Animal oxygen masks donated

February 2, 2007

By Nancy H. Gonter

SOUTHAMPTON - A family who owns a boarding and grooming business for dogs and cats is donating oxygen masks for animals to Fire Departments in Southampton, Holyoke, Westfield and Easthampton.

            Fire chiefs in those communities said they welcome the snout-sized masks from Judith Miller Conlin and Michael P. Conlin, owners of Wintergreen Kennels Limited at 10 Douglas Road.

            "I think it's great. Pets are part of the family for a lot of people. If you can do something to save a pet, then do it," said Easthampton Deputy Fire Chief David A. Mottor.

            The Conlins, who have owned the business for 26 years, got the idea for the donation of the sets of masks from their son, Jared D. Conlin, and daughter, Flannery J. Weimer, who work for the kennel full-time.

            The two were at a conference of the American Boarding Kennel Association where they learned about the masks and proposed the idea of the donations to their parents.

            Southampton got one set of three masks, one for large dogs, one for small dogs and one for cats, but Holyoke will get seven sets and three will go to Westfield. Each set costs $75. The masks connect to oxygen through tubing or through a resuscitation bag.

            The donation is a natural extension of their love of animals, the Conlins said.

            "We love the animals. This is what we do. We live and breathe it," Judith Conlin said.

            "With town budgets, this would be a back-burner item. We're giving it to them so they can save animals," Michael Conlin said.

            Holyoke Fire Chief David A. LaFond recalled a fire nearly a year ago in a Center Street apartment building with an elderly tenant who had 11 cats in a first-floor apartment.

            "We had to take a company of firefighters and assign them to rescue the cats. We look at it as life," LaFond said.

            "The cats were in a smoke-filled apartment. We pulled them out one by one. I even helped. I said to get oxygen and started resuscitating them," LaFond said.

            Some of the animals weren't found, but most survived because of the resuscitation efforts, he said.

            Having animal masks "can only make our job easier," LaFond said.

            Westfield Fire Chief Thomas E. Kane said the mask could be helpful when dogs are pulled out from cold water when they fall through ice.

            "We usually go out after them so no one tries to go out there themselves," Kane said.

CUTLINE: (COLOR) Wintergreen Kennels Limited owners Michael P. Conlin and his wife, Judith Miller Conlin, display an oxygen recovery mask for animals yesterday accompanied by their dog, Lincoln. In the background is the Southampton Fire Department, one of the recipients of the masks donated by the Conlins.