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It's not a scenario you want to imagine: finding your cocker spaniel unconscious on your living room floor or your cat hit by a car. Finding your pet not breathing or with his/her heart not beating can be a terrifying experience, but there are things you can do. The most important step you can take is staying calm (trust me, easier said than done). If there's another person with you, have her call your veterinarian while you perform CPR.
Step 1: Check for responsiveness:
Before you begin doing anything to your pet, make sure he is truly unresponsive.
- Check his/her breathing by placing your hand in front of his/her nose and mouth. (Be sure not to cover them and block his airway!)
- Check for his/her heartbeat by placing your ear against area where your cocker's left elbow touches the chest.
Step 2: Secure an airway:
If you don't see or feel your cocker breathing, you immediately need to make sure his airway is clear.
- Carefully pull his/her tongue forward out of his mouth. (Even an unresponsive animal can bite by instinct.)
- Look into the throat for a foreign object. If you find one, remove it carefully
- Move the head until the neck is straight. (Don't move the neck if you suspect it is injured.)
Step 3: Rescue breathing:
- Close your cockers's mouth and breathe directly into his/her nose, (not his mouth! )until his chest expands.
- If the chest doesn't expand, check again for a foreign object in the throat and reposition the airway so it is straight.
- Once you've gotten the chest to expand, continue the rescue breathing, repeating the breaths 12 to 15 times per minute (once every four to five seconds).
Step 4: Chest compressions:
Do not begin chest compressions until you've secured an airway and started rescue breathing.
- Gently lay your pet on his right side.
- The heart is located in the lower half of the chest on the left side, behind the elbow of the front left leg. Place one hand below the heart to support the chest; place the other hand over the heart.
- Press down gently on your pet's heart. Press down about one inch for medium-sized dogs; press harder for larger animals and with less force for smaller animals.
- Press down 80-120 times per minute for larger animals and 100-150 times per minute for smaller ones.
- Alternate the chest compressions with the rescue breaths.
- Continue the heart massage compressions and the rescue breathing until you can hear a heartbeat and feel regular breathing. Once your pet is breathing and his heart is beating, call your veterinarian immediately.
Unfortunately, even in the hands of well-trained veterinary health professionals, the overall chance for success with resuscitation is low. In an emergency, however, it may give your pet his only chance.
Your pet is part of your family. And just like any other member of the family, pets can become ill or injured. Would you know how to care for your pet in an emergency? Here are a few tips:
- Always approach a sick or injured animal slowly and cautiously.
- Watch the body expressions and sounds your pet makes to warn you. Even your own pet can be aggressive when in pain or frightened.
- Do not make quick, jerky, or loud movements. They might further scare your pet.
- When necessary, use towels or blankets to subdue cats or small dogs.
- Keep the phone number and address of your veterinarian in a convenient location.
- Have the phone number and address of an after-hours veterinary clinic on hand and keep directions to that clinic in the same place. Whenever possible, call ahead to let them know you'll be coming.
- Pay attention to what is normal for your pet so you can detect signals when something is wrong.
