What should you do if your pet suddenly faints?
Pets are far more vulnerable than you would expect. Traffic accidents, dogs fighting, or heart disease can all lead to shock. But if the owner knows how to do pet CPR, he might have chance to save his dog’s life at a critical moment.
Dr. John Lu, a senior veterinarian with a doctorate degree in veterinary medicine, explains that once the pet is in shock, the owner should check to see if it is breathing and still has a pulse, whether the tongue has turned purple, or if there’s any trace of blood. The owner can test the heartbeat on the left side of the dog’s chest where it conjoins the leg, and feel if there is breath from its nostrils.
If the dog’s heart is still beating, it should be immediately rushed to the hospital. If not, and the tongue appears purple, the owner should at once press the heart area, at a frequency of once a second, while blowing air into its nostrils. This is called pet CPR, which can help the dog circulate blood and exchange oxygen when there is no heartbeat.
If the dog’s heart resumes beating and is also breathing after CPR, it should then be rushed to an animal hospital. If there is no reaction to CPR after five minutes, it can only be defined as dead.
If the animal is losing a lot of blood, the owner should tie the area above the bleeding with strap, to prevent the artery from bleeding, and rush the pet to the hospital.
Are you still feeding your pet leftovers?
Among common factors that cause a dog to faint, although traffic accidents and dog fights are hard to prevent, those originating from heart disease, if taken care properly, can very likely be avoided.
“Age factor and inappropriate feeding, can all contribute to pets’ heart disease, which is why both the 12-year-old dog and 3-year-old cat can experience heart failure, ” said Dr. John Lu.
Dogs that are over 12 years old, their hearts degenerate with age, and disease like valve regurgitation and myocardial atrophy can all lead to cardiovascular dysfunction.
Aside from the reasons stated above, inappropriate food can also lead to heart failure. A lot of the times, out of lavish affection, or simply for convenience, owners feed pets table scraps. But as dogs are omnivores whose protein intake daily should not surpass 20 percent, even though the dog eats meat every day, the nutrition intake from the meal is still unbalanced.
Cats for carnivores, and cats who eat leftovers may lack amino acids, “amino acids are crucial nutrition for the heart, if the cat food is unbalanced, or lacks certain nutrition, the cat may have heart failure just when it reach 3 or 4 years old,” said Dr. John Lu.
Dr. Lu advises pet owners to purchase high-quality prescription diet pet food, and he himself, who is a firm believer in comprehensive treatment, has designed various menus for owners who want to cook food for their own pets, “I don’t think dogs must eat dog food, but they shouldn’t have human food, either. Owners can cook for pets, and the meal is even fresher than purchased animal food.”
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About Dr. John Lu
Dr. John Lu holds a doctorate degree in veterinary medicine. He used to teach and research biogenetic law at Peking University, and switched to veterinary medicine research after he came to Purdue University. He is a licensed veterinarian in New York state, and founder of Queens Animal Health & Emergency hospital. Hospital services include lump removal, dental and neurological surgery, ultrasonic examination, blood examination, as well as traditional Chinese medical treatment and acupuncture.
Call：(347) 506-0450
Address：183 – 04 Horace Harding Expy, Fresh Meadows, NY 11365
Website：QueensAnimalHealth.com
Facebook：Facebook/QueensAnimalHealth
