Your Horse First Aid Kit Is One Of The Most Important Items To Have In Your Barn.Having a fully stocked horse first aid kit is vital to proper horse care. It is the horse owners responsibility to provide the best care possible for your horses. It is important to have your first aid kit for horses close by and easily accessible. If you should have to face an equine emergency, scrambling to find supplies can waste precious time. You can choose to assemble your own, or you can purchase a pre-packaged one. The following is a list of items that you should keep in your horse first aid kit for at all times:
Make sure that your horse first aid kit is in a covered container. Plastic bins work well for this, or the stackable plastic drawers. Equine first aid should only be administered for minor wounds or injuries. A vet should be consulted before treating a sick or injured horse. The two most prescribed drugs for horse first aid, that I mentioned earlier, are Bute and Banamine. Bute is a non-steroid anti-inflammatory and pain reliever. Banamine is an anti-inflammatory, muscle relaxer and fever reducer. They are available in paste, tablets and injectables. Injections are the fastest way to get pain relief or reduce swelling in your horse. However, some people aren’t comfortable giving a horse a shot. If your not sure how to give a shot the other two methods will do. Paste is the second quickest method of horse first aid. It will take longer for the drug to take effect, but will also last longer. Crushing pills is the slowest method, but is also has the longest lasting effect. Crushing the pills and sprinkling them over your horses food will last for a prolonged period. Remember, always consult your vet before giving your horse any medication that your not sure about. How To Give A Horse A Shot. At some point, in horse first aid, you will have to give your horse an injection. The most common site for an injection is in the lateral muscle of the neck. Have someone hold your horse while you give the injection. Start by tapping on the muscle with your hand. Insert the needle and slightly draw back the syringe to make sure you do not get any blood. If you do draw blood, this indicates that you have hit a blood vessel. Remove the needle and try again. Intramuscular injections were not meant to be given in the vein. This can cause major problems.To avoid getting a knot at the injection site, gently massage the area for a few minutes. Know What Normal Is. A fever in a horse can be one of the first indicators that there is a problem. A normal temperature for a horse ranges from 99 to 100.5 degrees. A temperature over 102 degrees can be cause for alarm. You should contact your vet immediately. An increased respitory rate can be another sign that something is wrong. The typical rate for horses is 8 to 12 breaths per minute. Use the stethoscope in your first aid kit to measure breaths per minute. The pulse rate of an adult horse (at rest) should be about 30 to 40 beats per minute. A pulse rate of 50 or higher could mean physical distress. A horse’s pulse can be found by pressing your forefinger against the major artery underneath the front of the left jawbone. Count the breaths for 15 seconds and multiply that number by four. Your horse first aid kit is a necessity when properly caring for our equine buddies. Horses seem to always be getting themselves into one thing or another. So make sure you always keep first aid supplies on hand. It will be a big part of your horse care regimen. As you have learned by now, there is a lot more to horse care than just feeding, grooming and riding. Horses are a huge responsibility and a lot of work. However, the benefits of owning a horse are far greater.
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