Animal rescuing in Finland and abroad

When you go outside, you can hear young birds loudly claiming for food from their mother, and you can see small leverets sitting quietly still and trying to be as invisible as possible. Nature is full of life.

In addition, that forests and yards are full of new life, spring and summer are the busiest time of the year for animal rescuers. Throughout history, fire and rescue workers have been involved in rescuing animals in Finland. It is justified because rescue staff have practical experience on diverse rescue operations, they have specialised equipment and the knowledge how to ensure the safety of both animals and rescuers.

At the moment we have four specialised animal ambulances in Finland. The fifth one is coming to Kymenlaakso rescue department this year. Five ambulances specialised in animal rescue cases in the whole country sounds quite a small amount especially if you compare the number of ambulances for example in the Netherlands, they have almost 250 specialised ambulances. In the Netherlands they have specialised organisations and professional and volunteer workers who are responsible for rescuing animals. On the other hand, if you compare the number of animal rescue cases between Finland and the Netherlands, there is a huge difference. In Finland, we had 2380 cases in 2017, and just in Amsterdam they had over 12.000 cases.

Partly differences can be explained by population density and also by lack of wild nature in the district of Amsterdam. But still, the biggest factor might have something to do with the attitude and culture. The attitude towards animals is different and they are always trying to do everything to save and cure the animal, whether it is a pet or a wild animal.

Peltacos animal rescue project

Peltacos animal rescue project started in 2011 with fire chief Vesa Nurminen from Helsinki Fire Station. During this project, we developed almost 40 different products, which are still being used around Finland in fire stations and volunteer fire departments. The project culminated in autumn 2014 when a guidebook about animal rescuing was published.

This spring, 2018, our animal rescue project has woken up again when we started a piloting project in the Netherlands with the animal rescuing professionals in Amsterdam and Den Haag. We launched a new special product package which is designed for animal rescue ambulances and other professional rescuers. The package includes some of our familiar animal rescue products, but it also includes some totally new innovations. The piloting project lasts until the end of this summer, and we will report about the results during autumn.

Although the project is still going on I would like to say many thanks to all of you who have made this project possible.