If your pet has been injured, emergency pet care will be required. One of the first things you should do is contact your veterinarian. If it is after regular business hours or on a weekend or a holiday, you may be referred to a different vet that takes care of after-hours emergencies. You may not even be able to get to see a vet until the following day. This means that you will need to provide some medical care to your pet yourself. Read on to learn more about what you can do to keep your pets comfortable until you can get them to the vet.
Your Pet First-Aid Kit
Every home should have a first-aid kit, and when you have pets, you should also have a pet first-aid kit. This kit should include the following items for emergency pet care:
* Sterile gauze bandages and adhesive tape for cuts and scrapes
* Gauze pads to apply on bleeding wounds
* Scissors
* Cotton swabs
* Eye wash
* Triple antibiotic ointment (Polysporin is fine for pets)
* Hydrocortisone cream for rashes
* Children’s Aspirin
Emergency Treatments at Home
There are several reasons why you may need to use emergency first-aid treatments on your pets before you can get to the vet. Here are some of the most common health emergencies face, and what to do about them.
* Poisoning – The first thing to do is to check the label on the substance that the pet got into and look at the first-aid treatment that is generally meant for humans. If the pet has only had a surface contact (the poison is on the skin or in the eyes), follow the instructions on the bottle and use the skin and eye wash. If your pet has consumed poison, an immediate trip to the vet will be needed.
* Cuts – If your pet is bleeding from a cut, it may not actually be necessary to seek out vet care. It will depend on the severity of the cut. It is best to muzzle the animal, and then clean the area so you can look at the actual cut. If it is minor or just a scrape, apply some triple antibiotic ointment and wrap the area with a gauze bandage.
* Fractures – A fracture is not something you should try to take care of yourself. Instead, muzzle your pet, and lay it out on a flat board. Cover your pet with a small blanket or towel to make it more comfortable. Next, go directly to the vet, or if it is after-hours, contact the emergency vet to seek treatment.
Your pets are part of your family, and they should receive the same quality of medical care that you would expect for your human family members. You can often do a lot of your own pet first-aid, which can mean the difference between life and death if you aren’t able to take your pet to the vet right away. To know more pet care tips visit Ark Pet Hospital. You can also follow them on Twitter.
