Mission
Provide equipment, supplies, planning and training to animal response teams in Pennsylvania to respond in the event of an emergency or act of terrorism.
Programs and Services
- It is not IF disaster will strike, it is WHEN disaster strikes, who will take care of the animals?
- When disaster strikes you need to be ready. Emergencies come in many forms such as natural disasters (fire, flood, and tornado) or man-made disasters (gas well explosion, chemical accidents, or terrorist attacks). Animals can be in put in peril due to these situations and require immediate response and need temporary sheltering. Authorities may issue an evacuation which can last several hours, several days or even weeks. Each emergency requires different measures to keep your animals safe.
- In 2004, Pennsylvania adopted the State Animal Response Team (PART) concept to address animal-related disaster response needs. PART was founded to assist government officials in dealing with companion animal and domestic livestock needs during a disaster. County Animal Response Teams (CARTs) are the local first responders for PART.
- Since 2009, a group of volunteers has been serving Washington County's animal emergency needs. The Washington County Animal Response Team, or WaCART for short, consists of a team of volunteers that train for disaster responses involving animals (both large and small animals). WaCART consists of first responders (fire personnel and EMT) and private citizens that work in various professions including safety, business, and marketing fields. Together the expertise and skill sets of both have enabled WaCART to become a resource for the Washington County Emergency Management Office.
- WaCART is deployed for animal emergencies through the Washington County 911 Dispatch or PART Director. Team members are trained in Incident Command System, Hazardous Materials, and various technical rescue and sheltering skills. These trainings enable WaCART to respond to a variety of incidents with companion animals and domestic livestock.
- Since 2009, WaCART has responded to 100 incidents with large and small animals. Each incident the team of highly trained specialists give those animals an opportunity to survive the emergency situation. Our team responds with assistance from local veterinarians to ensure the animals are receiving the most humane care and safety during these emergency responses.
- WaCART has responded to various disaster situations in which animals are in need of assistance including highway accidents, responses to horses stuck in a barn stall, mud and ice, livestock escaped on local roads, and setting up temporary shelters for dogs and cats. WaCART is fully equipped to respond to these large and small animal disaster situations with their response vehicle and two response trailers. The vehicle has equipment to be on scene to handle a single large animal incident. On board is equipment such as a large animal glides, slip sheets, and rope systems. The trailers contain technical equipment for large animal incidents and sheltering supplies for small animal responses.
- Donating to WaCART will provide financial support for the team to maintain our vehicle, response equipment and personal protective equipment for both responders and animals. Thanks to generous donations during the WCCF Day of Giving in 2022, WaCART purchased a micro-chip reader to assist in animal identification, head protectors for horses during emergency responses, and helmets for team members that are on calls.
- With donations from the 2023 Day of Giving, WaCART would like to purchase winter weather coveralls for team members. Of the 100 emergency calls, 57 responses for large animals have occurred during the months of November through February. WaCART would also like to purchase an iPad for use in the vehicle to assist in our response time and communication between team members. Thank you for taking the time to learn about our team and if you have any questions or would like more information about the team, please contact us.
Primary Revenue Sources
Grants
Primary Fundraising Event
Save Your Horse Training
2021 Financials
| Federal Tax ID | 20-2042482 |
| Revenue | 309971 |
| Expenses | 177122 |
| Net Assets | 506664 |
Contact
| Name: | Mark DiNardo |
|---|---|
| Title: | President |
| Email: | dinardoma@aol.com |
| Website: | paanimalresponse.org |
| Phone: | 724-747-4721 |
| Address: |
1310 Elmerton Ave. Harrisburg, PA 17110 |
This website contains an organizational snapshot, as well as links and contact information, for each of our participating charities. We have also included the tax identification number for each charity so Donors wishing to review more detailed financial and governance information may access the Form 990 for that charity via irs.gov.