Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Pet First Aid & CPR Training

Last night I took the American Red Cross' Pet CPR/First Aid training course. It was a fun, interesting and highly informative course!

I was saddened by how many people laughed at the thought of taking this class when I mentioned I was going. I realized I wasn't the only one who heard comments, either. It was the topic of conversation at the beginning of the class last night. One woman said that she was told "breathing for my dog is where I draw the line". Why? I don't understand - you would breathe into the mouth of a stranger to save their life, but you wouldn't to a pet that has been a part of your family for years?

I hate it that people think that pets are so disposable. Granted, I don't think I'd spend tens of thousands of dollars on surgeries to save the life of my pet, but I sure would drop a few minutes of my time to try to get them breathing again, save them from shock or heat stroke or even save their leg if it was broken.

It wasn't just CPR, it was also First Aid, which is where I learned the most. Just common everyday accidents - cuts, sprains, etc. The end result is still usually the vet's office, but the little bit that you can do for your pet can make the vet bill quite a bit cheaper!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

As I mentioned on Dogmoms, I would totally take the class if I knew it was being offered in my area. Sometimes I think humans have a lot to learn from their animal friends. Given the chance your pet would save your life, why not do the same for them?