In The Aftermath Of A Fire
Veterinary Attention
As soon
as possible—or even during a fire—contact your veterinarian to check every
horse or other animal that might have been exposed to smoke. Even if
the animals were not in the barn, but close by in a pasture, they should
be checked for smoke inhalation.
Very often following
exposure to smoke the horses will seem fine for the first few days after the fire
and won’t show signs of respiratory problems. Then suddenly, they’ll get
an accumulation of fluid in their lungs. If that happens your horse is in
real trouble, and considering that some horses do not fully recover to their pre-fire
condition following smoke inhalation, you’ll want your veterinarian to check your
horses daily until he or she feels they are fully recovered or at least have recovered
to the best level of function they can attain. Recovering from smoke inhalation
can take four to six weeks, during which time your horse should not be asked to
work.
If your horse
has been burned, do not apply any topical burn medication before your veterinarian
arrives because the wrong medication can be harmful. Even if the burn appears
small, it can leave your horse open to bacterial infections, which along with respiratory
damage, can be fatal. Taking care of burns immediately following the fire
must be left to your veterinarian, which is why your veterinarian should be on
the scene as soon as possible. You probably have his or her phone number
near the top of your emergency call list, but if you don’t, post it immediately. Remember
that in the chaos and emotional turmoil of a fire you may not remember your own
phone number—don’t count on remembering your veterinarian’s phone number either.
What Has to be Done Right Away
A barn
fire creates an immediate need for shelter for the remaining animals and
obtaining feed, hay, and bedding. In addition, your fire department
will investigate to determine the cause of the fire, if possible, and may
request assistance from the state Fire Marshal’s Office. If you have
insurance, your insurance company will also want to know the cause, and the
company may send its own investigators to go over the scene. Often
there is such complete destruction that determining a cause is nearly impossible,
and it may be only your recollection of what was going on in the barn before
the fire that may have caused or contributed to the fire, such as using a
portable heater or heat lamp, possible malfunction of other portable appliances,
or previously known mechanical or structural deficiencies that could have
been a cause.
If you
haven’t already done so on the advice of your insurance agent, make a photo
inventory of your entire barn—exterior, too, including the roof. Photograph
every item in your tack room, and if you have boarders, make sure they have
a copy of the photo taken of their equipment. Every horse in the barn
should be photographed with you or their owner if they’re not yours. Store
the dated photos (or CD or DVD) with a copy of receipts attached, in a location
off your property.
You should also
maintain a description and photo of the horse that was in each of the stalls in
case the remains are not recognizable. The description should include height,
weight, bone structure (fine- or big-boned), coat color, and any other attributes
that could identify the horse. One reason for this description is to be able
to truly identify horses that died in the fire to make sure a given horse actually
did die in the fire and was not removed from the premises before the fire. You
can readily see the importance of this determination since a horse that is not
accounted for can indicate a crime may have been committed.
Please take
a few minutes here to read John Dietz’s article, Lessons
Learned from a Barn Fire. He
explains other factors to consider in the immediate aftermath of a fire.
The Possibility of Fraud
People
creating fraudulent schemes are one of the major problems facing anyone who
has had either extremely good luck or extremely bad luck, so we must always
investigate and follow through on situations where we find ourselves asking questions. However, tempting as it may seem to want to "investigate" on our own, investigation of possible criminal activities is best left to fire and law enforcement officials. They know what to look for, what questions to ask, and how to interpret their findings. Insurance investgators are also quite knowledgeable when it comes to causes of fires and possible criminal actions. If you have any doubts or questions about how your fire started, you should, as soon as possible, write a statement for investigators--the state fire marshall, your fire department, your police department or sheriff's office, and any insurance company representatives--telling them all you know about the fire, including such information as who was in the vicinity or actually in the barn at the time the fire started and any unusual behavior on the part of persons in or near the barn. Any information you can provide will assist in determining that the fire had an "accidental" cause, that is, an electrical short circuit or other malfunction, or that the fire was suspicious in origin and needs to be further investigated by the authorities having jurisdiction. No one should profit
from the suffering of others.
Grief Support - for People and Horses
Now that
I’ve written these completely objective words and we can agree on their importance—objectively—we
are faced with overwhelming grief. The emotional impact of a barn fire,
or of any fire involving loss of lives, human or animal, is tremendous. Forget
the rubble of the once-welcoming barn and the task of cleaning up the debris. Buildings
can be replaced and after a time you will be able to replay the good memories
in the theater of your mind.
But this fire
has just happened and you have lost a beloved friend. There are things you
told your horse that you told no one else. If, like me, you were fortunate
enough to grow up able to indulge in being “horse crazy,” there were probably several
horses who helped you through some pretty lousy teen years, and maybe some trying
times later on. There’s something about horses that just fills your
heart and smoothes the rough spots in your life. Didn’t someone say, “If
there are no horses in heaven I don’t want to go there?”
If you are grieving
over your lost friend, or friends, there are places to get support and you should
not be at all ashamed to ask for help. I’ve checked out a few websites—there
are many available—but these can get you started in the healing process:
- The Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement
- Journey Through Pet Loss
- Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) Coping with the Death of Your Pet
- Pets Everlasting
Beth Szillagyi has written a wonderful book, Notes from Rainbow Bridge, which I reviewed on Amazon.com. You’ll probably read this in one sitting and share it with others who need a little sunshine in the gloomy days that follow the loss of a dear animal friend.
And finally, there is an article by Kenneth Marcella, D.V.M. that appeared in the October 2004 issue of DVM Newsmagazine. The title is “Managing Grief Responses” and it’s about how horses grieve and what can be done to help them through the loss of a companion.
A Final Word
Do everything you can to prevent fires from starting, but if a fire starts despite your best efforts at prevention, accept that some things are just beyond our control.
If a
fire starts, try to save as many living beings as you can, but when it’s
too late to save another soul, protect yourself by standing back. Your
life is your most valuable asset. Don’t sacrifice yourself for an animal,
no matter how beloved. No one will blame you for what you couldn’t
do. You mustn’t blame yourself. And keep foremost in your thoughts
that you are not alone in your grief. All of us are here to help each
other.