Pulse - October 2021 - 15

UC DAVIS UPDATE
UC Davis Responds to Wildfires
and Other Disasters
Rob Warren, UC Davis VMTH Communications & Marketing Officer
T
he UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM)
has been busy this summer and fall with emergency
responses to wildfires and other environmental disasters.
With the Dixie Fire and Caldor Fire devastating
Northern California, the school has responded with its
Veterinary Emergency Response Team (VERT) and the
Wildlife Disaster Network (WDN). Meanwhile in Southern
California, UC Davis' Oiled Wildlife Care Network
(OWCN) responded to the Toro Canyon Creek oil spill
in Santa Barbara County, where 92 frogs and other animals
were cared for after a natural seepage of oil emerged
from a nearly 150-year-old well.
VERT, WDN, and OWCN-along with the International Animal
Welfare Training Initiative (IAWTI), Veterinary Medical Teaching
Hospital (VMTH), and the emerging California Veterinary
Emergency Team (CVET)-are among a handful of entities the
SVM utilizes to answer the call when California's most vulnerable
animals and communities need help.
While VERT, IAWTI, and the VMTH are almost exclusively
comprised of UC Davis veterinarians and technicians, WDN,
OWCN, and eventually CVET rely on a network of care providers
throughout the state. UC Davis encourages veterinarians and
other trained disaster service workers to become active in these
life-saving programs to help create the most thorough network the
state can offer. More information on all these programs and how to
become an affiliated member can be found on the school's website
at https://response.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/programs
" Please get involved with your local animal care organizations,
wildlife rehabilitation groups, CVMA, or other established programs, "
said Dr. Mike Ziccardi, director of UC Davis' One Health
Institute, which oversees OWCN, WDN, VERT, and is leading the
efforts to form CVET. " Many of these groups are currently part of
the OWCN, and as WDN and CVET evolve, we will be reaching
out to those groups directly to partner for the greater good. "
Veterinarians and other volunteers should also reach out to their
county's Office of Emergency Service, as many will certify disaster
service workers so they can be deployed via established disaster
response groups.
Those interested in helping can also take free online training
courses. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has several
programs related to the Incident Command System used in disasters
and have specific modules for animal-related disasters (https://
training.fema.gov/is). Similarly, the California Specialized Training
Institute (https://csti-ca.csod.com) has state-specific trainings
available, including the system used by California wildfire response.
Finally, veterinarians should work with their clients and the public
to inform them of the importance of disaster preparedness and
PULSE
OCTOBER 2021
UC Davis Veterinary Emergency Response Team tends to an injured chicken at a
Caldor Fire evacuation center.
Oiled Wildlife Care Network cleaned this frog and returned it to nature after
being caught in the Toro Canyon Creek oil spill.
proper planning, including establishing a " go bag " for their pets
that can be grabbed and taken immediately. More information on
this initiative can be found at https://www.ready.gov/pets.
As the fires rage on, VERT and WDN have assessed hundreds of
animals in the fire zones and at evacuation centers and rescue habitats,
including livestock, poultry, waterfowl, parrots, bears, and bobcats. The
VMTH has received 22 animals to date, including pigs, cattle, goats,
chickens, cats, and birds, including a bald eagle evacuated from a refuge
near Lake Tahoe. Their efforts are led by UC Davis faculty and staff,
who tirelessly volunteer their time during disasters. Many times, DVM
students join the efforts, which provides incredible training in disaster
management and the treatment of burns and other severe injuries. P
15
https://response.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/programs https://www.ready.gov/pets http://training.fema.gov/is http://training.fema.gov/is https://csti-ca.csod.com
Pulse - October 2021

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