ORLANDO, Fla. – They say cats have nine lives, but in the case of Buddy, he gave his owner a second chance at life.
Buddy is more than just a stray cat given shelter in a home. According to the Chap family, he's a hero.
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"He was meowing, scratching, and jumping, and just trying to get my attention," said Jennifer Chap, who was working in her home office when Buddy started misbehaving.
Chap picked up her cat and walked to the kitchen, where her husband was kneeling over the counter and going into a sudden cardiac arrest.
Chap pulled her husband onto the kitchen floor and gave him CPR until paramedics arrived. She said he wasn't breathing.
"I just waited and said a little prayer, and they got a heart beat," she said.
That was the first major hurdle. After a heart procedure and six months of cardiac rehab at Orlando Regional Medical Center, Rick Chap lives to tell his story.
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"I really really owe my life to Buddy because without him, (my wife) would have never come out of that office," he said.
"You hear sometimes that animals have these abilities to detect different things," said Jennifer Chap, who's now a believer.
Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.