Emergency Animal Response Service(EARS)

All About EARS...

 The Emergency Animal Response Service (EARS) was formed based on similar efforts undertaken where specialized teams dedicated to animals in disasters has proven vital to the community. In just the last two years alone, our state has witnessed record snowfalls, devastating floods, back-to-back hurricanes and nor'easter storms, and other severe weather which has emphasized the need for coordinated animal response action. While others have tried to organize enough to do this, the efforts have all fallen short, and the risk of disasters in our area is increasing. 

In the event of large-scale disasters, state and local emergency services and relief organizations must primarily focus on the needs of the human population, which can result in leaving animals in dangerous and often fatal situations. Members of EARS have the specialized expertise, knowledge, training, and resources in both animal and emergency response fields to provide a dedicated focus on animals in need during disasters. By working with local Emergency Managers or jurisdictional authorities, EARS can effectively take charge of animal rescue operations during a disaster, relieving emergency services to focus on other community response needs. 

When called to action, the EARS team will respond with established disaster response plans for providing evacuation, rescue, sheltering, and relief for animals. This will all be done through the effective development of a network that can work seamlessly with both local emergency services as well individuals who need animal assistance in disaster scenarios, particularly in those situations which may challenge local responders’ ability to provide specific emergency services. EARS will also assist residents in relocation and sheltering of animals from areas under evacuation orders, conduct Search And Rescue operations in disaster areas and recover located animals to a safe location, provide extraction of animals from situations where specialized rescue skills are required, and additional objectives. 

When not activated EARS will focus on community outreach, training, and preparedness. These are aspects that any individual can be involved with, even those with no training in emergency response, animal rescue, or animal handling. A primary focus in this will be on education on animal response issues for schools, community groups, and businesses. This will help ensure that in emergencies there is accurate information regarding animal issues being distributed to the communities, and assistance is available where needed and that preparedness, planning, and response for animals in disaster situations is present and understood.