Four cats in Riverside County got a second shot after firefighters pulled them from a smoke-filled apartment and revived them.
The apartment fire had already been put out when a neighbor told crews that pets were still inside, Local 12 News reported. Firefighters went back in and found the four cats trapped under a bed.
Firefighters Dave Colombo and Ray Guillen located the animals. Guillen said one cat was in especially bad shape.
“As soon as I grabbed it, it fell over,” he said. “You could tell it was in bad shape.”
Video showed firefighters carrying the unresponsive cats outside, where Capt. Mark Lewan and other crew members started emergency care. The team used CPR techniques similar to those performed on infants and adjusted oxygen masks to fit the cats’ faces.
“I gave him mouth-to-snout and started rescue breathing for the cat, hoping to revive him and get him to start breathing again,” Lewan said.
Officials said all four cats survived and were returned to their owner. They are now recovering. No other injuries were reported.
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