Parenting Pointers: Pet Emergency Kit

I recently had the chance to interview Dr. Deborah Mandell to learn some lifesaving tips on how to keep pets safe. She spoke about a pet emergency kit, pet CPR, what foods are toxic for your furry friends. She was joined by Laura Howe of the American Red Cross to talk about the new Pet First Aid App.

Deborah Mandell, VMD, is a Staff Veterinarian at Penn Vet’s Ryan Hospital in Philadelphia, PA, where she specializes in Emergency Medicine and serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Critical Care. She is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care and has authored numerous book chapters on critical care, including several on ophthalmic emergencies.

Dr. Mandell received her bachelor’s degree from Cook College of Rutgers University, graduating summa cum laude, and her VMD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet). In 1997, she completed a small-animal internship and residency in Emergency and Critical Care at Penn Vet’s Ryan Hospital. In 1998, Dr. Mandell worked in the Intensive Care Unit of the VCA Veterinary Referral Associates in Gaithersburg, MD. She returned to Ryan Hospital in 2001. Since 2007, Dr. Mandell has served as the American Red Cross’ National Pet Care Advisor. She contributed to the Red Cross’ Dog First Aid and Cat First Aid Guides, which won the Mom’s Choice Award in 2009. Dr. Mandell currently resides in Newtown, PA with her husband, who is also a veterinarian, along with their three sons and three rescue dogs.

 

Laura Howe is responsible for public relations and overall corporate media strategies for the Red Cross. She serves as one of the primary Red Cross spokespeople and oversees day-to-day corporate media relations and crisis communications efforts. In addition, she manages specialized communication teams for disaster services, international services, biomedical services, services to Armed Forces, social media and chapter operations. Laura also manages the team responsible for all Red Cross social media efforts and has led the organization’s effort to use of social media as means to get information to disaster victims. She often appears at conferences and on panels promoting the use of social media during disasters. She also spent eight years as a television news reporter and anchor and now frequently provides interviews on behalf of the Red Cross for national media outlets such as The New York Times, USA Today CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and The Weather Channel.