Imogen Calderwood
A STILLBORN jaguar cub was saved by the kiss of life from a dedicated Spanish vet.
Dr Patricia Garrido gave the cub emergency mouth-to-mouth resuscitation after it stopped breathing following a caesarean birth at the El Bosque Veterinary Hospital in Madrid.
The rare operation was deemed necessary as the mother, Xena, had previously killed two cubs shortly after giving birth.
It took a team of 12 vets, nurses and assistants to deliver the cub, christened Ali, but the dramatic operation descended into a frantic search for a heartbeat.
When it was found the cub wasn’t breathing, the team to perform CPR to kickstart the animal’s heart.
They then used a pump to attempt to force air into into its lungs, but neither treatment worked.
In desperation, Dr Garrido came to the rescue with the emergency mouth-to-mouth.
After a tense eight minutes, the team finally felt a tiny heartbeat.
Antonio Rodriguez, a fellow vet who witnessed the birth, said: “The experience of seeing an animal start living and breathing after out help is really amazing. It is indescribable.”
