On Saturday, August 28th, in the Rutland County Humane Society’s education room, Sally Achey of The Sensible Dog, with her able four-legged assistant Tucker, presented the Pet Tech’s PetSaver Program of emergency care for pets.
Sally taught us the importance of performing a “Snout-To-Tail” assessment on our animals when they are well, so that we could more easily recognize if/when something was wrong. We learned how to create a makeshift muzzle, since an injured or confused dog could unintentionally bite a person who is trying to help him. Tucker patiently allowed each of us to practice on him. We learned how to check the heartbeat and pulse, what is normal for both, and how to determine if “rescue breathing” or CPR is needed. We practiced CPR on a special “model” named Casper to get a feel for how much force and pressure might be needed. Later we discussed how to recognize and manage bleeding injuries, shock, choking, heatstroke, hypothermia, and more. All the items that should be included in an emergency care kit were listed.
It was a very worthwhile day, packed not only with learning useful skills, but with practical, hands-on experience as well. From the PetSaver pamphlet: “Knowing the skills and techniques of Pet First Aid can mean the difference between life and death, between temporary and permanent disability, between expensive veterinarian bills and reasonable home care, and between rapid recovery and long recuperation for the pet.” For more information, or for the seminar schedule, visit TheSensibleDog.com.