Red Cross and Penn Vet make Pet First Aid app

The American Red Cross and the School of Veterinary Medicine are bringing a veterinarian to pet owners’ palms.

Released on Jan. 16, Pet First Aid gives users the tools to handle emergency situations and keep their pets from harm. As of Jan. 28, the application had 15,000 downloads.

The application’s main features include 25 common first aid instructions, a nearest hospital and pet hotel locator and how-to videos with CPR techniques.

“[The app] was a great way to get the information out there,” Deborah Mandell, a staff veterinarian and professor in the Vet School, said. “Pets are so critical to families and people don’t want to leave their pets behind.”

The timing was perfect as well, since the CPR guidelines for dogs and cats has just been standardized, she added.

Mandell has been working with the Red Cross since 2006 as a pet care advisor and took a leading role in creating the app. She came up with the idea about a year ago and began working on it last summer.

Related: New app addresses students’ mental health issues

In addition to general first aid guidance, the app allows users to record their pets’ normal health conditions.

The app also encourages people to be active users through its entertainment components. It has quizzes about dogs and cats with badges for getting all of the quiz questions correct. Users can also share these badges alongside their pets’ photos on social media to show how much they have learned.

The app has already received positive feedback, particularly from Red Paw, a nonprofit organization working with the Red Cross to save displaced pets.

Before, the rescue team had to search for nearby hospitals and call the hotels to see if they are open. However, with the hospital and hotel locator, the team saves a considerable amount of time.

Pet First Aid is one of nine mobile apps from the Red Cross that helps people prepare for disasters like tornados and earthquakes and send out warnings. These apps “emphasize the Red Cross’ mission of being prepared for disasters,” Dave Schrader, spokesperson for the American Red Cross of Southeastern Pennsylvania, said.

The app is available on both iTunes and Google Play for 99 cents. The money from the application is donated to the Red Cross.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.