UNSUNG HERO
Maverick is one lucky boxer thanks to CPR and Chico Boxer Rescue


Chris Henry
Sun Staff

November 3, 2003

Mary Whitehead's best friend was dying in her arms.
Maverick, an adult, brindled boxer, had become over-excited during a visit with another dog and had gone into respiratory arrest. Luckily, Bill Paul was on hand to administer CPR.

How, you might ask, is the life-saving procedure performed on a dog (and what about the slobber)? First, a little background.

Whitehead and Paul are both boxer "affectionados." Paul and his wife, Jenna, of Central Kitsap are the Northwest representatives of Chico Boxer Rescue, a California-based organization that places more than 150 boxers each year in foster and adoptive homes up and down the West Coast.

Boxers, Jenna Paul says, are high maintenance creatures that crave the company of humans. Without adequate attention, they get into mischief, and many are relinquished by frustrated owners. With adequate love, however, most turn into "overgrown lap dogs."

Mary Whitehead adopted Maverick nearly seven years ago in California, working through a different boxer rescue group. She also owns a sheltie-cross. Whitehead, who recently moved to Port Orchard, wanted to open her home to a foster animal awaiting permanent placement. So she contacted the Pauls.

A "meet and greet" between Maverick and 1-year-old Beckham was arranged in late September at Whitehead's home. But the dogs did not take to one another.

In the middle of the barking and snarling, Maverick arched his back, whimpered and fell heavily onto his side. Whitehead rushed over to her dog to see his eyes fixed and unresponsive.

That's when Paul stepped in. A quick check showed that Maverick's heart was beating, but he wasn't breathing. Paul checked to make sure his mouth was clear of obstructions, including his lolling tongue, which Paul pulled forward to make an airway. Then, he cupped his hands over the dog's muzzle and blew in, once, twice, and that's all it took.

Maverick began breathing on his own again.

"I would say he saved the dog's life," said veterinarian Nancy Isbell of Woodside Animal Hospital in Port Orchard, who examined Maverick after the incident.

Isbell found abnormalities that point to an underlying condition as the possible cause of Maverick's distress. A normal dog would not stop breathing from excitement.

Paul, who is stationed on the Bremerton-based USS Carl Vinson, recently was recertified in human CPR. He had heard of "doggie CPR" but was not trained in it.

The method, explained Isbell, adapts principles of CPR on humans to the canine anatomy. The biggest trick is making a seal on the muzzle.

"I just did it on instinct," said Paul. "It was quite a rush having revived the dog. I was glad to be there and to have been able to save it."

Paul recently returned from a 9-month deployment in the Western Pacific.

He and Jenna have four dogs, Murphy, a boxer, Charlie, a boxer-great Dane mix, Noah, a boxer placed through Chico Rescue, and Beckham, for whom they haven't been able to find other placement.

Paul says he plans to become officially certified in doggie CPR.

"This guy is my hero," Whitehead said. "He's just a marvel. He's my hero on land as well as on duty ... He's Maverick's hero."

Reach Chris Henry at (360) 792-5242 or at chenry@thesunlink.com.

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Here's more:
For information on Chico Boxer Rescue, log on to www.chicoboxerrescue.com or call Jenna Paul (360) 692-1574.

For information on doggie CPR, log on to www.dogstarr. com/doggie_cpr.htm.

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