California Bill Would Legalize Doggy CPR

CALIFORNIA -- Did you know it's illegal to give your four-legged friend CPR if he or she needed it? Now, a group of California lawmakers want to legalize the mouth-to-snout life-saving effort.

Senate Bill 1305, authored by Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Orinda), is proposing to allow first responders the ability to give emergency mouth-to-snout if needed.

Under the proposed bill, neither first responders nor their employers would be liable for civil damages or criminal prosecution if they provided pre-veterinary emergency care to an injured dog or cat at the scene of an emergency.

“Any first responder who puts mouth to snout to save a poor pooch’s or kitty’s life deserves only high praise and encouragement,” Glazer said. “Our pets are so important to us, that we all would appreciate any effort to save them in an emergency. We should reward, not punish, those who protect our pets.”

The bill is co-authored by Assembly members Catharine Baker (R-Dublin), Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside), Kevin Mullin (D-South San Francisco), and Marc Steinorth (R-Rancho Cucamonga).

Veterinarian Jay Kerr, who came to Sen. Glazer with the bill idea, said that, with this bill, “pets are more likely to receive the critical emergency medical services that might allow them to reach the veterinarian for whatever care they require.”

It is currently unlawful for any person to practice veterinary medicine in California unless they are a licensed veterinarian. Any person who violates the current law is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $500 to $2,000, or by imprisonment in a county jail for up to one year, or by both a fine and imprisonment, Glazer's office said.

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