Phew, He's Breathing / Classic Vet Student Moment

A very sick little blue penguin was brought to the hospital. It wasn't doing well, so it went straight into what's basically the ICU "tank" in the wildlife ward, a clear incubator/oxygen cage thingy.

When I came back from lunch, the poor guy looked awfully still. I watched him for a moment, then had a mini panic attack when I couldn't see him breathing.

Deeply concerned, I peered into the tank and watched him for a good minute. Uh oh, did he stop breathing? Do we need to start CPR? Then, much to my relief, I thought I saw some chest movement. Phew! He's breathing.

The clinician came out of the ward a moment later and said, "The little blue penguin died while you were at lunch, by the way."