Recognizing an Emergency: Breathing, Circulation and Shock

Every first aid decision starts with the same question: how serious is this, and how fast do I need a vet? You answer it by checking a few vital signs in a fixed order and by recognizing shock, the body's failing response to injury or illness.

In this lesson you will learn the order in which first aiders check an animal, what each check tells you, how to recognize shock, and why knowing an animal's normal matters as much as knowing the warning signs. The checks here are observations, not diagnoses: their purpose is to decide how urgently the animal needs a veterinarian.

Check in a fixed order

First aid courses teach a primary survey, often remembered as Danger, Response, Airway, Breathing, Circulation. The order matters because each step protects the next one.

1. Danger. Is the area safe for you and the animal? Traffic, other dogs, electrical cables, chemicals and water all come before the patient. If there is any risk of a bite, protect yourself with a muzzle or a towel before handling.
2. Response. Call the animal's name and watch. Does it lift its head, look at you, move its ears? An animal that does not respond at all is in serious trouble. Call a vet immediately.
3. Airway. Is anything blocking the mouth or throat? Look only if you can do so without being bitten. A conscious animal that is struggling will bite, even one that knows you.
4. Breathing. Watch the chest and belly rise and fall, and listen. Note whether breathing is absent, noisy, very fast, very slow or labored (the belly working hard, the neck stretched out, the mouth open in a cat).
5. Circulation. Look at the gums and feel for a heartbeat or pulse if you have been taught how.

If the animal is unresponsive and not breathing, call a vet immediately and start CPR only if you are trained to do it. CPR technique varies by size and species and must be learned on a hands-on course. The article pet CPR: what professionals need to know explains the principles.

What the gums tell you

Gums are the easiest window onto circulation. In a healthy dog or cat, gums that are not dark with pigment are moist and pink. If you press gently with a fingertip, the spot goes pale and the color comes back quickly. This is the capillary refill check, and a hands-on course will show you what a normal return looks like.

Warning signs:

• Pale, white or grey gums: possible blood loss or shock.
• Blue or purple gums: not enough oxygen. This is an emergency.
• Bright red gums: can be seen with overheating and some poisonings.
• Slow color return after pressing: poor circulation.
• Dry or tacky gums: possible dehydration.

Some dogs have dark, pigmented gums. For them, first aiders check the inside of the lower eyelid or another pink area instead.

Recognizing shock

Shock means the body is not getting enough blood and oxygen to its organs. It can follow bleeding, trauma, heatstroke, poisoning, severe vomiting and diarrhea, and many other emergencies. It can develop over minutes or hours, which is why an animal that seems fine after an accident still needs a vet.

Signs of shock include:

• pale or grey gums and a slow capillary refill,
• fast breathing,
• a fast, weak pulse,
• cold legs, paws or ears,
• weakness, dullness or collapse.

There is no first aid treatment that fixes shock. Your job is to keep the animal quiet, warm (unless it is overheated) and still, control any bleeding, and get it to a vet as fast as you safely can. Call ahead so the clinic is ready.

Know the normal

The checks above only mean something if you know what normal looks like. Healthy animals vary with breed, size, age and fitness, and a calm animal at rest looks very different from one that has just run. A good habit for any professional is to look at the regular animals in your care while they are relaxed: how they breathe at rest, the color of their gums, how they usually greet you. Your vet or your first aid course can tell you the typical ranges for resting breathing and heart rate.

Then, when something is different (a dog that normally meets you at the door stays in its bed, breathing faster than usual), you notice early, and early is when first aid helps most.

What comes next

Lesson 3 puts these checks to work in a real scenario: a dog that has eaten something toxic while in a sitter's care.