r/ems • u/CatnipOverdose EMT-B • Oct 16 '24
Defib the ambulance welfare cat needs your help!
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u/FlamingoMedic89 EMT-B Oct 16 '24
Cats help with mice. Win They help with mental wellbeing. Win
Heck. The cat is very important.
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u/CatnipOverdose EMT-B Oct 16 '24 edited Oct 16 '24
Curious as to peoples thoughts on this. Apparently they are trying to evict the NHS ambulance cat 😿
Theoretically it is because of "hygiene concerns". but a) cats are insanely clean (to the point of being one of the few animals considered ritually pure in Islam) and b) as OOP discusses, there is a therapy dog that lives there anyway so why not a cat?
Perhaps the cat is becoming incontinent or less clean in his old age, or maybe an employee is allergic?
Anyway, if you're opposed to his eviction, you should sign this petition so our friends across the pond can continue getting the mental health support they desperately need with the constant austerity and cuts to the NHS :(
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u/Renovatio_ Oct 16 '24
I don't think the cleanliness argument is worth going down. Using a religious opinion is a losing argument. All you can really say is that they would be no more "dirty" than a dog.
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u/CatnipOverdose EMT-B Oct 16 '24
Not trying to use it as an argument, really - just pointing out an interesting fact. They do clean with their tongues after all, so can't be that clean! (I remain unapologetically in favor of keeping Defib around though.)
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u/spicybright MA EMT Oct 16 '24
I get where you're coming from, but you could get a million signatures and it won't do jack shit.
Best option is to beef up on policies, following them to the letter, and leverage them to your advantage.
Talk to a coordinator of the therapy dog program and see what they think of the situation. There's probably a process of getting an animal "certified", and cats aren't uncommon for therapy animals.
Dig through your company policy manual, state+national regulations on how service animals work. It sucks that it's so complicated but if you can find a avenue management will be forced to comply.
And like they said in basic, "document document document". Save all the emails and texts about it in a convenient form. Log when, where, and what was said in conversations with superiors.
If you cross your T's and dot your I's, it's not uncommon for them to back down because it's too much work to argue otherwise.
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Oct 16 '24
It’s like certain people In management wake up and think to themselves “what’s a unique way I can damage morale among the service today?”.
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u/peekachou EAA Oct 16 '24
I'm so glad this is getting decent support. Even our local hospital (UK as well) had its own a&e cat called Stanley! He got a plaque put up in his honour when he died a few years ago
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u/spectral_visitor Paramedic Oct 16 '24
We have an unofficial kitty that rolls up to our station and meows at the door until fed. Occasionally sneaks into the station and demands pets.
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u/CaptAsshat_Savvy FP-C Oct 16 '24
Signed and donated. Save the damn cat. The pictures alone show that people are willing to invest time and love into that.
That little cat garden with the mural. Thats amazing.
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u/Adrunkopossem Oct 16 '24
I think station / ambulance cats should be more common. Cuddle a kitty after a rough call. I'm of the opinion that if an animal has been at the station longer than some staff members it's part of the soul of that station. Call me weird but that would be something I might resign over (as long as I can get a different job lined up first).
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u/Fabulous_Internet_34 Oct 17 '24
Success! Our CEO has made the announcement that Defib is staying! ❤️
https://x.com/danielelkeles/status/1846847220202528901?s=46&t=v30WtuooY4Xyp8seaKIv1Q
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u/vengefulbeavergod Oct 16 '24
I'll bet Larry, the cat at No. 10 Downing might have something to say about this
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u/EquivalentFlat Oct 21 '24
Good I'm glad Defib got to stay! Uprooting a cat after so long wouldn't be right.
Best read all day!
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u/SylasDevale Oct 16 '24
Scummy management being scummy management. Leave the cat alone.