Upcoming Roadtrip? Make a Pet First Aid Kit For Your Car

first aid dogI have  first aid kit for hiking and overnight backpacking with the dogs. These kits are human first-aid kits with extra pet-specific stuff thrown in. When I am carrying the kit in a pack, I need to conserve weight so they are combined.

I carry a human first aid kit in my car. It doesn’t have anything extra in it for Chester and Gretel. Although some of the products could be used on them, Gretel’s scare with chocolate reminded me that I am not equipped to handle a lot of dog emergencies on the road. Since weight is not an issue in a car, I have decided to carry a second kit that is just for the dogs.

Ok, so I thought of this MONTHS ago but until yesterday it still hadn’t happened. We are leaving for a 5-day road trip in a couple of days so I decided now was the time I should finally get this kit together.

My decision was timed well because I went to the SuperZoo pet product expo a couple of weeks ago. I got to see all kinds of new pet products that will be hitting the market soon. First aid kits were one of the top things on my list to check out.

There were a few pet first aid kits at the expo. The one that truly shined for me was the one from Alcott. Because I needed to induce vomiting when Gretel ate the poisonous chocolate, a bottle of hydrogen peroxide was crucial to have in the car for me. The Alcott Pet First Aid Kit was the first kit I’ve seen that included a small bottle of it and a syringe to administer the proper dose. I was sold just by that tiny bottle

They gave me a pet first aid kit to bring on our road trip. This is what was in the kit:

P1030041A

  • 3 gauze rolls
  • 2 – 2 x 3 sterile pads
  • 2 – 3 x 3 gauze sponges
  • 1 pair vinyl gloves
  • 4 alcohol prep pads
  • 2 antiseptic towelettes
  • 2 sting relief pads
  • 10 cotton swabs
  • 1 tongue depressor
  • 1 small roll of first aid tape
  • 1 – 100 ML bottle 3% hydrogen peroxide
  • 5 ml syringe
  • tick remover
  • instant cold compress
  • small vial eye wash
  • alcohol-free hand sanitizer
  • styptic pencil
OK, it contained this stuff too but I took it out
OK, it contained this stuff too but I took it out

The kit also contained a pet brush, human CPR mouth guard, mylar emergency blanket and a mystery roll of 1-inch wide rubber strips (for a tourniquet? That was the only thing I could guess but they weren’t very stretchy). I took those things out because I don’t think we need them and I wanted to make room for some other stuff. I also took out one of the gauze rolls.

I added these things in to better fit our needs
I added these things in to better fir our needs

This is what I added to the Alcott Pet First Aid Kit to better fit our needs.:

  • 1 small package triple antibiotic ointment
  • 1 pair rubber gloves (for a total of two pairs of gloves)
  • 3 – 2 x 2 sterile gauze pads
  • 1 Pawflex Bandages MediMitt (size small)
  • 3 Pawz reusable, disposable rubber boots (to cover bandages on the foot or keep dirt out of a cut; size small)
  • 1 roll Vet Tape Wrap (self-adhering nylon bandage wrap; tear-able/No scissors required; water resistant; to replace the gauze roll I removed)
  • 4 tabs of Benadryl, cut into appropriate doses for a 10 lb dog

I think we are all set to handle most minor to moderate emergencies with this kit.

No matter where you get your pet first aid kit, you will want to go through the contents. Some of the contents you might want to discard to make room for specific things you know you’ll need.

On a final “emergency preparedness note”: Having first aid supplies is the first step in being safer but they aren’t much good if you don’t know how to use them. I think every pet owner should be certified in pet first aid. I’ve taken several classes but the most useful class for me was the Walks ‘N’ Wags course taught by Pet First Aid Seattle by Metro Dog.

Now I have to get packing the rest of the stuff we take with us for the dogs (seriously, it feels like as much or more than we bring for ourselves!)

Are there any other must-have items you would put in a pet first aid kit for your vehicle?

About the Author

Hi, I’m Jessica. I’ve been studying the Dachshund breed since 2007, owned 3 of my own, and shared in the lives of thousands of others through their owner’s stories. When I’m not sharing what I know on this blog, you can find me hiking, camping, and traveling with my adventurous wiener dogs.

30 Comments

  1. It always pays to be safe when you’re on the road with your pet. Plus in a way I think of it as insurance that something won’t happen because if you aren’t prepared, something always happens.

    🙂

    1. That is for sure! Gretel ate chocolate a while ago and I needed hydrogen peroxide ASAP and didn’t have it. Now that I have it, I will never need it again 🙂

  2. I always believe if you plan for a crisis, you won’t have one.

    Question: the tick remover? tweezers? special kind of tweezers?

    1. Hi Jan. I can look tomorrow. It is definitely a tweezer kind but it is plastic and I think has some kind of locking mechanism on the end. In the first photo it is the turquoise and white pen looking thing in the top right.

  3. How nice that there is finally going to be a good kit on the market! Here’s what I made: http://www.cascadiannomads.com/1/post/2013/05/seeking-the-perfect-way-to-stay-safe-anguish-and-achievement-in-building-a-complete-dog-first-aid-kit.html All I used on our cross-country road trip was my Ticked-Off Pets Tick Remover and the antiseptic towelettes. I actually added an emergency blanket to my kit in case of cold or dehydration. Why did you remove yours? I would highly recommend adding something to use as a muzzle and a packet of Quikclot. Both can literally be lifesavers!

    1. I removed the emergency blanket because this kit of for my car only…so I am close to the car where I always carry extra blankets. I do have an emergency blanket in my hiking kit. I was going to get some quick clot but am not really planning on getting a muzzle. The cohere tape could be used as a make-shift one in a real emergency. I will check your kit out when we get back from our road trip next week.

    1. I have seen the PasZ boots for years but never thought of them in that way. Since Chester and Gretel don’t wear boots they were not relevant to us.

      Good suggestion on the medical record. I do have vaccination records but not medical. It makes sense though because if you have an emergency and have to take them to just some vet, they probably can’t get your dog’s medical history from your vet in time.

  4. You’ve given me some good ideas for adapting my current FA Kit to better meet Gizmo’s needs too…Definitely adding some peroxide and I’m putting a Tick Key in mine…handiest device ever…If we hiked in rocky areas I’d probably want to add the Pawz, but our trails are soft dirt or sand so I don’t foresee use for them

    1. Yes, our trails are definitely rocky. We are hiking in soft dirt this week but now I worry about them getting stuck by a sticker or getting a sore from a bur getting stuck between their pads. There could be glass too. If we always hiked in soft dirt I might have skipped it though.

      1. Forgot one important item…A bottle of StingEze…it works wonders on bee & wasp stings and biting fly and mosquito bites…I swear by it

        1. There are two sting ease type swabs in this kit. Those would sure run out fast though if they came across a lot of bees. Since this kit is for the car, and weight is not an issue, that is probably a good idea. You know how dogs like sticking their nose in things 🙂

  5. Really nice stuff, I must confess I don’t have a Emergency Kit for my babies. But here you give me a pretty good idea how to start. Thanks! 😀

  6. This is something we don’t have and something we should have as much as we hike!! This gives us a great list of things to get. THANKS!!
    ~Rebecca & Teach

    1. Hi Rebecca –

      Although this kit is for our car, many items could transfer over to a hiking first aid kit. Personally, there is a few things I would add for that and a few I would leave at home. I will be writing a post later about our hiking first aid kit.

  7. I’m going to be creating our first aid kit this weekend. Wow your list is amazing! It makes sense to have one for the car too. Thanks for the recommendations.

    1. One thing I forgot to mention here that I will be adding latter is Quick Clot. I imagine them needing that more in the mountains (likelihood of getting a major cut and distance to an emergency vet compared to the car) but it never hurts to be extra prepared.

  8. This is a great post. You never know when you might need these items and if you don’t have them you are guaranteed to be far from a place where you can purchase them! We haven’t traveled much since we moved back to the US, but we have two bigger trips planned so this is great!

    1. TWO big roads trips? How exciting! Even though our recent trip to Ben, ORwas only 1,000 miles it was the longest road trip we had taken in over two years.

    1. Those look like great general first aid kits. I, specifically, wanted a bottle of hydrogen peroxide to induce vomiting. That is why I fell in love with the Alcott kit – it was the first pet first aid kit I found that had a little bottle of it.

      1. I agree!
        That’s why I got the PF-134, which has the H202:
        Kit Includes:

        (1) Digital thermometer
        (1) Sterile lubrication .71oz.
        (6) 2″x2″ Gauze bandages
        (6) 3″x3″ Gauze bandages
        (1) 2″x4.1 yd. Conforming gauze roll bandage
        (1) 3″x4.1 yd. Conforming gauze roll bandage
        (1) Burn relief gel pack
        (6) Antiseptic cleansing wipes
        (1) 4 oz. Hydrogen peroxide
        (1) 1″x5 yd. First Aid tape
        (3) Antibiotic ointment packs
        (1) Scissors
        (1) 10ml Syringe
        (1) Tweezers
        (1) 6′ Leash
        (2) Exam quality vinyl gloves, 1 pair
        (1) 5″x9″ Trauma pad
        (1) 2″x5 yd. Cohesive bandage wrap
        (3) Insect sting relief pads
        (1) 4 oz. Eye wash
        (2) 3″ Cotton tipped applicators
        (1) Pet first aid guide

        But then I liked the Bow-ow do much, and the cool soft bag, I got that too and just ordered another bottle of Hydrogen peroxide from the site to add to that one.

        1. Cool. I didn’t see that one. Thanks. You can order the hydrogen peroxide individually? I didn’t see it on the list using that link. I have been looking for that but couldn’t find a place to order.

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