Disasters happen and sometimes it’s our pets that get in trouble. They can sink, get electrical shocks, choke, stop breathing, lose consciousness, etc. If something like this happens, it’s crucial to know how to apply CPR to a cat or a dog. Using CPR to a dog or a cat is comparable to how we do it in humans. If your pet is motionless, check for breath. Watch their heart or feel for breath or hold the gums, which will turn blue from a shortage of oxygen.
- The primary thing you have to do is lay your pet on its right side on a flat surface and spread the neck and head to form an airway. Then check for obstacles. They might have consumed something that got stuck in their throat.
- If it’s a small cat or dog, hold him upside down and shake him to remove it. Be cautious if you try to use your fingers because you might push the obstacle further down.
- If it’s a big dog, pull their tongue outward, and see if this action removes the object. You can try using pliers to dislodge the obstruction, again, not to push the object further down.
If there is no obstruction and the air passage is clear:
- Give them artificial respiration.
- With a small cat or dog, you can cap their nose and mouth with your mouth and blow air into them. Give quick and shallow breaths every three seconds, just strong enough to make their chest rise until they start breathing independently.
- With a big dog, hold the muzzle to keep the mouth shut. Put your mouth on the nose, closing it completely, and blow mildly into their nostrils. The chest should rise. Use more prolonged and deeper breaths every three seconds until they start exhaling on their own.
- Regularly check their pulse. You can try checking the heartbeats on their chest or check for a pulse in the thigh’s inner side, near the intersection of the leg to the body. The beat of the femoral artery can be challenging to feel in cats. Use your middle fingers, not your thumb.
- If there’s no pulsation, start chest compressions.
On bigger dogs, lay them on their side and give the squeezings, placing one hand on top of the other over the rib cage’s biggest portion, not the heart. On a smaller cat or dog, put your hand on the rib cage over the center and the other hand on top. On a kitten or a puppy, put your thumb on the chest and compress, being very cautious not to use excessive force.
The rate of compressions depends on the pet’s size:
- If they are over 40 pounds, give 60 compressions per minute.
- From 10 to 40 pounds, give from 80 to 100 compressions per minute.
- Less than 10 lbs, give 100-120 compressions per minute.
- Substitute breaths and compressions. Just like a human, you should give 30 compressions, two breaths. Continue the process until you can get the animal to respond or to begin breathing on its own.
- As soon as the cat or the dog responds, bring her to the vet immediately.
