Preparing for the unexpected

It should come as no surprise that people love their pets.

The 2023-24 National Pet Owners Survey, conducted by the American Pet Products Association, found that 66% of U.S. households own at least one. A 2023 Pew Research Center survey reported that 97% of pet owners considered their pets as part of the family, and 51%  also said they thought of their pets as much a part of their family as a human member.

Recognizing the importance of pets in their residents’ lives, Edmonds and Mukilteo police departments have hosted pet first aid classes.

Edmonds Police community engagement coordinator and former animal control officer Tabatha Shoemake organized the first of her city’s one-day pet class this summer. Mukilteo Police animal control officer Shanita Duke, an 18-year veteran of the department, has taught pet first aid classes since 2018. Mukilteo resumed its one-day classes last spring after suspending them due to the pandemic. When both police departments posted class information on their respective Facebook accounts, residents quickly signed up.

“There were people who had medical issues with their dogs they wanted to make sure they were equipped to handle,” Shoemake said. “There were also dog walkers. We’ve had a few of those who wanted to be prepared for whatever came up, any incidents that came up. But the majority of people were just animal lovers.”

Duke was a vet tech for 16 years in Arizona before moving to the Pacific Northwest. She was convinced there was a need for pet first aid classes through her work as an animal control officer. She is a pet CPR- and first aid-certified instructor.  “After I started going on enough calls and seeing how people didn’t know how to handle their dogs in an emergency, I thought it was important to put my vet tech skills to good use and to teach people this is what you can do in an emergency.”

Shoemake and Duke say pet owners need to try to stay calm during an emergency, admittedly easier said than done. People often panic when their pets are in distress. “Knowledge is the key. If you have a roadmap on how to administer care, it makes it more comforting,” Shoemake said.

People often get emotional when it comes to their pets, Duke said, but the calmer they can stay and focus on what needs to be done, the better chance their pet is going to make it through the crisis.

Mukilteo’s interactive classes include videos, lectures, and hands-on instruction.
Edmonds’ class is similarly structured and, depending on the number of attendees, also offers hands-on instruction. Both use dog CPR dummies for CPR and breathing training. Duke also brings in a live dog for hands-on activities, such as getting a feel for the femoral pulse or practicing putting a wrap on an animal.

What can people expect to learn in the classes? There is an extensive range of topics that include mouth-to-snout resuscitation; chest compressions; heat stroke; choking; bleeding; cuts and stabs; first aid kits; snake bites; what to do when pets swallow dangerous items; when to induce vomiting and when not to; and how to perform the Heimlich maneuver.

It’s critical for people to approach an injured animal safely and to avoid getting bit, Shoemake said. She noted that often, when animals are choking, people stick their hands in the animal’s mouth. “But the first thing the animal is going to do when it’s trying to get something out is bite down. So protecting oneself is important because if you’re injured, you can’t help the animal.”

Duke teaches techniques on how to appropriately muzzle an injured animal. There are ways people can and should restrain a dog – with a leash, gauze, or a towel – and situations when they should not. “You would never muzzle a dog that’s obviously been hit by a car and is bleeding from the mouth. You’d never muzzle one that’s vomiting,” she said. “But any dog that’s injured and in pain can bite, even your dog – and it doesn’t mean they’re vicious or anything. It’s a reaction. They’re scared. They’re hurt, and that’s the first thing they’re going to do a lot of times.”

Summertime is when pets suffer heat stroke or heat exhaustion. Edmonds police respond to numerous reports of dogs left in vehicles. Many people don’t realize when they come to the city to attend an event, such as Taste Edmonds or the Edmonds Arts Festival, that pets are not allowed, so people leave their dogs in their vehicles.

Shoemake said people should call 911. “But at no time should someone take it upon themselves to break a window or something like that to try and get a dog out. We give our officers training on that.”

Duke sometimes has to dispel potentially dangerous misconceptions. Some people think they should douse a dog suffering from heat stroke or heat exhaustion with cold water. “You don’t want to do that because it just reverses the process and sends them into shock. They think they should give a whole bunch of cold water at once, which you shouldn’t do. The best thing you can do is stick them in air conditioning and get them right to the vet.”

The question of whether a pet should be taken to a vet is complicated. If people have concerns, they should call their vet, Duke and Shoemake said. The more information a pet owner provides, the better.

“Know your dog. Know what’s normal for your dog,” Duke said. “Know what your dog’s normal temperature is. What the normal respiration is. What the normal eating and drinking, urinating and defecating habits are. People are pretty attuned to their family pets. They can tell when something is just off. Always, when in doubt, call your vet and ask for advice.”

Duke encourages people to involve their pets in their emergency preparations. Pet owners can have their dog get used to having its feet and paws handled or tolerating someone poking around in its mouth.

“The more you can do that kind of stuff with your dog, the more they get used to it.”

The high interest in pet first aid classes doesn’t surprise Shoemake and Duke. Shoemake has had pets all her life; she currently owns two Rottweilers. Duke’s parents never let her have a dog growing up; she got her first dog at 25. Her first was a Bullmastiff, and she’s been partial to the breed ever since. She currently has two Bullmastiffs (a mother and father), two of their daughters (from a litter of six), and a pit bull rescue.

For Duke, the most rewarding part of the job is taking animals away from people abusing them. In the seven cases she’s been involved with, she had a 100% success rate. “I have been able to persuade the people that I had cases against that it was in their best interest to voluntarily relinquish custody of their animals.”

Shoemake has fond memories of her 14 years in the field as an animal control officer. “There’s nothing like a little bit of fur heaven. Animals are always happy greeting you, and you can’t get enough of that. Even when they’re not happy, usually you can figure out why.”