Firefighter uses mouth-to-snout resuscitation to save dog

LOS ANGELES — Firefighters used mouth-to-snout resuscitation, bringing a dog back from the brink of death after it was found in an apartment fire Tuesday.

Neighbors told Crystal Lamirande, 35, that her apartment was on fire as she was returning to her unit around 4 p.m. Nalu, her 10-year-old bichon frise/shih tzu was still inside. Thick, acrid smoke blocked Lamirande from entering.

Santa Monica firefighter Andrew Klein rushed in and, moments later, carried Nalu’s limp, lifeless body out as other members of the crew fought the blaze for about 10 minutes.

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"His eyes were glazed over, and he was not breathing, and I assumed he was dead," Lamirande told The Associated Press. "The firefighter said, 'I'm a positive person. Let's just get him back.'"

Klein and other rescuers spent 20 minutes using life saving techniques to get Nalu breathing again, including a special pet oxygen mask, CPR and mouth-to-snout resuscitation.

"He was totally lifeless," Klein said. "I picked him up and ran out of the apartment, because time is key, especially with a small dog. Failure was not an option."

Nalu started breathing again and even walked around. Lamirande took him to an animal hospital, where Nalu spent the next 24 hours in an oxygen chamber to recover.

"He's been coughing, but right now, he's fine, and he's so happy and smiling," she said Thursday.

Investigators are still working to determine the cause of the fire.

Firefighter Andrew Klein administers mouth-to-snouth resuscitation to Nalu Tuesday. (Photo: Billy Fernando/Santa Monica Fire Department)

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