Firefighter puts animal handling knowledge to use in the US

ORGANISING an international conference, supporting the veterinary response to a major disaster and evacuating llamas during an wildfire is a normal day in the office Jim Green.

By The Newsroom

Published 21st Feb 2018, 06:00 BST

Animal expert Jim Green training veterinarians in the US

The Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service watch manager has just come back from 12 months in America where he has been training US authorities including UC Davis Fire Department.

Funded by the University of California he has also commissioned research, put together plans to improve working practices and proposed changes in state law.

The 44-year-old father of two said: ‘A large part of my job was teaching the basics of animal handling and psychology and nurturing an understanding of animal issues.

‘California pet ownership is similar to the UK so there is a 50 per cent chance that first responders will encounter animals at any incident they attend.’

Jim worked as Operational Lead for Incidents Involving Animals Project at the University of California, School of Veterinary Medicine which is ranked among the best in the world.

California