National Pet First Aid Month

Chloe with the contents of our First Aid "basket."
April has been quite the busy month! It is, among other notable events, National Pet First Aid Month. Even though today is the last day of April, it' never too late to think about pet First Aid and pet First Aid kits.

In October we discussed knowing CPR for your pet. If you haven't taken a class, this would be a great time to look into it. Check out the American Red Cross website for more information.

We have had a large First Aid "basket" for several years after Gibson had seizures. We also have a cool little white First Aid kit compliments of our furpals, Cooper & Lola, who had a drawing earlier in the year. We have them both stocked with an instant cold pack, paper towels, Rescue Remedy, pheromone calming spray, thermometer, a diary with notations of past seizures and medicine dosages, emergency vet, veterinarian hospital, and animal poison control numbers. During the spring and summer, we also keep an eye dropper and liquid Benadryl handy in case of bee stings and allergic reactions. (Always check for dosage amounts with your vet). Additional First Aid kit items should include bandages, tweezers (for splinter and tick removal), stethoscope, alcohol swabs, Chlorox wipes (to wipe down accidents) and a mini to-go kit for car trips and hiking. For a list of other items to have in your pet's First Aid Kit, check out the American Veterinary Medical Association's list. 

In the event of a natural disaster, do you have an escape plan for you and your pet? Check out the complete Pet & Disaster Safety Guide.

Other key things to remember every day as a precaution, is to have your pets microchipped, and have pet ID tags on their collars with a contact phone number and any medical alerts for the dog.


If you don't have an ice pack handy, a bag of frozen veggies will do, as Chloe models. Whatever you can get can help your pet in case of an emergency.


















Here are a few videos from the American Red Cross talking about important pet First Aid Kit items and also some tips on somethings we need to keep an eye out for, especially during the hotter times of the year - dehydration and heat exhaustion. Even though the temps only were in the mid-80s here recently, the humidity was high and it did a quick jump from the 50s to the 80s in one day - a very drastic temperature change that can seriously affect dogs. Recently, my big wooly boy had a touch of heat exhaustion for two days, complete with vomiting and lethargy. He is doing well now, but not until after I stayed with him for a 24-hour watch, with him on a cooler bed in the A/C and my spritzing him with water all night (and placing some bags of frozen veggies under his neck). And it's not even summer yet and he wasn't exerting himself, and we have lots of shade and cool drinking water always available. So, beware of sudden temperature spikes where our pets don't have the chance to adjust to the difference in degrees.(Also, in the video, note what type of dog they have on display - a Sibe!)



Have a happy and safe weekend!



Comments

  1. oooh, good safety tips! Have a fun and safe weekend!
    Your pals,
    Diane and Cosmo

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  2. great post... love your big first aid basket

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  3. Happy Saturday! What a wonderful and important post!
    I get so nervous about heat exhaustion with the Newfs!

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  4. Another wonderful pet PSA. Great first aid basket too. One can never be too prepared for an emergency. We get some pretty hot and humid days here and it won't be long before they hit. Thankfully we have a/c vents to keep us cool and the Momster never lets us stay out very long. Hope the wooly boy is doing better now.

    That pup in the video looks a lot like the one Mom has on the guest bed here.

    Woos ~ Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara

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  5. I had to chuckle at the obedient sibe in the videos. But good info. Very important. Mango overheats so easily that I am extra careful with him. Sometimes I spritz him with the hose when he's been bouncing in the sun. I especially focus on cooling his under carriage and neck.

    Mango Momma

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  6. That is very important information! I knew about the Bendryl because of racing Holly to the vet two times for bee stings but didn't know about some of the other things...and that is a wonderful picture of Chloe with the ice pack! I do have lots of IDs on Holly and the chip in her. Wonderful post!!! Lots of love, Debbie and Holly

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  7. That really is great information and I hope everyone pays attention! Have a great sunday!!!

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  8. Great information! Thanks for sharing :D

    Waggin at ya,
    Roo

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  9. Great tips! Thanks for sharing and thanks for stopping by our blog! :)

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  10. These are great tips! It is so important that you have a first aid kit handy, and especially one that is up to date! That's what I always forget - hard to remember to rotate products.

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  11. Great post! If you go camping in remote places like we do, it's worth talking to your vet about some more serious stuff for your first aid kit, like antibiotics, pain medicines, etc. Our vet trusts us to know common illnesses when we see them so she lets us keep this stuff in our kit. The main thing that we have to remember is to replace the expired meds each year.

    Thanks for a great post.

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  12. Hey, that dog in the video looks just like you guys! :D

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