Putting Together a First Aid Kit

[djc1285]

Hey everyone, Summertime is here and me and my buddies have planned a fishing trip up in Canada for a long weekend. I'm bringing my 1 yr old Brit along with a couple other dogs will be coming along. We will be about an hour boat ride away from civilization and 2 hours from the nearest vet (up in Sudsbury ON). Just in case anything goes wrong I want to come prepared.

I have been looking at First Aid Kits for dogs online at Cabelas and noticed that the price range is from 25 to 90 bucks. Any tips or suggestions about first aid kits and what they should contain incase she hurts a paw or gets bitten by something. Anything can happen up there.

Thanks for the help.

[jlp8cornell]

Here is a list my buddy, her hubby and I put. He is a human EMT so may include things that some would not.

vet wrap
4x4s

hydrogen peroxide (to induce vomiting)
benadryl
novasan
cortizone
neosporin
pain med
eye ointment
pepto tabs

tick remover
small tweezers
clamp/hemostat (for big splinters)
scissors
saline/water
light

cold packs
hot packs (hand warmers)

muzzle
nylon leash
tape
comb
magnifing glass
kwik stop
oral syringe to flush wounds
bitter apple to discourage licking
Pedialyte
qtips

[Mountaineer]

A section of nylon stocking is good to keep a damaged ear tight to the dog's head to prevent the ear from flapping around and so increasing or restarting the bleeding.

[djc1285]

Perfect. Thanks alot.

[jlp8cornell]

Welcome. A lot cheaper to do yourself! Oh, I also have a product called EMT gel. Good to cover any wound.

[Greg Jennings]

Nolvasan is a chorlohexidine gluconate solution. Any brand will do. Mine is something like "ChloroDerm".

IMHO, everyone's kit, even for a weekend trip, should include

1. Metronidazole (brand name Flagyl). For lower GI diarrhea.
2. Immodium. For stopping diarrhea. A half-tab for 50 lb dog.
3. At least one roll of paper towels. For clean up.
4. Two garbage bags. One for things to be thrown away, one for things to be sprayed off and washed later.
5. A small roll of duct tape. It holds the universe together.
6. Some Simple Green solution. For anything that needs cleaning.

[Fireside]

some great suggestions allready. I would add the following items to the list as well:

a couple of rolls of vet wrap (from the local horse/feed store)
some large and small gauze or non-stick pads
a couple of heavy women's menstrual pads
and I add a small suture kit

[nitrex]

Heavy duty rubberbands...If you need to stop a badly cut tongue before a dog bleeds out, put a rubberband on it. I have a friend that saved a dogs life by doing this. Freak accidents happen, so be prepared to think creatively.

Nitrex

[Mountaineer]

Skunk wash
Cowboy Magic for burr removal
PetClot...just in case
Small honey packet, Nutri-Cal or the like
Photos of your dog in case they get lost, notecard/pen...been there and not a good place.
Phone number of that nearest vet
Dog vet history/vaccination schedule

[jcbjr]

A surgical stapler is easier, less painful than suture, and usually adequate for most cuts. splint material (like SAM splint). Army field dressing (really big, absorbent bandage from Uncle Sam, available surplus) for really bad wounds. sheet cotton or cast padding to pad fracture/ bad cut so you can wrap tightly w/o cutting off circulation. Do your homework and find out where the closest vet is to where you're hunting, and what his/her emergency protocol is, and phone #. I've pulled a few dogs out of the jaws of death that were injured in hunting accidents or snake bitten that no amount of field expedient equipment/first aid knowledge would have helped much. Super Glue cures a world of ills, like minor cuts, torn pads, etc. Just stop the bleeding first, put it on, and press together and hold for a few seconds, bandage if necessary. I, too, love duct tape. Gorilla Tape rocks. Large gauge hypodermic needles (16 ga., 14 ga.) to decompress a bloating dog; may just buy you enough time to get to the vet for definitive treatment ( push into bloated stomach behind last rib on left side and let gs out). this is last ditch salvage procedure,and not curative, but bloating (GDV) dogs die fast if nothing is done. ask a vet if unsure about just how to do it. Blood clotting enhancer, like Celox. BAg/ bottle of sterine saline or Ringers solution to flush wounds (cheap- ask your vet or a nurse- people hospitals throw this stuff away unopened every day!)
Red Flare Kits website has a lot of this stuff, plus a bunch of neat stuff to look at!<http://www.redflarekits.com>

Don't shoot your eye out!.....................Jim B., DVM