with livestock sites in the area.

"When we hear of new places, we will send a questionnaire and we also plan to update those we have on file every year or every other year," he said.

Woodford said one of the questions is about what type of plan the facility has in place in case of emergency.

"I think many of us have a simple plan in place that addresses what we would immediately do in case of emergency, but I know we don't have a thorough plan in place," Dr. Ronald G. Bernhard, Ringtown Valley Veterinary Hospital, said Friday. "Our plan includes taking the animals to a garage at the bottom of the hill, but after that, we need to think about making sure the animals are transported somewhere for continued care, contacting owners and other things."

Bernhard is helping SCART by contacting the other veterinarians in the county, asking them to fill out the questionnaire and return it to SCART.
"I believe the Schuylkill County animal response organization is taking a proactive approach to this and I think they are the first animal response team to look at this situation and I think their program can work as a model in other counties," Bernhard said. "I think this is something no one really thinks about until something happens, and even though it was prompted by the situation at the SPCA, it is good to think about getting a plan in place now before disaster does strike."

Woodford said SCART will assists a facility in getting a contingency plan in place if it does not currently have one.

Bernhard said the Columbia-Montour CART deals with flooding situations, something, in addition to fire, that Schuylkill County must also think about.

Bernhard said the database SCART is compiling will be divided into sections and contingency plans will be developed according to individual needs since what works for a veterinary hospital might not work for a kennel or a shelter.

Woodford said members are not expecting every home with more than one or two animals to register. The group is just trying to be better prepared should tragedy strike.

Anyone not receiving a questionnaire who would like to be a part of the tracking process may call Woodford at 449-1932 or e-mail at jay@schuylkillcart.com.