Choking

Signs/symptoms:

1. Animal is having trouble breathing.
2. Animal is coughing/gagging non-stop.

Treatment:

1. Pry open the animal's mouth and remove any foreign objects with your fingers, tweezers, or pliers, as appropriate. Be careful. Avoid getting bitten!
2. If necessary, give the animal a sharp blow on the back of its neck or between its shoulder blades. There is also a Heimlich maneuver, much like that for humans. To perform the maneuver, pick the animal up and hold its back against you. Clasp your arms a few finders lover than the animal's last/bottom rib and press sharply upward with a quick thrust until the foreign object is expelled.

Note: You can also perform this maneuver with the animal lying on its side. Raise the animal's rear slightly higher than its head using a pillow, blanket or clothing. Then press sharply in and up at a spot a few inches below the animal's last/bottom rib-using both hands if its a large dog-until the foreign object is expelled.

4. If the animal experiences cardiac arrest and/or respiratory arrest perform CPR (see Cardiac and/or Respiratory Arrest).