By Mark Prado
The Marin Independent Journal
SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — The Bay Area’s first animal ambulance was rolled onto Blackie’s Pasture in Tiburon Wednesday for a formal public introduction by WildCare.
Complete with examining table, scale, cages, rubber gloves and medical supplies, the Dodge Sprinter — converted at a cost of $100,000 - will be able to respond to emergencies that affect wildlife, such as oil spills.
“This is about time, and the time it takes to get to a hospital could mean life or death,” said Karen Wilson, executive director of WildCare, a San Rafael-based wildlife rehabilitation center. “Now we can treat immediately. It could save hundreds of lives. This is the first Bay Area mobile ambulance for wildlife.”
It was the Cosco Busan oil spill on Nov. 7, 2007 that prompted talk about the need for the rolling veterinary hospital. WildCare treated 20 percent - about 600 - of all oiled wildlife after that spill.
“While we are extremely proud of our work to help save the wildlife affected by this disaster, we wanted to develop the capacity to do even more,” Wilson said.
The van is designed to treat animals on the spot.
“Everything inside is for local triage,” said Melanie Piazza, the nonprofit agency’s director of animal care. “We won’t keep it stocked until we are ready to go. We have basic kits for a fire scenario or for flood or for an oil spill and so on.”
When the Cosco Busan clipped the Bay Bridge it spilled 53,000 gallons of oil, fouling the bay shoreline and beaches up and down the coast.
The oil affected 50 miles of rocky intertidal habitat, 41 miles of sandy beach habitat, 7.5 miles of salt marsh habitat and 200 acres of eelgrass habitat around the Bay Area. Fort Baker, Rodeo Beach, Kirby Cove, Black Sand Beach, Tennessee Valley and Angel Island beaches were cordoned off as oil washed ashore. More than 1,000 oiled birds were collected alive, while another 2,000 were found dead.
“We could have saved a lot more with this van,” Piazza said.
The van also will be used to respond to more mundane animal emergencies, such as calls for animals stuck in walls, officials said.
“We don’t want it to sit idle. We want to go wherever we can help and that could be outside of Marin too,” Piazza said.
The John and Maria Pitcairn Foundation provided primary funding for the van, along with the San Francisco Foundation and an anonymous donor.
“It sounded like a great idea to us,” said philanthropist John Pitcairn of Ross, as he stood with wife Maria in front of the van. “We are invading the animals’ space and WildCare is dedicated to helping those animals that get pushed out by people.”
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