BROOKLYN, New York (PRNewswire) — Just like a human, a dog or a cat can have an emergency from bleeding, choking and yes, even a heart attack. For a human, call 911. But, for your pet, it might be up to you.

“Just as you aren’t allowed to drive a car without a license, I sometimes feel you shouldn’t own a pet without knowing basic pet CPR and first aid,” says Brooklyn Bark Dog Walking and Pet Sitting owner Rachel Bowers who recently demonstrated pet life saving techniques on TV’s “Fox and Friends.”

Everyone in her Brooklyn-based company is trained to be pet CPR and First Aid certified. “We have an in-house instructor and all of our walkers and administrators are trained to save a pet’s life,” said Bowers. “We estimate our staff encounters an emergency — not necessarily CPR, more often bleeding or choking or poisoning — on the average of once a week. Fortunately, our walkers are always prepared.”

The American Veterinary Medical Association estimates that applying just one of the techniques that Brooklyn Bark practices gives a pet a 25 percent better chance for survival in an actual emergency.  Brooklyn Bark’s success rate is close to 100 percent.

But just how is CPR on a dog or cat different than on humans?

“In a number of ways,” said Bowers. “(Knowing) techniques such as ‘How do you best position yourself and the pet?‘ ‘How do you find their heart, their pulse?’  ‘Do you apply rescue breathing into their snout or their mouth?‘.”

In addition to training their staff, Brooklyn Bark also teaches comprehensive four-hour pet CPR and emergency First Aid classes to interested groups as well as making sessions available to the public when space allows. More information is available at www.brooklynbark.com/seminars/pet-cpr.

“In honor of Pet Safety Month I hope more people will get trained in pet CPR and First Aid,” said Bowers. “If you love your pets, you will never regret it.”