Special Report: Pet First Aid

These doggy dolls aren't your normal CPR mannequins, and this certainly isn't your normal first aid class.

Alice Wadley of the American Red Cross is instructing her students on pet first aid.

"Your going to check for consciousness," Wadley instructs her students. "We teach you to prevent, prepare for and to respond for pet emergencies."

Emergencies like the one that Kim Gray's dog Buddy was in. Last month he went missing for over a week. A good samaritan spotted him go over a waterfall.

"He wasn't breathing so he did chest compression's on him," the good samaritian said.

Buddy survived because he was administered CPR.

"I’m very grateful," Gray said.

In Wadley's class, CPR is just one of the many first aid procedures she'll go over.

"I cant imagine anything that could happen to your pet that we don’t cover," Wadley said.

It's for anyone who's in contact with animals, but the latest trend has dog walkers and pet sitters taking the fourhour course.

"I hear people in my classes say that I am starting a pet sitting business, I'm starting a dog walking business, uh, and I want to be able to tell people that I am pet first aid certified," Wadley said.

Dog owner Loran Purtell enrolled to be better prepared in an emergency.

"Its great to know, its usefully information who has pets around the house," Purtell said.

Blair Ross doesn't even own a pet, but wanted to be able to care for his friend’s animals when they are away.

"I feel like its necessary just for their safety if I am taking care of them," Ross said.

It’s not a replacement for a veterinarian, but the skills learned can be used in the critical first few minutes of an emergency.

The $60 class includes a take home first aid kit and a reference book. If you'd like more information on when the next Red Cross pet first aid class will be offered, click on the links below.

Boston Red Cross

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