Dog left 'dead' in Doncaster crash remarkably recovers after being given CPR
The moment Cuddles was reunited with her saviour
A dog left clinically "dead" after being hit by a car was "miraculously" revived by a passerby as the owner prepared to bury her.
Lhasa Apso, Cuddles, was knocked down while chasing a squirrel across a road in Doncaster.
By the time owner Kim Poskitt reached her, Cuddles was covered in blood, had no heartbeat and had stopped breathing.
"I was panicking", Kim said. "But I knew I couldn't do anything for her. So I asked the driver, who had stopped, to help me carry her home to bury her."
As they got up to leave another car passed the scene, driven by veterinary nurse Jo Caukwell.
She stopped to help, but concluded that Cuddles was clinically dead.
However, she started CPR on the dog and, after a few minutes, Cuddles started breathing again. She was rushed to the nearest vets, but Kim was told she may not survive the night.
Six weeks later, however, Cuddles is back at home.
Kim said the "miraculous" recovery is made all the more poignant because of her pet's history.
"Cuddles was my mum's dog," she said. "She had dementia and Cuddles was the only thing that kept her going. She was the only one she recognised until the very end. She even asked to be buried with her picture when she died earlier this year.
"I was devastated that I'd lost my mum's beloved dog.
"I believe my mum was looking down that day and thought - Cuddles deserves to live for what she did for me. She sent Jo, and Jo is the guardian angel."
'It was meant to be'
Jo, who visited Cuddles at home this week, told ITV News: "It was just meant to be that I was passing. Seconds later and it would have been too late.
"But people never think to learn CPR for animals. It's really important that people know how to do it, just as they would for humans - so many lives could be saved if people did a quick course or watched a video."
How to give a pet CPR
Inspired by events that day, Jo has released a video detailing how to perform CPR on a pet using a similar ABC (airways, breathing, circulation) technique to that performed on humans.
The Red Cross says there are a number of steps owners should go through to give a dog or CPR:
Check for breathing or a heartbeat
Give 30 chest compressions at a rate of 100-120 compressions per minute
Then give two rescue breaths, by gently closing the pet’s mouth and extend the pet’s neck to open the airway. Cover your pet’s nose with your mouth and exhale
Continue CPR with a cycle of 30 chest compressions and two rescue breaths until your dog or cat begins breathing again on its own.
Check again for breathing and a heartbeat every 2 minutes
Continue CPR until you reach a veterinary hospital.
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