First Aid for a Dog Having a Heart Attack

1 First Aid When Your Dog Has a Heart Attack

1. How to help a dog during a heart attack

Heart disease is fairly common in dogs — one study put the rate at about 10%, meaning roughly 1 in 10 dogs has it, and the rate is even higher in senior dogs. An episode can be fatal, and worse, it can strike at any time, so every owner should learn some basic first aid. What can you do?

1) If you have a dog with known heart disease, keep oxygen at home and stock emergency heart medication such as quick-acting heart pills and enalapril maleate tablets. If an episode hits, get the dog to a clinic as fast as possible or call for help.

2) If the dog collapses during an episode, you can no longer give pills, but you must keep oxygen flowing. With no oxygen on hand, perform rescue breathing — note that it differs from human CPR: for a dog you breathe into the nose. The correct steps: pull the tongue out of the mouth, close the mouth, and blow into the nose once every 5 seconds. Once at the clinic, most hospitals have a ventilator, so mouth-to-nose breathing is no longer needed.

3) Perform CPR. Except for Bulldogs (which lie on their back), most dogs are placed on their side for CPR. For large dogs, press near the back; for small dogs and cats, compress the rib spaces between the 3rd and 6th ribs; for Bulldogs, press the sternum. A rate of 2 compressions per second to 3 per 2 seconds works; switch people every two minutes, since one person alone tires quickly and loses the rhythm.

4) Rescue breathing and CPR must be combined: 2 breaths for every 30 compressions, repeating without stop. In the hospital the two are done together, because CPR alone risks pulmonary edema and oxygen shortage — something owners should keep in mind.

5) Good daily care usually prevents sudden episodes. Medication remains the most effective treatment — such as the enalapril maleate tablets mentioned above. Every dog is different, so the right drug varies; some dogs do well on herbal medicine that keeps the condition under control.

A gentle reminder: heart disease is not the end for your dog. With good care it can be well managed and your dog can keep happily by your side — but be mentally prepared, because an episode can come at any time.