BURLINGTON - Siri Dayton was prepared. A veterinarian with theBurlington Animal Hospital, Dayton went to the smoldering ruins ofthe World Trade Center last week knowing she would see some severecases of injured rescue dogs.
A graduate of Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine,Dayton served an internship at Boston's renowned Angell MemorialAnimal Hospital, 'which holds me in very good stead for this sort ofthing,' she said en route to joining her Veterinary MedicalAssistance Team in New York.
'Just about the worst of the worst kind of critical cases that youcan see in veterinary medicine came in on my graveyard shift,' Daytonsaid. 'There are some veterinarians who would be potentially a littleintimidated by what you might find, having to go in and amputate aleg in the field or something.'
Dayton has the skills, stomach, and heart for the work. Her owndog, a mixed breed named Ella, arrived in Dayton's care as a puppyabout eight years ago after the dog was severely beaten by its owner.'A neighbor brought her to Tufts,' Dayton said. 'I was the student onintensive care when she came in, and I nursed her through it and tookher home.'
The rescue dogs at work in New York, more than 95 percent of whichare German shepherds, are suffering from a number of maladies as theyhelp sort through the rubble at ground zero.
'Cuts, scrapes, dust, lots of foot injuries and lacerations,broken claws,' said Barry Kellogg, commander of Dayton'sveterinarians and technicians, a support team of the US Public HealthService on the trade center mission.
Kellogg said last week that as far as he knew none of theapproximately 300 dogs on the job had died, but Dayton said someserious problems could surface later. 'You can't put a respirator ona dog,' she said. 'So, I imagine there are going to be some serioushealth problems for these dogs down the line.'
Dayton's is one of four veterinary teams that serve the countryduring presidentially declared disasters. Her team is based in NewEngland, and the others are in Maryland, North Carolina, and SouthernCalifornia, Kellogg said.
Once a disaster has been declared, some team members go inimmediately while others remain on standby to rotate in and relievetheir colleagues as rescue and recovery efforts continue. Dayton wasscheduled to leave home this past Wednesday and stay for about aweek. She could return to New York in November.
'I've had this desire to do some sort of humanitarian aid, andthis seemed like the perfect opportunity to volunteer my time,' saidDayton, who got involved with the team three or four years ago. 'Iwas a very high-end emergency doctor at Angell Memorial, and this isa way of making use of the kind of skill that I have.'
The New England team, consisting of about six each ofveterinarians and veterinary technicians, arrived on the scene withintwo days of the attack. 'We were the closest in proximity and themost appropriate in terms of talent,' Dayton said. 'We happen to havesmall animal veterinarians on the team, which is very different thansome of the other teams that have some large-animal vets. They needsomeone who can go in and take a valuable dog and stabilize it.That's what I do.'
Dehydration is one of the biggest problems for dogs, and they canreceive fluids intravenously, according to Dayton. 'You can also givefluids just under the skin and they get absorbed more slowly,' shesaid. 'If the dog isn't very critical you can do that, and get themready for the next shift that they have to work.'
Leg and foot injuries are common, and pairs of padded dog bootieshave been shipped in by the thousands, according to Kellogg. Thebooties can be worn on flat surfaces but not in the rubble pile,Kellogg said.
Dayton added that without the unencumbered use of their paws tofeel their way around, the dogs can slip and sustain more seriousinjuries than pad lacerations.
Dogs and their handlers work 12-hour shifts, as do theveterinarians.
German shepherds are regarded as best for this type of workbecause they are highly intelligent, strong, durable, and easy totrain. 'They're often difficult to have as pets because they're sohigh-strung,' Dayton said. 'They have so much mental and physicalenergy.' When not working, German shepherds can resemble people wiredon caffeine, Dayton said.
The dogs, whether they are used for rescue or to locate corpses,can suffer from emotional stress and depression. 'They very clearlyknow death,' Dayton said. 'Animals' reactions to seeing people die issomething we couldn't possibly understand, but it's a very powerfulthing. It's really taxing for them.'
Dogs seem to know when things are amiss. The day of the attacks,Sept. 11, someone brought a television into the Burlington hospital.Ella walked from person to person, licking each in the face. 'She wasa mess all day,' Dayton said.
