DENVER (KDVR) — The Denver Fire Department received oxygen masks specifically designed for dogs and cats. The Pittsburgh-Philadelphia-based company, Pawprint Oxygen, is providing kits for every fire station in Denver.

It is not just human beings that firefighters will rescue from burning structures.

“It happens I would say at least once or twice a year we will pull out a dog or cat. To a lot of people, their animals are like their children,“ Denver Fire Department Assistant Chief Jeff Linville said.

Rescue equipment that is designed for humans does not necessarily work efficiently on pets.

“A lot of times we would just try to improvise with a mask that we would use on a human being,“ Linville said.

DFD will receive free of charge a total of 120 masks which will be distributed to every Denver fire station.

“Fire departments have really taken to this kind of thing because they often encounter pets whether through smoke inhalation or carbon monoxide from fires. They need oxygen to help rescue them,“ Pawprint Oxygen co-founder Blake Dubé said.

Dubé said the masks will provide the maximum amount of life–saving oxygen for canines or cats caught in a structure fire.

Veterinarian Dr. Kerri Nelson said the custom design masks are a great tool for firefighters to save people’s pets.

“Oxygen is imperative in their treatment. It’s actually the first thing that we do anytime we have an unstable patient that gets rushed into our treatment area,“ Nelson said.

The total cost of donated masks is $4,000. A much-appreciated item in a dog-loving firefighters kit.