Important Note: Please read!
The advice below is intended to be read in its entirety before an emergency arises. If you are rushing to your computer to read it during an emergency you are wasting valuable time! If your animal is injured or suddenly becomes sick please contact us, or your own veterinary surgeon if we do not look after your pet, for advice immediately. These are just guidelines which it may be useful to know in an emergency, they are no replacement for proper veterinary care.
The first thing you need is a good first aid kit. Do not wait for an emergency, get it ready now. We can help you to assemble the contents. These are suggestions for items you might include in your kit.
First Aid Kit
Essential Contents
- Slip lead and a blanket
- Several rolls of various sizes of non-adhesive crepe bandages
- One or two small adhesive bandages
- Quantity hospital quality cotton wool
- Sterile swabs/dressing pads
- A pair of tights (very useful as you will see!)
- Scissors
- Thermometer
- Antiseptic
- Ointment
- Eyewash solutionWashing soda crystals
Useful Contents
- Muzzles in a range of sizes
- Moulded casts in a range of sizes
- Elizabethan collars
- A strong blanket
Most of these items are readily available from your veterinary surgeon who will advise on the most suitable items to stock.
General Advice
The Aims of First Aid are:
- To Preserve Life
- To Prevent Suffering
- To Prevent further deteriorationThe giving of any treatment for any other purpose is not First Aid
The most important rule of first aid is do not panic! We make no apology for mentioning this again and again in this page!
Topics
- Road Traffic Accidents
- Animal not Breathing
- Bleeding Wounds
- Bandaging
- Fractures
- Eye Injuries
- Drowning
- Heatstroke
- Poisoning
Road Traffic Accidents (RTAs)
General Advice
- Don’t Panic – it will make matters much worse
- Send someone to phone a veterinary surgeon
- Hold up the traffic so that no further accidents occur
- Restrain animal while you gather your thoughts, using your foot if necessary to avoid being bitten
- Loop a lead over a dogs neck
- Apply a tape muzzle unless dog has problems breathing (use the tights!)
- Move dog to roadside by sliding or on a blanket
- Move cat on a towel, shovel or by foot
- Check for breathing and if animal is having difficulty breathing treat accordingly
- Check for seriously bleeding wounds and treat accordingly (below)
- Move Dog on a blanket or board ‘stretcher’
- Move cat wrapped in a coat or towel
How to apply a Tape Muzzle
- Use a lead, a belt, a neck tie or the tights!
- Anything similar will suffice.
- Make a loop and pass it over the dogs nose with the free ends of the tie (or whatever) over the nose
- Pass the free ends of the tie below the dogs jaw, cross them over.
- Bring the free ends behind the ears and tie firmly in place
- The end result should look like the picture (up)
- Using a long enough tie you can accomplish this while keeping your fingers well out of harms way
- It is a good idea to practice putting on a tape muzzle before you need to use one in an emergency situation
Move injured animals to a Veterinary Hospital as soon as possible
3 Steps in First Aid at an RTA
Step 1: Don’t Panic!
- Do not put yourself in Danger
- Tape emergency phone numbers inside kit
- Send someone to phone a vet
- Always phone the Vet before traveling with an injured animal
- Use what materials are to hand:Newspaper splints
- Torn Shirt Bandagesh
- T-shirt Dressing pads
Step 2: Maintain Airway**
Be extremely careful handling any injured animals mouth. Reread section on applying a tape muzzle.**
Preserve Airway
Lie Dog or cat on its sideStraighten neckPull out tongue as far as possible
Carefully clear any debris from the mouth.
Assisted Breathing
Ventilate the animal by closing the mouth, and performing mouth-to-nose ventilations: cup your hands closely around the animals nose and breath into it.
Ventilate at 20 breaths per minute***
You can read this Guide to Animal CPR for very detailed instructions***
Step 3: Control Hemorrhage
- Do not apply a tourniquet, they do more harm than good in 99% of cases
- Use a swab and cotton wool pad large enough to cover the entire bleeding area
- Apply firm pressure on the bleeding area, using your fingers or the palm of your hand
- Bandage pad in place firmly and evenlyIf blood comes through… apply another bandage on top
- Do not remove first bandage
- Firm finger pressure above the bleeding may also help.
Wounds
Minor Wounds
- Clip hair in area of wound
- Clean with plain or salted water
- Apply antiseptic ointment
- Repeat 2-3 times daily until healed
- Do not bandage
- Do not allow licking
- If healing is not rapid, wound is red or swollen or there is any discharge seek veterinary attention
Serious Wounds
Seeping Dark Blood – Damage to vein
- Treat as minor wound
- Lightly bandage swab and cotton wool pad in place
- Seek veterinary attention
Spurting Bright Blood – Damage to Artery
- Do not clean
- Apply pressure bandage as described above for haemorrhage
- Seek veterinary attention at once
Note the following
- Cuts more than 1 inch long generally require suturing
- Bite wounds may look minor but there can be considerable damage below the skin – always get veterinary treatment
- All deep wounds, no matter how small, need veterinary attention
- Old socks, pieces of tights etc. are useful to keep bandages in place
About Bandaging
Follow these instructions to apply effective and safe bandages:
Bandaging a limb
- Start at foot and bandage upwards
- Each turn of the bandage should overlap the previous one by 1/3 – 1/2
- Use non adhesive bandage where possible
- Apply with firm even pressure but not too tight
- Hold in place with pin or small amount of adhesive tape
Some Tricky Bandages
A Bleeding Ear
- Sandwich ear between swabs
- Apply a cotton wool pad each side
- Put ear on top of head
- Hold in place with a leg of those tights pulled over head
A Bleeding Tail
- Apply Pressure or other bandage as usual
- Get old small container, inside of bandage roll or even loo roll
- Place roll/container over the bleeding area and bandage in place
