JEDDAH, 18 February 2004 — A veterinary clinic is offering training courses in first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for animals using a life-sized high-tech dummy dog, a first in Saudi Arabia.
Tahliah International Veterinary Clinic, owned by Dr. Deborah Zahid, is offering the three-day course to all pet owners.
“Many families have animals at home. When those animals become sick, or have an accident, the owners don’t know what to do. Basic lifesaving knowledge and first aid training can save the lives of many animals, or can at least keep them alive long enough to get them to a veterinarian where more specialized care can be given,” Dr. Deborah Zahid told Arab News.
The training covers the 17 most common complaints that cause pet owners to go rushing to the veterinarian. The training is not meant to replace the vet’s care, but it will teach pet owners how to recognize that their animal is sick and will give them the knowledge and confidence to be able to save their animal’s life by acting properly in an emergency.
“The courses will train pet owners to administer rescue breathing and CPR, and will also teach them how to cope with different emergencies and accidents that may befall their pets such as choking, drowning, car accidents, heat stroke, eye and foot injuries, snakebite, and much more. In addition, we teach pet owners how to prevent accidents, and teach them what is normal in a dog,” Dr. Deborah Zahid said.
A unique selling point is that the training will be conducted with the use of a high-tech, life-sized mannequin of a dog. It has a pulse, and its lungs expand and retract. There are airway passages for the nose and the throat and sensors that warn the trainees if they are using too much force in rescue breathing that may cause expansion injuries to the lung of their animal.
