Choking dog first aid, tips, causes, symptoms and treatments

Choking: Like humans, dogs are curious about their world.



But they satiate their curiosity through exploration and investigation with their sense of taste and smell. Because of this ever so often dogs swallow objects that get lodged in their throats and cause them to choke. If you are not able to dislodge the object, it may cause loss of consciousness or even death, if it stops the dog from breathing.

When a dog chokes, it is important for you to think on your feet and apply first aid steps to dislodge the object from the throat.

Symptoms of choking: Some of the symptoms include frantic behavior, distress, pale or blue gums, pawing at the mouth, gagging, coughing, or even loss of consciousness. These symptoms should alert you that the dog has choking difficulty breathing and that it needs first aid and a trip to the vet if necessary.

Treatment: If a dog is choking, it needs to be helped immediately.



The will also begin to panic if it is choking, and this will worsen the situation. At this moment, you need to be calm and dexterous, and try to get that object out of its throat without getting bitten.
If the dog has become unconsciousness, then first you need to give the dog CPR - cardiopulmonary resuscitation to your dog's mouth, to revive it. You need to apply the choking Heimlich maneuver.

First aid tips for a dog that is choking and conscious:

• Hold the dog's mouth with your hands, and pry it open to peer inside and locate the dislodged object. If you've spotted it, then try removing it with your fingers.
• If you cannot do so, then lay the dog on its side, and lift up the hindquarters, while placing your own hand under the rib cage. Your other hand can be placed on the dog's back. Press down and up in a single motion. Repeat this motion till the dog coughs out the object.
• If the object still doesn't come out, then there are chances that the dog might become unconscious.

First aid tips for a dog that has become unconscious due to choking:

• Like we mentioned, the dog should be on its side with its hindquarters lifted up.
• As you open the airway, pull the tongue outwards and towards the side.
• Compress the rib cage several times (same place as mentioned above). Then check the mouth with your fingers to see if the foreign objects have been dislodged.
• Perform CPR into the dog's mouth by breathing into it and blowing air through the nose and mouth.
• Now this is where your stamina and perseverance will come into play. You have to keep repeating everything we've mentioned above – compressions, finger probing and CPR till the object falls out and the dog begins to breathe on its own.