Bystanders criticize me for administering CPR to save Dog before the person?

Question

I only know CPR for Sm- Animals.
I am in my 3rd year of veterinary medicine.

Question:How can anyone criticize me for saving a dog before the person of a pedestrian car accident.
At least I saved the poor dog.
No life is better than another.All live is Special.

Plus I am not that experienced with Human CPR.....Who wants to get sued.

Was I wrong? or am I right?
WHY do people judge and do nothing allowing the person to die.
I did my part....so I thought?

Answer 1

I realize where you're coming from, you 100% for sure know how to save a dogs life, and aren't quite as sure as to save a humans. If you tried to save the human, you could have failed, and the dog could have died. You for sure could have saved the dog, and possibly saved the human. However a Humans life is more precious than a dogs. I know you love animals, but humans are sentient beings. That human has endless potential; as opposed to a dog. That human has family, accomplishments, goals, dreams. He can cure cancer, he can be a leader, the dog will always just be a dog. I think you were wrong, but your heart was in the right place. I know people now-a-days are sue happy, but you could have always taken off.

Answer 2

The Good Samaritan Law may not apply to you- advanced medical students are not covered in some states because of your advanced medical knowledge.

Even if it did cover you, the standard is to behave as a 'reasonable and prudent person' would, and a reasonable and prudent person would ensure that the human was being cared for before caring for the animals.

No one expects you to stand around and let the dog die, but neither does one expect that a trained professional, or one who is nearly so, would be so incompetent as to not know basic CPR for humans- even though it is not a mandatory element in most vet schools.

If the human was being cared for, then you were morally and legally correct in helping the dog.

If the human was not being well cared for, I am afraid you opened yourself up to a world of legal and moral hurt.



By the way, the thing about 'all life being special'- that is a sweet sentiment, but almost always spoken by a person who is well-fed and well enough off that they have resources (time, money, energy, etc.) to spare to take care of animals.

In the real world, people come first. After all, if the dog's owner is not cared for, who will care for the dog?

Answer 3

I would probably save a dog before human too, even if I could perform humanal cpr.
I agree all LIVE is special.

Answer 4

yeah you could have got sued if you tried to save the person and something went wrong..... and if you didnt have one of those nifty cpr things you or the person could have caught something from one another

your gonna be a vet not a dr so its kind of your job
but generally people value the lives of other people over animals so i get why they are judging you

Answer 5

You can't get sued for rendering aid if the person is unable to refuse it. The only way you could be sued is if you jumped on his chest even though you knew that was wrong (gross negligence). An unconscious victim automatically gives implied consent to receive aid. You are not required to be proficient at it in order to give it as long as you are making a good-faith effort.

Your first effort should have been the person. As a physician (even a vet), you have to triage your patients. All things being equal, children take precedent over adults, elderly over younger victims, people over animals.

The bystanders are equally guilty of failing to render assistance as you are. If no one helped, then everyone failed to help the person. You made your choice; only you can know if you were wrong or not.

Answer 6

to hell with those people! instead of criticizing you, why didnt they jump in and do something? oh, because its easier to pass judgment than to act.

and to the first guy saying that humans are sentient beings. so are dogs and cats and horses and all animals!

sentience refers to utilization of sensory organs, the ability to feel or perceive subjectively, not necessarily including the faculty of self-awareness. The possession of sapience is not a necessity. The word sentient is often confused with the word sapient, which can connote knowledge, consciousness, or apperception.

Answer 7

You have to sleep with yourself and it seems you have doubts.....

Deep down in your heart you know what they are saying is that it is not about one life having value or not, it is a matter of setting priorities in an emergency.

Hopefully both he dog and the person were OK, and you can rebuild the trust your friends lost in you when you demonstrated your priorities - as a friend, they may expect you to be there for them some time.

This is probably similar to how some of the officers here might feel if their partners turned on them in the heat of the moment - it will be hard to repair that kind of damage, and that is the kind of damage you do when you tell this story to people - it proves you untrustworthy even though I know that is not your intent at all.

But you asked, and that is how it is.

Answer 8

i agree with them it is stupid to assume an animal is worth a human life, that dog is one of the most insignificant things in this universe. now i understand your point that you dont fully know how to give a human cpr and certainly that is an issue there, but to consider the dog first is ridiculous. and to then say well if i try to save their life and do it wrong i could get sued... wow good point so just sit there and let them die instead... you really are just another self centered moron, just out of curiosity are you a PETA member yet or still waiting on your application? you pet first people make me sick.

Answer 9

If there was anyone there to judge you, I would question why they didn't administer CPR.

There is a Good Samaritan clause in the US... as long as your intent is good, you can not be sued for attempting to save a life.

Answer 10

If you are not experienced in human CPR you could do more harm than good.