As a Search and Rescue K-9 handler with Central Lakes Search and Rescue, I am required to know First Aid and CPR for dogs and people. When I joined SAR in 2003, it was hard to find any pet care classes, but thankfully, PetTech has changed that!

I have trained and certified five dogs in Search and Rescue since 2003,and we often have cuts, scrapes, bruises, even a green fracture. However, the most devastating was a fall by K-9 Jael in 2016 that took her from me a year later. She helped bring many missing persons home, and her loss was deeply felt. The consensus from the vet community was Jael had suffered from a Traumatic Brain Injury as a result of the fall.

Clearly, TBI is not something we can fix with a CPR and First Aid Class - but my hope is by teaching the PetTech family of classes, I will be able to help other pet owners make positive decisions before emergency care is needed, and take appropriate actions when something unexpected does occur. We all love our pets, and knowing what to do can make the difference between life and death.