The Importance of a Properly Stocked First Aid Kit

*Sez*

*Sez*

Salsa & Solstice Twilight
Sep 12, 2003
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North Yorkshire
salsachronicles.blogspot.com
I felt so useless tonight! :eek:
Yesterday I noticed Sal had this big "scab" on the inside of his hind leg, but it was clearly tender and he didn't want me to see, and kept lifting his leg away and shifting around. I asked a couple of people to have a look, because when I did manage to have a gentle feel, it felt weepy, but they said it looked like he'd taken some fur off and gotten a graze and to "leave well enough alone". So I gave it a wipe over, sprayed some aloe vera vetinary spray on it, and left it be.

Tonight I was brushing Sal's legs and I noticed this "scab" absolutely stank, almost like rotting cheese. :( . So I called my RI down to have a smell. She told me the "scab" was actually mud (flipping lights are so dim in our barn), and once her partner (who runs our local saddlery) had managed to get all the mud off while Salsa was hopping around on three legs, it was decided the wound was fairly nasty :( . It looks like he's clipped himself with his other back foot whilst galloping in the field, and has carved a circle about the size of an old fifty pence piece out of his leg. It was very weepy and full of pus and I felt so stupid for having not realised last night, but Sal's always coming in covered in cuts and scabs and usually a quick wipe and some purple or aloe spray sorts him out. So my RI asks if I have any salt in my first aid kit... ummm... nope. :eek: It was something I was always intending to take the the yard and kept forgetting about. How embarassing - she had to go and beg salt from one of our neighbours to clean the wound out, and then asked whether I had a poultice. Luckily I'd bought some Animalintex, so that was okay, but I didn't have any vetwrap and my RI didn't think the bandages I had would hold the poultice in place. Then the scissors in the kit weren't really big enough to cut the poultice :eek: :eek: :eek: By this point, I felt about two inches high.

When Sal was all bandaged up, my RI also gave me some cream to put on the wound when it is clean and I was left with strict instructions to make sure his tendon boots go on tomorrow so that the bandage doesn't come off or get dirty.

It doesn't sound so bad now I read it back, but I honestly felt like I would be nominated for "worst horse owner of the year" award! So I'll be dragging my equine first aid manual off the bookshelf and taking it to live at the yard - it's not much use at home!
 
:D My veterinary manual lives at the yard and I have a whole draw full of first aid kit (and probably second and third aid too ;) :D ) but there are still pleanty of times I don't have what I need or the scissors are blunt cause I have used them to chop the hose pipe cause it got a hole :rolleyes:

J x
 
Don't put cream on a pussy wound, if you do make sure it is from an un-opened tube well within date. Throw the rest away once you have finished.

Cream from half used tubes is a wonderful growth medium for bacteria. It can also seal guck into a wound. You want the conditions of the would to be unsuitable for bacteria to grow in - ie dry. I never use creams on woulds unless it is prescribed by the vet for a specific condition.

Water, and powder is far better. A poultice of Pevidine and sugar is wonderful, the sugar helps peel all the guck off and keeps the would clean and bacteria cannot suffer the high sucrose levels.
 
Thanks, Wally :) I'll check it tonight and if it's still gross, I'll be getting the vet out. Unfortunately, with the poor lighting in our barn, just because I noticed it Monday night, doesn't mean it wasn't there over the weekend and just got over-looked. I always try to make a point of checking him over thoroughly every day, but he doesn't like to make it easy for me :rolleyes: and I didn't bring him in Saturday evening. I doubt the friend that put him to bed would check him over like I do. Are all TBs so accident prone?
 
His leg looked much better last night, so I gave it a good clean and covered it over with some wound powder and a fresh dressing. I'm so relieved it doesn't look anywhere near as serious as it did the night before, but my RI's partner said he might end up with some Proud Flesh, but should be fine. He's already covered in lumps and bumps and old scars on his legs, so it's not like we're going to lose out on a show career :rolleyes: . I'm just so pleased it's looking better - I was freaking out thinking his leg was going to be seriously infected and really upset with myself for not realising and treating it straight away. He was really good for me last night, and stood very still while I washed and dressed the wound - I was expecting more of the hopping, skipping display he put on the night before, so I'm hoping that means it's feeling a bit better as well.

My first aid kit now contains a small torch and spare batteries, a HUGE bottle of salt, some more skin tact wound dressings and vetrap. The next time I go to Tesco, I'm going to get some vaseline and a bunch of new sponges as well.
 
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