First Aid Kit for Animal Rescue

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My good friend Christina from SPEAK For Animals has put a list of first aid items needed when rescuing animals. This is a great list very useful to all wildlife carers and those involved in rescuing animals during natural disasters.

Health & Safety:

  • High-visibility vest
  • Compass, for finding your way out of the bush, or for directing others in
  • Heavy gloves – for handling animals that may bite or scratch
  • Disposable gloves – for protection from germs, bacteria, disease: (eg: Lyssivirus)
  • Cap and sunscreen (sun protection)
  • Beanie and fleecy mittens (cold protection, eg: night rescues)
  • Portable reflectors to position on roads

Preparation:

  • Wire cutters, for releasing animals entangled in fences
  • Bolt cutters, for emergency entry into property, or across property boundaries
  • Torch, headlamp, portable spotlight
  • Binoculars

Enticements:

  • Cat dry bits, dog kibble, eg: for attracting animals, for building confidence
  • Pony gumnuts for herbivores, eg: for ponies, goats, wallabies
  • Applesauce, eg: to assist with administering oral medications

Restraints & control devices:

  • Hessian bag, eg: to cover the head of a large animal, or to hold a snake
  • Rope, lead rope, muzzle, twitch, etc.

Assessment items:

  • Digital thermometer, spare batteries, tool to change batteries, lubricant, cleaner.
  • Stethoscope
  • Digital scales, spare batteries
  • Spray paint (for marking deceased wildlife)
  • Magnifying glass, eg: for locating a paralysis tick

Comfort items:

  • Blanket, towels, eg: for keeping animals warm, to carry immobile bodies
  • Sponge,
  • Gauze, eg: to assist clotting of wounds
  • Wadding, cotton wool, cotton buds, swabs
  • Bandages, elastoplast, vet wrap, duct tape, masking tape

Treatment tools:

  • Clean empty bottle to mix solutions, eg: iodine wash
  • Tweezers
  • Eye dropper
  • Scissors, eg: bandage scissors, surgical scissors
  • Acupuncture needle, for stimulating GV26 point in cardiac arrest
  • Hoof boot
  • Splint, bubble wrap, eg: useful for splinting
  • Rubber bulb ear syringe
  • Clean syringes, for administering meds
  • Atomizer, eg: for spraying solution onto wounds

Treatment products:

  • Pure water, for making solutions, rinsing eyes, etc
  • Antiseptic wash, eg: Dettol, tea tree oil, iodine
  • Lubricant, burn salve, eg: petroleum jelly, Aloe gel
  • Alcohol, metho, eg: for sterilizing
  • Salt, eg: for making a saline wash for wounds
  • Carb soda, for inducing emergency vomiting, dogs & cats
  • Electrolytes
  • Antiseptic cream, zinc cream
  • Bute sachets (horses)
  • Rescue Remedy, a safe homeopathic remedy for soothing emotional trauma

Support people / phone numbers:

  • Vets, farriers, wildlife shelters, emergency help lines, (eg: poisons info line), friends or associates who may be able to offer practical advice or assistance
  • Police, for requesting permission to enter private premises, for traffic control, for carrying out emergency euthanasia, to notify of any impending firearm usage

Incident report:

  • Pen and paper, to record animal’s condition, readings of heart rate, temp., etc
  • Wildlife report: date and location of animal collection reported to vet

Assorted useful items:

  • Plastic bag, for holding soiled wadding, bloody towels, etc
  • Zip lock bags
  • Sample containers, eg: urine sample jars
  • Cable ties, eg: to re-secure gates after cutting latches or chains
  • Driver’s licence, wildlife licence, snake handling licence
  • First Aid Manual
  • Snake ID booklet

Everyday things:

  • Mobile phone for communications
  • Camera / phone camera, for collecting visible information / evidence

All First Aid gear should be stored neatly in a strong, secure, waterproof container.

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