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An intact layer of skin is a pretty incredible barrier to the outside world. But when our pets suffer injuries and have wounds, the skin layer is now broken and it leaves them susceptible to developing an infection caused by things like bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other pathogens. So it's really important that when our pets suffer wounds, they get proper wound care as soon as possible. Now remember in any first aid situation, you first want to make sure the scene is secure and that you are safe to approach your pet. Once you've assessed the situation and feel comfortable approaching your pet your still gonna want to put a muzzle on your pet to make sure that he doesn't bite you remembering that he's probably in some amount of pain if there's an injury. Now you also want to assess for any bleeding and if you notice any venous or arterial bleeding you're gonna want to get that under control first and then skip any wound care and transport your pet immediately to a veterinarian. If you only have surface bleeding and you can get it under control quickly, you can move on to wound care. Now certain wounds also need veterinarian care especially those that are large or cover a large surface area or if they're deep. But if a wound is small and you feel comfortable taking care of it, we're going to go through the steps to do that. The first thing you want to do is get your sterile lubricant. Remember this comes in packets or sometimes tubes. You're gonna wanna put this lubricant immediately and directly into the wound and this is gonna protect it. Be generous with this. You can't use too much. Now once you've filled the wound with lubricant you're gonna want to grab your clippers. Now you're going to clip an area of fur around the wound leaving a pretty wide margin. Again the fur's going to grow back. You want to make sure you have a good clean area to work with. When you use the clippers you want to keep the flat part of the clipper directly against your pet's skin and move it this way, rather than pulling at an angle as this can lead to skin irritation or razor burn. Now that you've clipped an area of fur and you've got your lubricant in you can clean the skin that you've clipped using some of your isopropyl alcohol that you've soaked you're gauze squares in. Wipe the area of skin that you've clipped to clean it, taking care not to get any alcohol in the wound cause that's gonna sting. Now that the skin has been cleaned, you're gonna want to grab a large amount of warm water and clean the entire area so the area around the wound as well as directly into the wound itself. You want to make sure you clear away any of the remaining lubricant as well as any obvious debris like dirt and sticks or things. Now that the wound's been cleaned, you decide whether you want to place a bandage or leave it uncovered. For a lot of minor wounds that are along the back or trunk, you can probably leave them uncovered and they'll form a scab and heal up within several days. For wounds that are on the limbs however, we're worried about getting contamination from our pet's everyday life going outside or to the litter box. And so you're probably gonna wanna place a bandage. For wounds on the limbs, the first thing you want to do is grab your gauze squares and place them directly over the wound. Now I'm coming at this from behind Quinn so that you can see what I'm doing but you would probably be coming from the other angle. Now next you need to grab you roll gauze so that you can secure your square gauze in place. And you're gonna wrap that directly around the gauze, not pulling too tight. We're not trying to apply a tourniquet. We just want to keep the bandage in place. Now for wounds and bandages on the limb, we need to make sure we include the joint above and the joint below the wound so for a wound that's on the forearm, like in Quinn, we need to make sure we include the wrist joint as well as the elbow joint. If we don't do that, our bandage is probably going to slip right out of place. So we gonna apply our layer of roll gauze, again snuggly but not tight, and with each layer, you want to cover about half of the previous layer. So we're going to wrap this around, making sure we include our elbow, come back around until we got it nice and snug and covered. Our next layer is going to be with our cohesive wrap, remembering that this is going to stick to itself but it's not going to stick to your pet. And so this layer you can absolutely place it too tight so it's really important not to pull it snuggly. Generally you want to loosen it, and then lay it flat. So pull a strip out and then just lay it flat over the previous layer of bandage. So pull and lay, again getting about 50 per cent or half, covering half the previous layer. And once our bandage is complete you can either tear or cut that last little bit and the final step is to grab some of your adhesive tape and we're going to apply a layer of this to the top and bottom of our bandage again just as a final, final layer to try to keep it in place. So we gonna tear or cut a strip, wrap it around this top layer so it's all the way around, secure it in place. We'll do that again on the bottom. And once you've got the bandage in place you need to make sure you are monitoring your pet's toes to insure that the bandage isn't too tight. The toes should be lying straight and right next to each other, not splayed apart. And if you're noticing that or any signs of swelling of the toes, the bandage will need to come off. Now once you've placed this bandage, you'll need to check the wound daily, which means you'll need to remove the bandage. Probably with minor wounds you won't need to keep it covered for more than a day or two. If you feel like further bandaging is needed you'll probably want to have that wound evaluated by your veterinarian. Now every day whether you've had your pet to the veterinarian for wound care, or you've taken care of it yourself, you'll need to watch the wound very carefully for signs of secondary infection. And this will look like increased redness, increased swelling, more pain than there had been previously, or any signs of development of an opaque or pus like discharge which is usually accompanied by a foul odor. If any of these signs are seen you need to take your pet to a veterinarian for evaluation as soon as possible. In addition, as always, monitor your pet's behavior and vital signs and if there are anythings that is abnormal seek veterinary care as soon as possible.
In this lesson, you'll be learning how to treat your pet's wounds. We'll be covering two techniques – one for body wounds and another for limb wounds. And, of course, we'll help you understand when to provide care at home and when to seek professional veterinary care. At the end we will provide a Word about ear wounds as they can require added care.
You may not think about it often, but an intact layer of skin is our best protection against all the threats of the outside world. However, when your pet suffers an injury, that skin layer breaks and leaves your pet susceptible to infections that are caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, or other pathogens.
Getting immediate wound care is really important when your pet suffers an injury. And as you've learned in this course, step one to helping your pet is always to make sure the scene is safe and that it's also safe to approach your pet.
However, even once you determine scene safety, you should still muzzle your pet to make sure he doesn't bite you. Remember, an injured pet or a pet in pain may lash out.
Pro Tip #1: After making sure the scene is safe, you'll need to know what kind of bleeding injury you're dealing with. If you suspect venous or arterial bleeding, make sure to get that under control first, before even thinking about wound care, and get your pet to the vet as quickly as you can.
If your pet's wound is only a surface wound (as in a capillary bleeding incident), you should be able to get that under control pretty easily and quickly and then move on to wound care.
Warning: Certain wounds, as you know, require veterinary care, like those venous or arterial bleeding wounds. However, any wounds that cover a large surface area should also warrant a trip to the vet, even if the wound isn't bleeding that much.
1. Get your sterile lubricant from your first aid kit and apply a generous amount into the wound. You can't really use too much.
2. After filling the wound with lubricant, grab your electric clippers and clip the area around the wound. Leave a wide margin so it's easier to work with.
Pro Tip #2: When using clippers, make sure the bottom or flat end is flush against your pet's skin, rather than at an angle. Trimming at an angle may cause some skin irritation or razor burn.
3. Clean your pet's freshly clipped skin using isopropyl alcohol and a gauze pad. Wipe the area around the wound but be careful not to get any alcohol in the wound.
4. Get a large amount of warm water and pour it over the wound. Clean the entire area in and around the wound.
5. Wipe away any remaining lubricant and obvious debris like dirt or pebbles.
6. Decide whether or not to bandage the wound. For minor wounds, you may be able to leave them uncovered. They'll typically scab over and heal in several days.
For wounds on a limb, you should be more concerned about infection than just about anything else, as your pet will need to go outside or to the litter box, etc. Which means bandaging the wound is more of a priority than with body wounds.
Let's assume you've cleaned and disinfected the wound and you're now ready to wrap over it.
Warning: Monitor your pet's toes. If the bandage is too tight, you may notice that your pet's toes are splayed out or signs of swelling. If you do, take off the bandage and try again, looser this time.
Remove the bandage and check the wound daily. Minor wounds will only need to be covered for a day or two. One thing you're looking for, other than signs of healing, are signs of infection.
Whether you cared for your pet's wound or your veterinarian did, you'll still want to monitor your pet for signs of infection. Those signs include:
If you notice any of these signs of infection, that's right. Take your pet to the vet ASAP. And as always, remember to monitor your pet's vital signs and any behavioral changes.