Safety First: Building a First Aid Kit

Leave a reply

Always be prepared.  That’s the scout motto isn’t it?  Well, it certainly is in our house.  Since my husband and I are both fairly active with our dogs, because they wouldn’t have it any other way, means that we always have to be prepared for that one thing to go wrong.  The just in case situation that can be a simple fix or even a lifesaving action on the way to the vet (thankfully, we’ve not had any of the latter just yet.  *knocking on wood!*).

For all of those scratches, cuts, allergic reactions, burns, etc. that your dog may encounter (or you for that matter!), it is always good to have a first aid kit on hand.  Our first aid kit is pretty extensive and covers pretty much anything that can be thought of.  It contains items both for dog and people use and gets put in the car if we leave with a dog or five for that chance encounter with disaster but your kit doesn’t have to hold as much if you’d prefer it didn’t.  We’ve seen some kits that had the bare essentials and then our behemoth-type kits so it’s personal preference.

Our First Aid Kit

Our First Aid Kit

When making a first aid kit, remember to have a container specifically designated for your items.  This kit needs to be as sanitary as possible so be prepared to have a lot of bags and what not to contain items so they don’t encounter things that could potentially make a situation worse.

In our kit, we have the following items:

  • Mesh Muzzles (ones that will fit our dogs)
  • Slip leads (the veterinary variety)
  • Anti-Diarrheal medication
  • Triple Antibiotic Ointment
  • Hydrocortisone Cream
  • Glucose Tablets/Gel
  • Thermometer (and Tip Covers)
  • Pill Crusher and Pill Cutter
  • White Hand Towels
  • Q-tips and Cotton Balls
  • Gauze Pads and Wrap
  • Liquid Bandage
  • Cloth and Self-Adhesive Tapes
  • Rubbing Alcohol
  • Hydrogen Peroxide
  • Bag Balm
  • Vet/Sport Wrap
  • Safety Pins
  • Bulb Syring
  • Antacids, Asprin and Ibuprofen
  • Petroleum Jelly
  • Calamine Lotion
  • Saline Eye Wash
  • Eye Dropper
  • Instant Cold Compress
  • Emergency Blanket
  • Epsom Salts
  • Styptic Powder
  • Rescue Remedy
  • Pedialyte Unflavored or Orange (we change this out every couple of months)
  • Hand Sanitizer
  • LED Flashlight
  • First Aid Books for dogs and people
  • First Aid Instruments (gloves, splinter remover, scissors, tweezers, finger splint and light)

As I said, it’s pretty extensive.  There are a few things I’d like to add but the kit is always a work in progress when I learn something new and/or important for the wellbeing of the beasts or the humans.  We have our current veterinarian’s information on a laminated 3×5 card and make temporary cards with veterinary information for areas we may be traveling near for those just in case moments along with other important numbers  – like poison control!

 If you’re not up for making your own, there are many ready-made kits available online in every price bracket and at many local pet suppliers as well.  It is, however, incredibly important to have something like this assembled before an emergency occurs with your pet or yourself.   These items could be a lifesaving difference if something occurred and are a smart idea in any home with or without pets.

Five Thousand Visitors!

Leave a reply

thank-you-spoiling-the-heck-out-of-my-dog-1347763407

I normally don’t do mundane, non-dog-related posts but I have to give a serious thank you to all of my readers and blog visitors.  Thanks to you guys, we’ve made it to 5,000 visitors…well, 5,016 visitors as of this post… in the short while that the blog has really been up and moving with some regularity (or in other words, that I’ve been posting more frequently!).

A lot of the goals I originally started out with for this blog have changed and upgraded.  I’d like to eventually start having contests, reviews and other things.  I always welcome guest authors who’d like to post about subject matter I’ve not had a chance to explore from the working aspect end of things and other bright and wonderful ideas that will grow this blog into a beautiful creation with the help of its readers.

I can’t begin to thank you enough and hope you keep reading and keep sharing.  The dogs and I are glad to have you here now and for the future!

Quit Bugging Me!

Leave a reply

Tick

With the weather having warmed up, those of us outdoor lovin’ dog owners are venturing out onto trails, walking paths or anything else we can do with our dogs in Mother Nature’s glory.  Unfortunately, a few of our eight-legged creepy crawly friends are joining us on our adventures and with them they bring all sorts of nasty health and welfare concerns too.

In Michigan, we’ve seen a massive explosion in tick populations statewide.  Experts are linking these growth spurts to a variety of factors including the following:

  • Warmer winters;
  • Suburbanization (bringing wildlife and people in closer proximity);
  • A boom in the white-tailed deer population;
  • Migratory birds transporting ticks and other parasites to new areas;
  • The use of fewer insecticides.

An increase in the tick population means a far greater risk of tick-borne diseases like Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and Babesiosis.  These diseases can be viral, bacterial or parasitic in nature and each is dangerous in their own rite. Thankfully, there are many easily performed actions that will reduce or prevent these nasty monsters from wrecking havoc on your adventures into Mother Nature’s abode.

To reduce the chances of encountering  disease carrying ticks on you or your pets, make sure you adhere to these simple solutions:

  • Check your pets and yourself for ticks daily, especially after spending time outdoors.
  • Remove any ticks found immediately.
  • Have your vet perform a flea and tick check at each exam.
  • Become informed about tick-borne diseases and species in your area.  (Click here for species identification.)
  • Talk to your veterinarian about using flea and tick preventatives on your pet(s).
  • Reduce the tick habitat in your yard.
  • If out hiking, wear light-colored clothing and check your gear.

While ticks are fast becoming a major problem, their effects on enjoying Mother Nature’s splendor is still fairly simple.  We personally follow most of the above suggestions like making sure we dose our dogs (and cats!) with Advantix 2, using an additional spray on us and the dogs (Off! Deep Woods for us and UltraShield EX for the dogs) and following the check and remove (highly recommend this tick remover!) procedure.  We still deal with a few ticks here and there but not nearly as bad as they possibly could be (and have been!).

Here’s to a happy and safe tick season (hopefully tick-free!) from our pack to yours on your outdoor adventures.

 

Sources:
  • www.niaid.gov/topics/tickborne/Pages/Default.aspx
  • www.veterinarypractices.com/vet-cover-stories/tick-populations-to-explode.aspx

Doggie Family Photo: Controlled Chaos

Leave a reply

Every so often I get the bug to get all five dogs together and posed for a family photo.  Every single time I ask myself by the end of the photo shoot what the heck I was thinking and this time was no exception.  Getting five dogs that are all incredibly toy motivated to sit still while your other half is squeaking and tossing their ZOMG! FAVORITE TOY EVAR! (only when a person has it) to get their attention is a barely contained chaos ready to explode.  We always end up with bloopers and very grateful pair of people who are glad we have a digital camera versus the old 35mm film I used to shoot in.

The photos always start out with someone refusing to look at the camera or the toy.  Luna’s usually pretty darn good at fulfilling this because she thinks having her photo taken is beneath her being the princess and all.

blooper-family-june2013-5045

Then we end up with someone breaking their sit stay.  It’s usually either Lyric or Duo because the road to temptation is paved with good intentions and they think that Daddy needs help with squeaking the toy.

blooper-family-june2013-5026

Then we usually get one or two other dogs thinking or starting to break because one of them just had to set the bad example.  (There’s always one bad apple in the pack, right?)

blooper-family-june2013-5028

And finally the perfect shot happens.  It usually takes a lot of repositioning, repeated commands and curse words made to sound happy so that I can keep the mood lite even if I want to strangle my wonderful dogs for being such naughty brats but it happens.  Once it is all said and done, it’s well worth the frustration and antics of the crew because I have a lot of silly memories to laugh at when I start thinking it’s time for the next “perfect” family photo.

family-june2013-5029

North Meets South ADBA Show

Leave a reply

On the weekend of June 1st and 2nd was the Great Lakes Pit Bull Club’s annual show.  This year, the club was joined by the Southeastern APBT Club from North Carolina.  With four shows and two weight pulls, it was a long and grueling weekend since we worked the club being members of the Great Lakes club but it was absolutely amazing.

In recent years, many clubs have seen a massive decline in entries due to a variety of reasons with the largest one being economic and financial setbacks.  The ‘North Meets South’ event, however, didn’t seem to have much of that concern with well over 100 entries in conformation alone for each show.  Weight pull was no different with record numbers coming to pull.  We had some Class A pullers from all across the US who rocked it out on a less-than-favorable track and had two dogs finish their Ace titles as well!  (Congratulations are in order to Clay of Team No Fear with Boogieman and Dave with Bende.)

Our own personal crew did pretty well despite the fact that my husband and I were both running around like chickens with our heads cut off.  Ryker took three 3rd place ribbons and a 2nd which gave him the elusive 99 points – one point shy of finishing his ADBA Champion title.  Mika was shut out all weekend and Lyric made her debut as an ADBA pull dog and landed a 2nd place (and first 5 points of 100) toward her Ace title.

All in all, the show was a huge success.  Both hosting clubs did exceptionally well and the exhibitors all seemed to have a good time (I know we sure did!) and many said they can’t wait for our next one.  Here’s to many more phenomenal shows and  a fantastic rest of the show season.

michiganadba-june2013-3810