National Pet First Aid Awareness Month

In honor of National Pet First Aid Awareness Month, the leader in pet care and services, Urban Out Sitters and Pet Expert Joseph Giannini reminds pet parents that as the seasons change, so do dangers for the family pet. Before looking forward to warm summer weather, springtime often brings out the worst in Mother Nature with tornados, flooding and more. Spring is also a time for new blooms and buzzing bees. Did you know that Easter Lilies are toxic for cats? Pet parents need to be mindful of certain hazards that may have a devastating effect on their pet’s health. Pet Expert Joseph Giannini encourages pet parents to create a safety plan just in time for Pet First Aid Awareness Month this April.

“Pet First Aid is the immediate care given to a pet that has been injured or suddenly take ill. This includes home care and when necessary veterinary help. Knowing the skills and techniques of pet first aid can mean the difference between life and death; temporary and permanent disability; and expensive veterinarian bills and reasonable home care. According to the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) one-out-of-four more pets could be saved if just one basic pet first aid skill or technique was applied prior to receiving veterinary care.”

“We want to encourage pet parents to plan ahead for possible pet emergencies by taking small steps that could result in quicker response times during a potential dangerous situation. For example, keeping a pet first aid kit on hand and making sure pet parents understand how to care an injured pet until the pet is transported to a local emergency veterinarian are both important” said Giannini, Owner of Urban Out Sitters.

“Because there are only little variances between human and animal mechanisms of injury, pet parents can provide basic first aid for injuries and ailments like bruise and fractures or heat stroke and respiratory distress. Just like us, most incidents can be addressed using a first aid skill” according to Giannini. He says initial response and care is vital. “You are your pet’s paramedic during a health related emergency until your pet is transported to the veterinarian. Panic and doubt are not going to help your pet and can place you in danger” notes Giannini.

Giannini and Urban Out Sitters highly recommends pet parents keep important life saving phone numbers both in their cell phone registry and displayed on paper copy in a prominent well travelled area of the residence and vehicle. Important numbers include their primary veterinarian as well as their emergency veterinarian's phone number, the ASPCA Poison Control Center Number (888) 426-4435 and the Regular Poison Control Number (800) 222-1222.

From toxic plants to natural weather occurrences, the challenges in pet safety are most easily managed if pet parents take a lesson from Giannini and prepare for potential emergencies.

As a pet owner and pet care professionals we owe it to the pets in our life to be trained in these life-saving skills. To gain the skills of pet CPR, first aid and care, it is recommended you successfully complete a Pet First Aid class taught by a properly trained instructor. The skills and techniques of a pet first aid and care training should include but not be limited to: restraint and muzzling, CPR, rescue breathing, choking management, heat injuries (1st, 2nd, 3rd degree burns and heat stroke), cold injuries (frost bite and hypothermia), shock management, bleeding injuries and more.



Pet Expert, Joseph Giannini, is the Founder and Owner of Urban Out Sitters, Chicago’s premiere location for pet care offering luxury doggie daycare, dog walking, pet sitting and more. Urban Out Sitters has two locations across the city and provides Pet Hotel and Pet Taxi services for their Chicago clientele. Joe has 10 years experience working in the pet industry and cares for over 120 dogs a day! Joe is also Pet First Aid and CPR Certified by the American Red Cross and is a Professional Groomer, trained through The Academy of Dog Grooming Arts.

As an Animal Advocate, Joe works with the Chicago Police Department and The Dog Advisory Work Group (D.A.W.G) to protect pets from abusive owners. D.A.W.G is a court advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring the humane treatment of animals. Joe has worked with The Anti-Cruelty Society and Chicago’s Animal Control and is currently partnering with the Lakeshore Animal Shelter providing free no-kill boarding for lost, stray and unwanted pets throughout the Chicago city area.

Joe Giannini host’s a LIVE 30-minute weekly pet show on Channel 19’s CAN-TV. He’s a regular media commentator and appears regularly on WCIU. Joe has also been featured on the CW, in Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times and more! His business, Urban Out Sitters was voted Best Doggie Daycare & Pet Hotel by Chicago Magazine’s “Best Of” and has been profiled in Crain’s Chicago Business.


At Urban Out Sitters we continue to raise the bar above all our competitors to offer the best care for your dog. Each facility is clean, safe and certified by the Department of Agriculture offering stricter sanitary requirements; enforcing better screening for each dog; and selling a higher performance of daycare or kenneling. Our fully staffed facility is a smaller environment, specifically designed to maintain control, supervision and quality.For more information about the services we provide visit our website at www.urbanoutsitters.com