I am putting together first aid kits for my cats, dog and goats.

Anyone have suggestions for what to put in the kits and for good first aid books pertaining to animals? I prefer holistic/natural oriented materials.

-- R. (thor610@yahoo.com), January 18, 2002

Answers

Cheapo Wally World brand saline solution for contacts. You can by the solution in other, first-aid bottles, but these are designed to be sqirted out in a fine, easily directable stream. Excellent for cleaning out wounds and the like, easy to keep contents sterile and in the bottle and low tox.

Medicated chapstick. Good to smear on wounds to cover and heal.

Bag of cheapo dollar store irregular hose. Excellent for making stretchy, breathable bandage strips. Can be cut into strips, or left as is for larger animals. They don't get icky when wet, and you can clean a wound right through them if you want to. Very fashionable, also.

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), January 18, 2002.

i got a first aid book that even tells how to do dog and cat cpr by going the the purina website. i can't remember what all it had in it but had the book, a frigerator magnet to write you vets number on it and a window decal to list what kind of animals are in it. You might try it it was free and did have what seemed to me to be good info.

-- gail missouri ozarks (gef@getgoin.net), January 18, 2002.

The Merck Veterinary Manual.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2222@hotmail.com), January 19, 2002.

To expand on Soni's wound washing suggestion, you can fill a clean large syringe with saline and get a higher pressure wash to dislodge more stubborn debri from a wound. By placing different size needles on the syringe you can adjust the pressure you can achieve.

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), January 19, 2002.