When West Hartford K9 Officer Tom Lazure responded to 99 Norwood Road just after 4:30 p.m. on Monday, the family member who greeted him was frantic.
Harry, the family’s 10-year-old Shih Tzu, could not breathe. He was choking on a raw hide lodged in his mouth.
So Officer Lazure does what he would do in any life-threatening situation -- he performed first aid.
Using a modified version of the Heimlich maneuver, Lazure applied pressure to the dog’s rib cage.
It worked.
Once the bone moved, Lazure was able to remove it from Harry’s mouth and the dog could breathe again.
Harry was brought to a veterinarian, who delivered the happy news that Harry is in good health and is expected to make a full recovery.
