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- What kind of wounds might the dog have?
- How are we to cure them?
- What should an emergency dog bag contain?
We all love our puppies and we care about their well-being and what happens to them. Therefore, it is good that we have basic knowledge about the first aid needed in different situations to preserve the health of our four-legged friends.
In order for you to have easy access to this information needed to help your faithful friend in some emergency cases, at PeritoAnimal we have already talked before about how to act in various cases such as poisoning, fights and other situations. But in this case we'll show you everything you need to know about wounds in dogs and first aid necessary.
What kind of wounds might the dog have?
Dogs, like people, can do different types of wounds playing, running, trying to do something complicated or in a fight, among other possibilities. Holidays in dogs can be:
- Polite: Where else we can see cuts on a dog is on its paws. Usually by walking on sharp soils such as asphalt or cement, by stepping on glass, cans and other possible materials, or they can cut themselves on plants.
- Broken or torn nails: This is a very painful type of wound because it affects the nail nerve and usually infects quickly if not healed immediately. Sometimes, if the dog's nails are too long, especially on the spurs, they can get caught in materials such as clothes, blankets, etc. It is at this moment that when trying to release the finger, the dog pulls hard and ends up hurting the nail. These holidays tend to bleed a lot and be painful. Sometimes they even tear off the nail or break it.
- Bites from other dogs or animals: Sometimes it's impossible to avoid accidents like fights because we realize it too late. If the dog has been bitten, depending on the affected area and the severity of the bite (depth and extension), the wound will be more or less severe. But of course we need to act as quickly as possible. These types of wounds are cuts and tears that, if left unattended, can infect.
Furthermore, in any of these cases, if the wound is severe and if you have a bleeding we must know how to act to stop it, otherwise it can be fatal for the dog.
How are we to cure them?
Then we explain how to go about healing the wounds and how to stop bleeding. We should always go to a veterinarian, although they can take some steps first.
When we find a wound in our faithful friend, we want to help him, but for that we must know how to act effectively, avoiding possible complications. See some measurements about first aid and steps to take to treat wounds.
- First we have to put a muzzle on him if we see that it hurts too much and won't let us help him calmly. This way we prevent it from biting us due to the pain that may be caused by the wound.
- He must clean the wound with lukewarm water, saline solution or a disinfectant such as chlorhexidine and remove possible remains of the material (earth, leaves, branches, glass, hair, etc.) that may be in contact with the wound. You can cut the hair around the wound if you believe it could contaminate the wound, making it easier to clean the affected area as well.
- disinfect the wound with hydrogen peroxide. You should never use alcohol as it does not coagulate and therefore only disinfects but does not stop bleeding, however small. Therefore, you should use hydrogen peroxide that disinfects and at the same time stops bleeding. It can help with sterile gauze to finish removing debris, always patting gently and never rubbing the wound with gauze. If the bleeding is severe, apply pressure to the wound for as long as possible before covering it with a bandage. If you can't stop the bleeding easily, you should call the veterinary emergency room to help you as soon as possible or let them know you're on your way. Never take a tourniquet unless your vet tells you to do it and explains exactly how to do it.
- leave the wound air before covering it to dry as much as possible. Let it air for a few minutes.
- cover the wound without putting too much pressure, just enough so that materials do not enter that could contaminate it. Cover with sterile gauze and bandage.
- resort to vet so you can see the wound and do whatever it takes to make sure your puppy is okay. You may need antibiotics, some sutures, or anything else the vet thinks is important.
What should an emergency dog bag contain?
Something essential we should know is to have a first aid bag to be able to help our dog at home. In fact, you need almost the same things you find in a people's first-aid kit. This is a list of the most needed things.
- The number of veterinary emergencies or our trusted veterinarian
- Muzzle suitable for the size of our dog
- Disposable latex gloves
- Sterile gauze, cotton, bandages and absorbent pads
- Saline in individual doses, chlorhexidine, iodine or an equivalent disinfectant in spray, liquid or powder
- 3% hydrogen peroxide and 96º alcohol
- High fixation adhesive
- Scissors, nail clippers and tweezers
- Medicines that our veterinarian may have prescribed for our dog
- Syringes to be able to perform oral administrations
- rectal thermometer
All this material is essential in the first aid bag, but it is always advisable to consult your trusted veterinarian to help you assemble this bag.
This article is for information purposes only, at PeritoAnimal.com.br we are not able to prescribe veterinary treatments or perform any type of diagnosis. We suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case it has any type of condition or discomfort.