As veterinarian Matthew Fry gave a lethal injection last month to Daisy, Lizzie Bevis’ Jack Russell Terrier, Bevis started making loud noises. She then fell to the floor and turned blue.
Bevis, only 30 years old, had suffered a heart attack.
Dr. Fry phoned for emergency help, summoned his assistant to give Bevis oxygen from a mask normally used for pets, and began performing CPR.
“I thought Lizzie had just fainted, but unfortunately we realized she’d had a heart attack,” Dr. Fry, of Quarrington Veterinary Surgery in Lincolnshire, England, told the Mirror. “At that point, things really went into high gear.”
Paramedics arrived within minutes and rushed Bevis to Lincoln Hospital, where she was put into a medically induced coma. Two days later, Bevis was transferred to another hospital, where it was discovered she has a rare and potentially fatal heart condition in which stress causes irregular heartbeats. A defibrillator was surgically implanted in Bevis’ heart. It will start working if her heart stops beating.
“I vaguely remember waking up in Lincoln Hospital and being told I’d had a heart attack and I was very lucky to be alive,” Bevis told the Mirror.
Bevis said she was grateful to Dr. Fry for saving her life, and thanked him with a homemade cake.
Dr. Fry told the Daily Star that all veterinarians are trained in performing CPR — but on animals, not humans.
“The difference is animals’ chests are a lot deeper, whereas ours are quite wide but more shallow,” he said.
“This was the first time I’d had to do it on a human and I hope I never have to again.”
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