You are sitting down to dinner and your dog is also. You hear your dog making strange noises, perhaps it is coughing noises. Suddenly it occurs to you that your dog is choking. You never thought about this possibility; after all, he gulps down his food so fast you would never think this could ever happen. But now it has and your dog’s life is in your hands. Literally.

If your dog is choking, natural instinct will take over and the dog will begin to cough. Your dog may also attempt to vomit to dislodge whatever is blocking his breathing path. You must jump to action or your dog could die.

The way to handle this very serious situation is the same way that you would handle a person who is unable to breathe and food is caught in their throat. You must give your dog the Heimlich maneuver.

Don’t panic! You can do this and your dog will depend on you to save his life. You must wrap your arms around your dog and make a fist. Your fist will need to be placed under his top rib bone. If you think about it, a dog’s body is similar to a human’s body. He has a stomach and a rib cage. Your fist will need to be between his stomach and ribs. With one quick motion, you will perform the maneuver by thrusting in and up at the same time.

Take a moment to see if it worked. If not, yell out for help so that someone can call an ambulance and then go back to trying to do the Heimlich. You must be calm during this situation so that your dog’s life can be saved. If nothing comes out and your dog still can not breath, make sure help is on the way.

Then, it will be time to go to CPR. This is also done in the same way as you would for a person. You will block your dog’s nose and breath into his mouth. Do this with a rhythm; breathe, wait 3 seconds and repeat.

Once help arrives, the paramedics should be able to help you if you have not already revived your dog.

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