Pet Dog CPR Classes in San Jose, Sacramento, & San Francisco
San Jose CPR & First-aid Classes for Humans
CPR Classes for Dogs in San Jose
Learning How to Perform CPR and First-aid on your Pet: San Jose Pet CPR and First-aid Classes
What would you do if a friend or a family member starting choking? Lots of students have taken CPR classes and know how to do it themselves in emergency situations. But what if your pet started choking? Would you know what to do then?
Accidents happen, and since pets are being treated more and more like family members, it is important to know what to do in the case that one of them is in trouble. While the methods of pet CPR described below are not completely thorough, they will be, in most cases, enough to keep your pet alive while they’re on the way to the vet’s office. That’s right, knowing pet CPR could save the life of your furry friend.
CPR for pets works much the same way that it does for humans. It combines a mouth-to-mouth breathing technique with chest compressions.
If your pet is not breathing properly or their heart is not beating, then you must first move them to a safe space. If you’re with someone else, have them phone the vet while you get ready to perform CPR. To prepare for CPR, place your pet on their right side and remove any leashes, harnesses, or collars.
Unless your pet has injured their head or neck, it is important to check their airway before doing anything else. While they are lying on their side, extend their head and neck to create a straight line from their mouth to their chest. This allows you to open their mouth and search for a foreign object that might be obstructing their breathing. Gently pull their tongue forward, bend close down, and take a look for anything that could be lodged in their throat. If you see something, remove it with your fingers, but be careful! Pets can still sometimes bite even when they’re out of it.
If your pet is still in bad condition, then it is time to start rescue breathing. The method used for pets differs slightly from the method used for humans. Instead of breathing into your pet’s mouth, you will want to breathe into their nose. Blow into their nose until their chest starts to expand. If you are performing rescue breathing on a small dog or a cat, make sure that you breathe gently. Breathe in through their nose every five or so seconds. If this doesn’t work, then it is time for actual pet CPR (plus, you’ve hopefully connected with the vet by now).
To begin chest compressions you must first find your pet’s heart. It is located at the front lower half of their chest. If you own a kitten or a tiny dog, you can use your thumb on the heart and the fingers of the same hand below it. For big dogs compress the chest about one inch. For smaller animals, massage gently. Remember not to apply too much pressure for your pet’s body size. You should press and release at about 100 compressions per minute for most animals.
Continue with both the rescue breathing and the CPR until your pet starts to breathe again or you feel their heart starting to beat. Rotate between the two until you have success. If you aren’t having any luck, then hopefully you can get your pet into the hands of a veterinarian quickly.
Unfortunately, pet CPR, like anything else, isn’t one hundred percent effective. But it is better to know how to safely do it, then watch your pet suffer and not be able to offer any help at all. Plus, it works a good deal of the time. If you are very worried about your pet’s safety, there are even pet CPR Classes in San Jose that you can attend. Whatever you choose to do, the above walkthrough should serve as a good introduction to pet CPR. Besides learning how to do CPR on your dog or cat, you should also learn how to perform CPR on children. The American Heart Association offers CPR certification classes in San Jose, CA.
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