Pet First Aid Part II
I’m glad to hear you DW’ers found last week’s Pet First Aid Part I to be so valuable! As promised, instructor Denise Fleck is back this week offering more life-saving tips for what to do if your pet is choking. According to Denise, “The Best 911 for Your Choking Dog is YOU!”
1 There is just no substitute for getting hands-on training in a pet CPR class, like those taught by Denise Fleck.
2 The following tips are only guidelines and must be done very carefully to avoid causing further harm. Please consider taking a pet CPR course.
3 For choking incidents, use your fingers to remove any visible obstruction, but look closely — do not blindly sweep his mouth. You could push the object farther back or tear laryngeal tissue if the object is lodged.
4 If that doesn’t work, a modified version of the Heimlich maneuver, which you can learn in a pet first-aid class, may be necessary.
5 Close your hand to make a fist, similar to the Heimlich technique commonly performed on humans.
6 Stand or kneel behind the animal and place your arms around his waist, keeping his head down.
7 Place your fist in the soft part of the stomach just behind the last rib.
8 Grasp the fist with your other hand similar to the Heimlich technique.
9 For smaller pets, instead of a fist, use just a couple fingers in the soft part of the stomach just behind the last rib.
10 Grasp the fist with your other hand and compress the abdomen by pushing up in a quick and rapid manner similar to the Heimlich technique.
11 If your pet becomes unconscious, lay him on his side and compress lungs by squeezing with the heel of your hand on the side of his chest to dislodge object.
12 For a smaller pet who loses consciousness, lay him on his side and compress lungs by squeezing with a few fingers on the side of his chest to dislodge the object.
13 Learning these life-saving techniques will help keep your pet safe and healthy like this happy guy.
One Lucky Dog’s Tale, by Denise Fleck
Nikki sat down in front of the TV for an evening snack and a scary movie with her miniature schnauzers at her feet waiting for a morsel — their eyes wide open, ears pricked high with their hot doggie breath hitting her legs. She tossed them each a kernel of popcorn, and the food-hound of the duo gulped it at the speed of lightning. Suddenly he opened his mouth, gagged and then stopped coughing altogether before going silent. Not only was the food lodged in his tiny windpipe, Nikki’s furry child had stopped breathing!
Dogs love putting things in their mouths, and anything on the floor is fair game. So I insist that people “get down on all fours” and look at their homes and yards from their pet’s perspective. But since choking can occur from food or toys, so it’s important to learn how to perform the doggie Heimlich-like maneuver and chest thrusts just in case your four-legged friend gets into trouble. A large number of my students have successfully used these techniques and saved the day for their dogs!
Fortunately for the schnauzer, his owner knew how to perform the canine Heimlich, and the popcorn kernel flew out of his doggie mouth. (In fact, the pooch quickly retrieved it before his owner could, and this time swallowed without a problem.
Whew… that was a close one! And just from a little popcorn kernel!
Needless to say, there is no substitute for getting hands-on training! To enroll in one of Denise’s upcoming classes or if you are in search of a class, contact Denise for information or to set one up!
Thanks again to Denise and all those guardians who have already gotten the training needed to help our furry friends.
Check back with me next Thursday for more great first aid information.
In kinship,
Dr. Pia Salk
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