Does Your Lab Need CPR?
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, combines artificial respiration and heart massage. Artificial respiration is the act of breathing into a dog's nose to get the lungs going again when breathing has stopped. Heart massage is a series of chest compressions to help restart a heart that has stopped beating.
Before performing CPR, it's important to make sure the dog really needs it. Performing CPR on a dog that is still breathing or whose heart is beating can cause further injury. To check for breathing, see if the dog's chest is rising and falling — the chest movement may be very shallow. You can also hold a mirror to the dog's mouth to see if breath causes the mirror to fog.
Feel for a pulse to see if the heart is beating. Place your fingers on the femoral artery in the groin area (the inside of the hind leg). If the dog's heart is beating, you'll feel a pulse. If the dog has a pulse but isn't breathing, perform artificial respiration. If the dog is breathing, but doesn't have a pulse, perform chest compressions. When the dog isn't breathing and doesn't have a pulse, you can perform CPR.
CPR is most effective when two people can work on the dog:one to perform rescue breathing and one to perform chest compressions. Emergencies that might call for the use of CPR include choking, electrical shock, or a traumatic injury that causes the heart and lungs to stop.
Rescue Breathing
Place your Lab on a flat surface, right side down. Open his mouth and pull his tongue forward. Wearing surgical gloves, swipe your fingers through the mouth to check for any foreign bodies and remove them if possible.
Place your hand around the muzzle to prevent air from escaping, and blow gently into the nose every two to three seconds. You should see the chest rise and fall. If you don't, blow more forcefully. Continue until the dog starts breathing again on his own, or until the heart stops beating.
Performing Chest Compressions
Position the dog in the same way as for rescue breathing. Kneel behind his back, and place the heel of one hand over the widest part of the rib cage (not over the heart). Rest the heel of the other hand on top of the first. With elbows straight, push down firmly for one count, then release for one count. Try to perform eighty compressions per minute. If the dog's heart doesn't start beating within ten minutes, you're not likely to be successful.
Performing CPR
Position the dog in the same way as for rescue breathing or chest compressions. Give five compressions, followed by one breath. If you have another person helping you, give one breath after every two to three compressions. Continue for ten minutes or until the dog's breathing resumes and his pulse is steady, whichever comes first.
Never do CPR, chest compressions, or rescue breathing on a healthy dog “for practice.” You could seriously injure him. Instead, sign up for one of the pet first-aid/CPR workshops offered by the American Red Cross.
