Pool Repairman Saves Drowning Squirrel With CPR (PHOTOS)

On a sunny spring day in Phoenix, Ariz., Rick Gruber attended a pool repair call. He was going out to install a pool heater. However, what was a typical call for this repairman turned into an animal rescue one that dubbed Gruber as the “Squirrel Whisperer.”

Upon arriving at the pool, Gruber noticed something in the water: a drowning, round-tailed ground squirrel. Adrenaline kicked in and he did what any animal lover would do; he fished the poor squirrel out.

The poor fellow was barely conscious, so Gruber set out to do squirrel CPR. He laid the squirrel on a PVC pipe and tried his best to squeeze the water out of this little guy’s lungs.

The squirrel finally coughed up some water and got the air he needed, while Gruber laid him down to rest in one of his knee pads.

The squirrel finally recovered enough to get up onto its shaky legs, and surveyed the environment.

And then, once the little fellow gained enough energy, the squirrel ran off — probably frightened of the whole ordeal and will never try swimming again, no matter how hot the day was.

Watch the whole, 1-hour long rescue video below (taken from Gruber’s cellphone):