Purple and Paws Back in December, I took a Pet CPR class. This was something I’d been thinking about doing for a long time, especially after I adopted Socks. I knew very little about pet cpr and realized that if Socks started choking or became injured, I had no idea what to do aside from rushing him to the vet.
The class lasted from nine until three and I highly recommend anyone who works with animals or owns a pet take it. I went in thinking I knew the basics but I learned a lot more than I thought I would. Here are some of the more surprising things I learned:
Fire Safety
-Have an evacuation plan for your pets and practice it every month. Purchase an ‘In Case of Emergency Please Save Our Pets!’ card and tape it to the nearest window to the front of your door. On this card you can list your pets’ names and an emergency contact number.
Food Safety
-Despite all the cutely designed plastic food and water bowls out there, the best bowls to let your pets eat and drink from are stainless steel. Little tears in plastic bowls can trap germs and bacteria, which then leach into your pets’ food and water.
-Pets’ dietary needs change as they get older. I remember when my family first adopted our dog, Misty, and her healthy appetite. She would eat two full bowls of kibble a day, plus treats. As the years went by, however, she ate less and less. The last few years of her life she was down to one bowl a day; a few bites in the morning and a few more in the evening. She also became less tolerant of fatty, rich foods, which makes sense since senior dogs need a low-salt, high-protein, low-calorie diet.
-Avoid giving your dog rawhide or jerky. These treats are one of the major causes of choking in dogs because the strips well up due to all the saliva and when a dog tries to swallow them, they get stuck in the throat.
Car and Travel Safety
-Keep extra blankets and towels in the trunk of your car.
-Keep a harness or rope for an emergency muzzle.
-Keep a tarp.
-Keep an extra leash and collar.
In the Heat of the Moment
-Never hit a choking dog on the back.
-Make sure you know where the pulse is on all of your dogs so you can find the pulse quickly during an emergency (hint: it’s usually between the lower left leg).
-When putting a tourniquet on an animal, write the time you put the tourniquet on on the rope with a sharpie to help emergency personnel determine a timeline for the injury.
-Use paint sticks or popsicle sticks to wrap fractures or limb injuries.
And there we have all the surprising things I learned about pet cpr. If you’re interested in taking a Pet CPR class, Pet Tech is how I found my class. The site also offers the option of becoming an instructor and kinds of other interesting information.