Putting Together a Dog/Cat First Aid Kit

Do you know what to do in case of an emergency with your dog? It is imperative that you keep a first aid kit available at all times because it can be a matter of life and death for your dog. This type of kit should be in your home as well as the car (if you like to travel with your pets).

Each kit should first include a book of 1^st aid care for dogs (or cats), whatever pets you have. Inside that book you should include phone numbers such as your veterinarian's number, his emergency number, the phone number for the emergency veterinarians and also the number for the ASPCA poison control center.

Along with all this information, your emergency kit should include such items as

• Scissors

• Tweezers (a flat slanted tip variety)

• Sterile needle (for splinters and tick heads)

• Turkey baste or some type of bulb syringe (for flushing out wounds)

• Eye dropper

• Tongue depressor

• Rubber gloves

• Nail clippers

• Comb & brush

• Rectal thermometer (a dog's normal body temperature should be between 100.5 - 102.5)

• Small clipper or shaver to remove fur from an injured area

• Towels/paper towels

• Blankets

• Bandannas/nylon stockings and strips of cloth which may need to be used for a muzzle, tourniquet or other injury

• Dog bootie or sock to cover an injured foot

• Ice pack or hot/cold pack

• Gauze

• Gauze pads and other bandages

• Cotton/cotton balls and cotton swabs

• Vet wrap which sticks to itself - this is the best stuff ever for many uses and can be purchased at any pet store

• Anti-bacterial wipes or pads and iodine

• Peroxide

• Activated charcoal

• Betadine solution

• Anti-biotic ointment

• Rubbing alcohol

These are some of the most needed items to help in almost any emergency situation for the care of your dog. There are many other things that you can put in the kit per your own personal needs for your pet. Sometimes petroleum jelly for taking the temperature and a styptic powder to stop bleeding may be another choice for the kit as well as Epsom salt and baking soda.

This list can go on and on but as we all know, prevention is the best solution. When your dog gets itself in a serious situation, handling the problem at the moment before you can get it to the veterinarian is crucial. With many situations, minutes count. You may not have all these and other necessary items in your home but it would be in the best interest of your pets and the family, for that matter, to be prepared for any emergency situation . . . before it happens.