Dr. Nan Hanshaw-Roberts, a veterinarian with the PA Department of Agriculture, presented a slideshow, lecture and discussion on this initiative at the PFDC Delegates meeting in Kulpsville on June 17, 2004. Her hand-outs (in MS Word format) from the meeting are linked here for your convenience. This effort is patterned after the North Carolina SART, which formed after Hurricane Hugo devestated the state and its agriculture industry a few year ago. It is organized with each County having a CART which ties into the SART. Darin Cox, the delegate from the Obedience Training Class of Harrisburg and member of the PFDC Board, and Melanie Eng, Mt Nittany Dog Training Club, were the PFDC representatives at the summit meeting held in State College, PA on August 10-11, 2004. Darin has been asked to be our point of contact on SART. He is willing to travel to dog club meetings to present more about the PA SART and how we can all get involved. Any dog club that has an emergency plan in place, we would like to take a look at it, and perhaps use parts of it in our contribution to the PA SART.
Dr. Joel Hersh, a retired Epidemiologist from the PA Department of Health, has been named the Executive Director of PA State Animal Response Team. Joel has already begun meetings with a number of County Animal Response Teams, has a template CART plan, has the not-for-profit (501c3) application in process and is looking for office space. Watch for him at a CART meeting near you soon. He can be reached by e-mail here.
On Wednesday, February 16, 2005, Darin Cox presented the PA SART story to the members of the Wilkes-Barre Dog Training Club. There were approximately 25 club members in attendance, along with PA Department of Agiculture Veterinarian Dr. Patricia McQuiston, Luzerne County Emergency Management Agency Director Al Barder and the Luzerne County SPCA President Lorraine Smith. There were a lot of good questions for Darin, Dr. McQuiston, Mr. Barder and Lorraine Smith. Dawn Miklich from the WBDTC reports that a number of members have expressed an interest in getting the Luzurne County Animal Response Team off the ground.
Darin has made presentations to Berks County Kennel Club, Delaware County Kennel Club, Montgomery County 4H, Womens Humane Society, and many other PFDC related organizations. If you would like a presentation to your organization, send Darin Cox a request and he will do his best to get a PA SART representative there.