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Australian family uses CPR to rescue blue-tongued lizard

By Daniel Uria
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April 27 (UPI) -- A family in Australia helped save a blue-tounged lizard's life by performing CPR after it was found at the bottom of their pool.

Wildlife Rescue Sunshine Coast shared a photo of Dale Hall holding the lucky lizard, which he managed to save from a seemingly helpless situation.

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"He's a Super Hero along with his young nephew, Jayden, who came to the aid of a Blue Tongue Lizard in the bottom of his salt water swimming pool this afternoon," the rescue organization wrote on Tuesday.

Hall found the lizard at the bottom of his pool after returning from walking his dog and quickly decided to pull it out of the water despite fearing the worst.

"I saw the belly of this blue-tongue lizard on the bottom of the deepest end of the pool," he told ABC News. "I was like, 'Oh no. Goner. First casualty for the pool.'"

Hall had begun to dig a grave for the lizard, but then felt a bit of movement in his body and quickly decided to turn the lizard upside down in hopes of draining out as much water as possible.

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Once the water was drained Hall's nephew attempted to revive the lizard by performing CPR.

"Jayden started pumping its chest a bit," he said.

The lizard remained lifeless for another 15 minutes and Hall decided to place it in the hole when the lizard showed another sign of life.

"I laid it in the hole and there was another twitch," he said. "I could not believe this thing."

Shortly afterward the lizard appeared to be recovering and Hall decided to call volunteers at Wildlife Rescue Sunshine Coast for help.

A volunteer arrived to pick the lizard, which was later given the name Dusty, to Australia Zoo Animal Hospital.

Dusty is now doing well, but Claire Smith from Wildlife Rescue Sunshine Coast said it would not be alive were it not for Hall's quick thinking.

"If Dale hadn't turned him upside down and got a lot of water out [the lizard] would have just continued to drown," Smith said. "Hopefully this story will inspire other people to be a little bit more hands-on [with injured wildlife] and to ring us if they need help."

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