Water Safety for Pets

Sound an alarm!

The Safety Turtle® pool alarm system, created originally to alert parents
when their children fall into the water, has a new line for dogs and cats.
The system includes a Turtle that fits any pet collar and a base unit
that sounds the alarm the moment the Turtle is immersed. The base unit
works with any number of Turtles. Use around a pool or on a boat.

Educational material is attached. Images available on request.

Contact:
Bob Lyons

Terrapin Communications Inc.
4017 Carling Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K2K 2A3
613-271-0050
613-271-3007 [fax]
www.safetyturtle.com

Safety Turtle breaks ground in pet drowning prevention

Water safety alarm originally created for children now adapted for pets
and adopted by pet owners

Ottawa, ON – Terrapin Communications, maker of Safety Turtle, today
announced the start of a pet drowning prevention campaign. The lockable
Turtle wristband was introduced in 1998 as a last layer of protection of
young children against aquatic injury. By popular demand, a Turtle visor
for seniors in aquatic physiotherapy and a pet version followed. As a
result, the company has set its sights on making this lifesaving product
more accessible to pet owners.

“Many pet owners forget about the dangers that pools and other bodies of
water can present for their pets,” said Bob Van Tongerloo, CEO of the
Canadian Federation of Humane Societies. “CFHS believes that the Safety
Turtle offers pet owners an option to protect their pets from drowning
accidents while relaxing at home and exploring near waterways away from
home. CFHS applauds Terrapin for recognizing the need for a product that
helps keep all members of the family safe near water.”

Pools and Pets
Though largely unreported, accidental drowning of a pet in the family pool
is common. “Both the numbers and the circumstances of the pet drowning
stories I’ve been getting over 5 years leave me in no doubt about this,”
said Bob Lyons, President of Terrapin and inventor of Safety Turtle. With
a growing pet population – there are roughly 58 million dogs and 62
million cats in North America – and approximately 450,000 new pools per
year, accidental pet drowning will continue to rise unless something
changes. Action is long overdue.”

Although healthy dogs and cats have an innate ability to swim short
distances, escape from a pool may be a life and death struggle. Barking is
sometimes difficult once the dog is in the water. The untrained animal
instinctively heads for the closest edge of the pool and tries to claw its
way out. Panic quickly leads to exhaustion. While animals can be trained
to go the shallow end, if they exist, the steps may be too high for a
smaller animal. Vinyl-liner pools offer no grip to the animal, and often
include only a vertical ladder, which is nearly impossible for most pets
to climb. Builders are routinely called to repair foot-long holes through
pool liners at the waterline caused by a front paw of the owner’s canine.

“When the solar cover is on a pool, it is one of the most dangerous times
for pets. They either fall on the cover, or try to walk on it, and go
under and can’t get back up,” said Gae Horrigan, dog and pool owner from
LaMarque, Texas. “We know first hand the heartbreak people experience when
they lose a pet to drowning. It’s like losing your child. Today, having
the Safety Turtle is our way of trying to make sure this will never happen
again to our beloved Westies, Duke and Tammy.”

Boats and Pets
Pet life jackets are selling in record numbers because pets find so many
ways to fall overboard when least expected. But, depending on water
temperature and visibility, chances of rescue may be small unless someone
sees the pet fall in.

About Safety Turtle for pets
The Safety Turtle system for pets consists of a small, color-coded Turtle
sensor that attaches to the pet’s collar, and a Base Station. When the
pet falls or ventures into the water, an ear piercing alarm is instantly
sounded at the house [or boat] from the Base Station – allowing the owner
to immediately respond to the distressed animal. One Base Station works
with any number of pets having the same color of Turtle sensor. Rain or
ground moisture doesn’t set off the alarm.

For more information, please visit www.safetyturtle.com

Incorporated in Canada in 1998, Terrapin Communications is the sole owner
and manufacturer of Safety Turtle.

Water Safety for Pets

Sound an alarm!

The Safety Turtle® pool alarm system, created originally to alert parents
when their children fall into the water, has a new line for dogs and cats.
The system includes a Turtle that fits any pet collar and a base unit
that sounds the alarm the moment the Turtle is immersed. The base unit
works with any number of Turtles. Use around a pool or on a boat.

Educational material is attached. Images available on request.

Contact:
Bob Lyons

Terrapin Communications Inc.
4017 Carling Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K2K 2A3
613-271-0050
613-271-3007 [fax]
www.safetyturtle.com

Safety Turtle breaks ground in pet drowning prevention

Water safety alarm originally created for children now adapted for pets
and adopted by pet owners

Ottawa, ON – Terrapin Communications, maker of Safety Turtle, today
announced the start of a pet drowning prevention campaign. The lockable
Turtle wristband was introduced in 1998 as a last layer of protection of
young children against aquatic injury. By popular demand, a Turtle visor
for seniors in aquatic physiotherapy and a pet version followed. As a
result, the company has set its sights on making this lifesaving product
more accessible to pet owners.

“Many pet owners forget about the dangers that pools and other bodies of
water can present for their pets,” said Bob Van Tongerloo, CEO of the
Canadian Federation of Humane Societies. “CFHS believes that the Safety
Turtle offers pet owners an option to protect their pets from drowning
accidents while relaxing at home and exploring near waterways away from
home. CFHS applauds Terrapin for recognizing the need for a product that
helps keep all members of the family safe near water.”

Pools and Pets
Though largely unreported, accidental drowning of a pet in the family pool
is common. “Both the numbers and the circumstances of the pet drowning
stories I’ve been getting over 5 years leave me in no doubt about this,”
said Bob Lyons, President of Terrapin and inventor of Safety Turtle. With
a growing pet population – there are roughly 58 million dogs and 62
million cats in North America – and approximately 450,000 new pools per
year, accidental pet drowning will continue to rise unless something
changes. Action is long overdue.”

Although healthy dogs and cats have an innate ability to swim short
distances, escape from a pool may be a life and death struggle. Barking is
sometimes difficult once the dog is in the water. The untrained animal
instinctively heads for the closest edge of the pool and tries to claw its
way out. Panic quickly leads to exhaustion. While animals can be trained
to go the shallow end, if they exist, the steps may be too high for a
smaller animal. Vinyl-liner pools offer no grip to the animal, and often
include only a vertical ladder, which is nearly impossible for most pets
to climb. Builders are routinely called to repair foot-long holes through
pool liners at the waterline caused by a front paw of the owner’s canine.

“When the solar cover is on a pool, it is one of the most dangerous times
for pets. They either fall on the cover, or try to walk on it, and go
under and can’t get back up,” said Gae Horrigan, dog and pool owner from
LaMarque, Texas. “We know first hand the heartbreak people experience when
they lose a pet to drowning. It’s like losing your child. Today, having
the Safety Turtle is our way of trying to make sure this will never happen
again to our beloved Westies, Duke and Tammy.”

Boats and Pets
Pet life jackets are selling in record numbers because pets find so many
ways to fall overboard when least expected. But, depending on water
temperature and visibility, chances of rescue may be small unless someone
sees the pet fall in.

About Safety Turtle for pets
The Safety Turtle system for pets consists of a small, color-coded Turtle
sensor that attaches to the pet’s collar, and a Base Station. When the
pet falls or ventures into the water, an ear piercing alarm is instantly
sounded at the house [or boat] from the Base Station – allowing the owner
to immediately respond to the distressed animal. One Base Station works
with any number of pets having the same color of Turtle sensor. Rain or
ground moisture doesn’t set off the alarm.

For more information, please visit www.safetyturtle.com

Incorporated in Canada in 1998, Terrapin Communications is the sole owner
and manufacturer of Safety Turtle.