Pet Instructor Skill Review (VTQ)™
Course Content
- Introduction to your Pet First Aid Instructor refresher course
- Course introduction
- Dog First Aid and The Law
- The vet and your role in first aid
- The Role of the Dog First Aider
- When is Veterinary Care Required?
- Keeping your pet safe in an emergency
- Car Accidents
- Car Accidents - Injuries and Treatment
- Pet Proofing your home
- Please rescue my pets stickers
- Hand Hygiene
- Dog Microchipping
- Cat microchipping
- Precautions and Safety
- Pet Anatomy and Physiology
- First Aid Kits and Equipment
- Checking a Pets health
- Initial Assessment
- Checking Your Dog's Health and Finding Out What Is Normal
- Gum Colour
- Collecting a Urine Sample
- How Dogs Show Pain
- How Dogs Show Pain - Vets Comments
- Taking a Pulse
- Taking the Temperature
- Taking the Rectal Temperature
- Vital Signs
- Comprehensive Assessment and Checking Vital Signs Example
- Pet Accidents and First Aid
- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation - CPR
- Dog CPR Introduction
- Dog CPR Practical Demonstration
- CPR on deep chested dogs
- Small and barrel-chested dog CPR
- Cat CPR
- Near and Secondary Drowning
- Dogs Drowning and Treatment
- Near and Secondary Drowning - vets comments
- How Realistic is Dog CPR - hear what our vet says
- Oxygen and Your Dog
- Administration of Oxygen
- Choking
- Bleeding Control
- Different Conditions you may see
- Breathing and Respiratory Problems
- Loss of Appetite
- Sneezing
- Lethargy
- Urination Problems
- Weakness in Animals
- Weakness and Collapse - additional vets comments
- Hair Loss and Skin Conditions
- Cataracts
- Dehydration in Dogs
- Clinical signs of dehydration in dogs and cats
- Hydration and rehydration in dogs
- Fluid balance in dogs and cats
- Oralade - treating dehydration
- Oralade for cats
- Oralade - The Science
- Injuries
- Suspected fractures
- Types of fractures on animals
- Dog Fractures Treatment
- Spinal injury and moving an injured dog
- Spinal Injuries
- Paw Problems
- Paws and Claws
- Nail and Claw Injuries
- Eye Injuries
- Eye Problems
- Ear Problems
- General Bandaging
- Bandaging the Ear
- Bandaging the Tail and Tail Injuries
- Bandaging the Body
- Fight Wounds
- Puncture Wounds
- Mouth and Dental Problems
- Animal bites and scratches on dogs
- Small Cuts, Scratches and Grazes
- Bandage aftercare
- Stings on animals
- Ibuprofen and pets
- Carbon Monoxide and dogs
- Poisoning
- Vet poison information line
- Inducing Vomiting in a Dog
- Inducing Vomiting - vets comments
- Snake Bites
- Dog Burns
- Chemical Burns
- Electrocution
- Electric Shocks
- Cruciate Ligament
- Falls From Height
- Illness
- Dogs and Illnesses
- Bloat and Gastric Dilatation and Volvulus (GDV)
- Why do dogs eat grass
- Why are Onions Toxic to Dogs
- Why is Chocolate Toxic to Dogs
- High Temperatures and Heatstroke
- Hyperthermia - Vets Comments
- Hypothermia Treatment
- Hypothermia - vets comments
- Vomiting in Animals
- Different Types and Causes of Vomiting
- Vomiting - vets comments
- Seizures and Epilepsy
- Diabetes
- Allergies in Dogs
- Allergic reactions
- Pancreatitis
- Cushings Disease
- Nose and Respiratory Problems - Vet
- Breathing Difficulties
- Coughing and kennel cough
- Kennel Cough - vets comments
- Diarrhoea in Animals
- Stomach Conditions
- Possible Causes of Blood in Dog Faeces
- Rabies
- Alabama Foot Rot
- Blue Green Algae
- Hip Dysplasia
- Urinary Tract Infections
- Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
- Pyometra
- Vestibular Syndrome
- Parasites that affect pets
- Cats
- Different types and sizes of animals
- Summary and Your Practical Session
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Pets and Tourniquets
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In the unlikely event you had to deal with an animal or dog with an amputation or a very catastrophic bleed on a leg, you need to stop the blood flow very, very quickly, because they are very quickly going to lose a lot of blood and then that can be fatal. So, one of the first things you can do if it is just a cut is go above. You might want to just really grip hard. It's crude, but it would act as a very crude tourniquet to actually stop some of the blood. But it's not something long term, you can't do that. So you're going to need to put something on as a tourniquet. Now, if we just talk about tourniquets a little bit to start with, there are commercial tourniquets. You'll see these in first aid kits, medical kits, the army use them. And also they're in bleed kits that are scattered around the community, inside bars and restaurants and things like that. These are commercial tourniquets and these are really good to use on humans, but they are not useful on animals or dogs. The reason for it is because they won't go tight enough round. So if you think this, even this unit here, it just won't go tight enough. It needs to be going around an arm, it's the smallest size, whereas if you try and put that around the leg, it's just no way that's going to work. And this plate here is just going to be bent over too much and they are just not designed for it. So these are just two examples. There's lots and lots of different commercial tourniquets available. Now, there is one commercial tourniquet which you could get away with, and this is the stat tourniquet. This is like a giant cable tie and you can pull it through. So this is a blue one, which is mainly used within training, but there is orange version of it as well, and they do do a black one as well. Now, this would work. It does go down small enough, but it's still not really ideal. I mean, it would be no use on something like a cat. If you've got a large breed dog, yes, you could probably get away with using that, but if not, then you need to look at an improvised tourniquet. The improvised tourniquets are something that's been happening in first aid forever. We have used them a long, long time. And it's where you were using a piece of material to wrap around the limb and then something to wind it tight and tight around the limb to cut off circulation. Now, when you're doing it on any animal or any human, the technique is exactly the same. So there is different things you can use. You need something to act as a windlass to turn it round. Now you could use a screwdriver, a spoon, a knife, anything. But it's got to be something strong. What you don't want to be using is something like a pen which is going to put some pressure on it. It will just snap. So, this you can wind around really, really tight and it won't be a problem. Another option is the tourniKEY Plus. This is a citizenAID aid product, it is designed for humans. It's very, very effective way of controlling bleeding. It's very low cost as well and it can easily carry it with you. I mean, that's pretty much all it is. What this is, it is a windlass for winding around and you can tuck it back in on the dressing that you are using to stop the bleeding. It won't work in very small animals, but on the larger dogs or larger breed dogs, you could use this. Even if you cannot hook it round, you can at least use it as a windlass. Now this is a nice, easy and safe thing to put in your first aid kit. You don't really want to be putting a screwdriver in your first aid kit, but something like this is a safer option. To use this, you would take the triangular bandage and this particular kit has got one of these inside it. If not, if you just have this or you are using a screwdriver or whatever, then you just need the bandage. So this is a standard triangular first aid bandage. All you do is just roll it up. So it's then a broad bandage. So we don't want to have it too tight. So you would not want to use something like string because all it's going to do is it will cut through the skin and go straight to the bone. And basically it's just bleed, because it would just bleed above that point. So you must not have something that's going to cut into the skin, that will not cut into the skin, no matter how tight you apply it. You could use a tie or a scarf or something strong, or you could tear a T shirt, something like that up. Would work equally well. Things like belts and that on animals, it just won't work. You just cannot get them tight enough. So what you do is just apply that around the limb and just tie that off. Then you want to put the windlass in. So this time we just use the screwdriver, lay that over the sight and then what you can do is just tie a knot to hold it in place. The screwdriver is there. You can also put another knot in if you want, just to secure it a little bit tighter. And then what you would do is literally just wind it round and you wind it around until it's tight. Now, this is on a soft toy, so it's not going to work very well. But once you've got it nice and tight, then what you do is you can use the ends of this just to wrap it around a couple of times on the end and then you can do the same on the other end and you can pull that around the other side and tie it in place. There's a bit of a messy example here because it's just on a soft toy, but if you apply these nice and tightly onto an animal, you can wind it around until the blood flow stops, leave it in place, secure it and get the animal to the vets as soon as possible. Now, if you start seeing blood coming out, just untie it again. Don't take any of the pressure off, but just wind it around a little bit tighter until we stop the bleeding. Now, hopefully you will never need to use these skills, but if you have got a very low cost triangular bandage or something like a screwdriver in your kit, or better still, one of these kits with you, then if the animal had any type of serious bleed, you can use it. Now, the important thing is you would not use this on minor cuts. We are only talking about life threatening bleeding. Now, we have spoken about using tourniquets on this example on the dog, but just for information, exactly the same will work on a human. So if you ever were, in the unlikely event that you had to deal with someone with an amputation or a catastrophic bleed, the way you can save that person's life is to use exactly the same either triangular bandage in this or using tourniquet plus. And finally, the most important thing is you apply a tourniquet, you never take it off. Only the vet would take the tourniquet off. If you take it off too early, you can then restart bleeding and it can be quite difficult to stop the bleed again.
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How to Manage Catastrophic Bleeding in Animals and Humans
Understanding Catastrophic Bleeding
In the event of an amputation or a severe bleed on an animal's limb, immediate action is required to stop blood loss, which can quickly become fatal.
Using Direct Pressure
For minor cuts, applying direct pressure above the wound can help reduce blood flow temporarily. However, for severe bleeding, a tourniquet is necessary.
Commercial Tourniquets
Commercial tourniquets are widely used in first aid kits, medical kits, and by the military. However, most of these are designed for humans and are not effective on animals due to their size and shape.
- Common tourniquets: Not suitable for animals due to limited tightening capability.
- Stat Tourniquet: A possible option for large breed dogs but not ideal for smaller animals.
Improvised Tourniquets
Improvised tourniquets have been used in first aid for many years. They involve using fabric or material to wrap around the limb and a strong object to act as a windlass to tighten the tourniquet.
Materials for an Improvised Tourniquet
- A triangular bandage, tie, scarf, or torn t-shirt.
- A strong object such as a screwdriver, spoon, or knife to act as a windlass.
- Avoid using thin materials like string, as they can cut through the skin.
Applying an Improvised Tourniquet
- Wrap the triangular bandage around the limb, ensuring it is broad and not too tight.
- Place the windlass (e.g. screwdriver) over the bandage and secure it with a knot.
- Twist the windlass to tighten the bandage until the bleeding stops.
- Secure the windlass in place with an additional knot.
- Do not remove the tourniquet; only a vet should do so.
Using TourniKEY Plus
The TourniKEY Plus is a low-cost, effective alternative designed for humans but also usable on large breed dogs. It provides a safer and more portable option than carrying improvised windlasses.
Key Takeaways
- Use a tourniquet only for life-threatening bleeding.
- Ensure it is tight enough to stop the bleeding.
- Never remove a tourniquet yourself; a vet must do this.
- Having a triangular bandage and a TourniKEY Plus in your first aid kit is highly recommended.
Understanding and practising these skills can help save lives, whether dealing with an animal or a human emergency.
