By Evangeline Samuel

I was reading the newspaper today and found an interesting article about a dog rescue. In West Monroe LA, a firefighter performed mouth-snout resuscitation and revived a small dog that he found lifeless inside a burning mobile home. I was really impressed that this firefighter, Stephen "Odie" Odom entered the blazing home when he was told that there were 2 dogs inside. When he went in he found two tiny terriers in pet carriers in a smoke filled room. These were tiny dogs, and he had the presence of mind to give it CPR and revive it.

Giving CPR to a small dog would be similar to giving a baby CPR. The first thing one looks for is to clear the airway, and then cover both it's mouth and nose with your mouth and breathe. In adult humans we hold the nose and breathe mouth to mouth. But for a baby, we would cover both mouth and nose in one breath. There were two things the owners of the home did not do right.

First they left the house with their tiny dogs closed up in dog carriers so there was no way for the little pups to run out and save themselves. Dog owners must take proper care of their dogs, and could have carried them out with themselves. As thrilled as I am that the dogs were safe, I believe that dog owners ought to watch out for their babies, especially if they are detained and contained, and could not find freedom on their own.

My daughter owns this cute puppy, Kate, who is a mix of Maltese and and Yorkie, and she is so adorable! We only put her in the crate when the family is out of the house. When she spends time with me, she knows that she will be free most of the day. I hated putting her in the crate. But it is only so she won't tear up the house looking for her family. She is terrified of thunderstorms and will run under the covers and shake, and we hold her tight to let her know that she is the most important baby there.

I am so relieved that the firefighter went in at the right time to be able to rescue the puppies. With babies, CPR is similar. You cove the mouth and nose and breathe, the chest compressions can be given with 2 fingers. Should pets be left in their carriers during the day? Yes, but if there is any sign of trouble we must the responsible party to let them out of harm's way. Pet carriers or crate are proper for keeping pet. There are nice soft crate bed mats to keep the puppies comfortable. I pray that they do not have any lingering problems. Tiny dogs tend to run into more respiratory problems than larger animals. I just want to commend the firefighter for saving the lives of these tiny pups.

Evangeline Samuel PhD. is a retired nurse who enjoys her daughter's dog, Kate's company, and loves dressing her up in designer dog clothes, jeweled dog collars and have her sleep in designer dog beds

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Labels: Dog Rescue