Making A Basic Dog First Aid Kit

Sharing is caring!

Disclaimer: I am not a veterinarian and this article is not a substitute for veterinary care. Any information found on this site is meant to serve as a starting point for a conversation with your dog’s veterinarian about what options or treatments are appropriate for your dog’s specific needs.

This post may contain affiliate links. See our full affiliate disclosure for more details.

Ok, so in addition to being a nurse and dog mom, I’m also a bit of an emergency preparedness nerd. I don’t mean those crazy people with tin foil hats and bunkers. I do mean having basic supplies on hand to handle whatever life decides to throw at me that day.

One of those basic supplies is a first aid kit. Many of the items that you include in a dog first aid kit are the same as a human one, but there are a few differences to consider.

Your big, old best friend is a lot hairier than the average human patient. He can’t tell you what he’s feeling and you can’t explain to him what’s going on. This results in some minor differences between human and dog first aid kits.

This list isn’t going to cover supplies for every possible injury that could happen, but it’s a basic list to get you started. If you didn’t have first aid kit for your dog before this, this should help you handle the most common injuries.

This list also won’t replace the care of a trained veterinarian. A first aid kit is meant to help you keep your dog going long enough to reach your regular vet or an emergency vet’s office.

Items to include in a Basic Dog First Aid Kit

Medical Records: Have a list of your dog’s vaccinations, medical conditions, and medications.

Vet Contact Info: Not just your dog’s regular vet, but also the local 24/7 veterinary emergency hospital.

Tool or tackle box: This is the first aid kit. No need to get fancy here. A toolbox or fishing tackle box will have lots of compartments for storage of first aid items.

First Aid Guide: I recommend a small pocket guide like this one, just to refresh your memory in a stressful situation.

An extra leash and collar: Depending on the situation, your dog might have run off without them or they may have been damaged. Always good to have a spare.

Treats: A few of their usual treats can comfort your dog and help keep him calm.

Muzzle: Keep a soft muzzle handy. Your dog may be friendly usually, but they may still bite because they are hurting or afraid. Just be cautious with short nosed dogs or hot conditions because a muzzle can prevent panting. And don’t use a muzzle if your dog is having trouble breathing, vomiting, coughing, or choking.

Gloves: Keep a few pairs of nitrile gloves (not latex- too many people are allergic) in your first aid keep to keep from having to directly touch any bodily fluids. They also helps keep wounds from becoming contaminated.

Tweezers: Good for pulling out ticks, insect stingers, or splinters.

Scissors: Use for trimming small amounts of fur and cutting bandages or tape to the size you need.

Cotton Balls or Swabs: For cleaning wounds or cleaning around (not in) your dog’s eyes/ears.

Gauze Pads: Control bleeding, apply ointment, and clean and cover wounds.

Gauze Rolls: Hold bandages in place without sticking to fur.

Non-stick bandages in various sizes: These won’t stick to fur or wounds, use a gauze roll to hold in place.

Adhesive tape: Use to hold the ends of the gauze in place, don’t use on fur.

Antibiotic spray or ointment: Reduces the risk of infection in small cuts/scrapes. Apply after cleaning a wound and cover with a bandage.

Blood clotting powder: For larger wounds, this can help quickly stop bleeding and prevent your dog from losing too much blood before you reach a vet.

A bottle of saline eye/wound flush: Flush debris out of a wound or the eyes.

Splint: Keep your dog from moving a leg and possibly causing more injury. If needed, cut to size with the scissors and hold in place with gauze roll and tape.

Battery-powered beard trimmer: If you have a larger area that you need to clear fur away from, a battery powered trimmer can do it without accidently cutting your dog and without worrying about an outlet.

Collapsible water bowl: For giving your dog water obviously, but can also be used to contain water for washing a wound.

Water: Can be used for both drinking and washing wounds

Irrigation Syringe: Use with water or saline to flush dirt out of wounds

Towel: Always know where your towel is! There’s a reason that the humble towel is the most important tool in the galaxy. Uses for the versatile towel are endless. For pet first aid, possible uses include but are not limited to:

• Wiping away dirt, mud, poop, blood
• Drying a wet dog
• Warming a cold dog
• Wetting to cool a hot dog
• Wrapping around a dog to calm them
• Laying dog on if the ground is too hot, too cold, or rocky
• Makeshift stretcher for carrying a dog

Wet/Grooming Wipes: Helpful for cleaning off potential dirt, mud, poop, blood so you can get a look at the injury.

Ice Pack: apply to decrease swelling and inflammation after a bee or wasp sting, sprain, bruising, or other minor injury. Don’t use directly on skin (use the towel or gauze in between the skin and the ice pack).

What items I don’t personally recommend including and why:

• Thermometer: The idea behind including a thermometer in a dog first aid kit is to measure the dog’s temperature rectally if you think they are suffering from heatstroke. If your dog is exhibiting symptoms that are making you worried about heatstroke, he is going to need treatment no matter what that thing reads. Cool him down, give him a little water if he’ll take it, and get to a vet! Even if its “only” heat exhaustion, these steps won’t hurt your dog, but delaying treatment while you psych yourself up to put a thermometer in your dog’s butt and then try to figure out what to do with the reading can kill your dog. Let them take a temp at the vet!

• Medications in a basic kit: Do you know your dog’s weight in kilograms and how to adjust dosages of various medications to get the right milligrams per kilogram to help them and not make things worse? Don’t feel bad, the average pet owner doesn’t. That’s why I don’t recommend any medications for putting together a basic kit. Stabilize your dog and get him to a professional, they’ll have these medications on hand. Or get some training so that you know what medications to use and how to build yourself an advanced kit.

Which brings me to my next recommendation…

Take A Pet First Aid Class

I highly recommend that you take a pet first aid course so that you have a basic idea of how to use all of the items in your first aid kit. It’s much easier to practice when there is not an actual emergency going on. The American Red Cross has a free online class and an app. Pet Tech offers in-person training all across the USA. Check out Walks n’ Wags if you are in Canada or the Pacific Northwest.

Buying a Pre-made First Aid Kit

I think you can build a better, less expensive kit on your own, but if your short on time or just want the convenience, there are pre-made kits. These tend to be heavier on the bandages and not other items to keep the manufacturer’s cost down. So, you’ll probably still need to add a few items to customize. I like Adventure Medical kits and keep one of their bigger kits in my car (with a few customizations). They make a combo human and dog kit that looks pretty decent.

Want more from My Big Old Mutt? Sign up for our newsletter or follow us on your favorite social media platform.

Pin it for later: