Pet CPR
Pet CPR
"Safety Courses Save Lives"
The
following is a simple breakdown of dog & cat
CPR. It's written for the average pet owner and
in plain language. It uses the common accepted
approach to pet cardiopulmonary resuscitation
according to excepted standards of Pet First
Aid courses throughout the United States. Pet
First Aid is not intended to take the place of
professional veterinary care. It is recommended
that you take a Pet First Aid course from a
certified instructor.
ABC's (Airway, Breathing, Circulation)
Airway:
Probably
one of the most important things you can do
after SAFETY is to make sure your
dog or cat is breathing. To do this, you want to
gently tap your dog or cat and call out their
name to see if they move. Then (being careful
not to get bitten or scratched) lean down close
and
LOOK,
LISTEN AND FEEL
for breathing.
Look:
at the chest of the animal to see if it's
moving.
Listen:
to see if you can hear them breathing.
Feel:
on your cheek or back of your hand for a breath.
Breathing:
If your dog or cat is not breathing, pull their
tongue just a little bit, close the mouth and
tilt their head just a little to open their
Airway. Give them 4 -5 breaths from your (guess
what?) mouth to their nose! This is
Mouth-to-Snout resuscitation. You'll want to
give them just enough air to make the chest
rise. Big dogs need more - little dogs or cats
much less. Remember not to give too much air!
You don't want to hurt them.
Circulation:
This means you're checking to see if their heart
is working OK. To do that you must check for a
heart beat which is called a pulse. There are
pulse points located in various areas on your
dog or cat. For a dog the best place to find the
pulse is on the inside of the rear leg, towards
the top of the leg. This is called the Femoral
Pulse. For a cat the best place to find the
pulse is on the outside of the left front leg,
just behind the shoulder. This is called an
Apical Pulse.
Rescue Breathing
Rescue Breathing
is when you have to breath for your dog or cat
because they are not breathing on their own. You
do this when your dog or cat has a pulse but is
not breathing.
Step 1: 
First do your
ABC's,
don't forget to
LOOK, LISTEN, and FEEL
for breathing.
Step 2: 
If not breathing, give 4-5 breaths using
Mouth-to-Snout
resuscitation.
Step 3: 
Check for pulse on the
Femoral Artery for dogs or check the
Apical Pulse for
cats or really small dogs.
Step 4: 
If there is a pulse, but no breathing start
Mouth-to-Snout
resuscitation giving
1 breath every 3
seconds. For cats or really small dogs,
give 1 breath every 2
seconds.
CPR
(cardiopulmonary resuscitation)
CPR:
First do your
ABC's,
don't forget to
LOOK, LISTEN, and FEEL
for breathing. CPR
can only be performed if your dog or cat is not
breathing and has
no pulse.
Follow Steps 1,2,3 same as in
Rescue Breathing.
If there is no Pulse,
start CPR
Step 4: 
Dog
=
Place the dog on the ground or other hard
surface with its right side down. Take it's left
front leg and bend at the elbow, rotating at the
shoulder. The point where the elbow of the dog
touches the body is where you place your hands
for compressions. Put one hand on top of the
other and clasp your fingers together. Lock your
elbows and start performing compressions. Push
approximately
2-3 inches
deep. Give compressions first then a breath.
After 1 minute
check for a pulse. repeat if there's no
response.
Giant
Dogs
= Give 1 breath
every 10
compressions.
Medium
to large dogs
= Give 1 breath
every 5
compressions.
Small
Dogs
= Give 1 breath every 5 compressions.
Cats
or really small dogs
= Place the animal flat on the ground. Then put
your hands on either side of the animal's chest,
right behind the shoulder blades with your palms
over the heart (sandwiching the animal's chest
between both hands).
Compress approximately ½ - 1 inch deep. After 1
minute, check for a pulse again.
Cats
or really small dogs
= Give 1 breath
every 3
compressions.
Please Contact Frankson Safety Courses, Inc. 
with any
Questions
customerservice@safetycourses.org
www.safetycourses.org
847-833-9184
