What are the MOST IMPORTANT ITEMS in your barn first aid kit, or, medical supplies in your barn?
I’m often astounded what people don’t keep on hand when they own horses.
My ALWAYS HAVES are bute, bannamine, dexamethsone, thermometer, vet wrap, duct tape, soaker boot,
epsom salts, baby wipes, iodine shampoo, kopertox, antiseptic spray ,.,
I have a lot of other stuff , but wanted to know what others keep on hand as their mainstays.
Thanks 
Banamine, ace, xylazine, dorm.
Gauze (squares and wrap), vet wrap, elasticon, saran wrap, blue paper towels.
No bows, standing wraps, 9 pocket ice boots, thermometer, twitch, chain.
Alushield, triple antibiotic, wonder dust, Adolf’s meat tenderizer, poultice, furazone, dmso, liniment.
Nolvasan scrub, betadine.
Although in the past three years, all I’ve really used is:
banamine
ace and xylazine
vet wrap
gauze
thermometer
twitch
alushield
Adolf’s
(No big injuries or anything crazy lately!)
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I would like to include tweezers in the kit. Over the weekend I got a splinter and had a hard time finding a tweezer. I know it’s for me, but it could be just as useful for the horses as well. Oh and gloves for cleaning/applying medicine.
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In my tack room, I have posters that contain “normal” Temperature, Pulse, and Respiration, Skin Pinch test, Capillary Refill Time, and Gut Sounds - with descriptions of how to obtain each (some include photos to demonstrate locations on the body, like for pulse). This is helpful for me, so I don’t have to remember, and helpful if I’m not available and only a non-horse person is around to help, they stand a better chance at getting the information a vet might need over the phone.
In the same location, I have an Emergency Contact Information sheet which includes my name, cell phone, work phone, the physical address of the barn, the nearest hospital for humans, the address for the nearest large animal/equine hospital, phone number for my regular vet and farrier, an alternate point of contact with phone numbers for the horses (I have 2 knowledgeable friends listed that live within 15 minutes driving distance should something happen when I am out of town, I trust these friends to make decisions).
I also have a Horse Information sheet for each horse - it contains DOB, breed, health history, drug sensitives or allergies, baseline/normal TPR for comparison purposes, and any other relevant handling/behavior information (for example, I have noted that my mare is VERY nervous with veterinarians, especially men; and that her IM injections are typically reactive and sore so if those are necessary, preferred location is the hindquarter, not the neck.).
As far as my first-aid kit goes:
Thermometer
“Sharps”
- Regular scissors
- Sharp knife
- Bandage scissors
Wound Wash (betadine and chlorhexidine)
Saline Solution (for eyes or wound flushing)
Wound Topical (triple antibiotic ointment)
Bandage Materials
- non-stick gauze pads (also have some women's sanitary pads, they are great for this, Always with wings ;))
- Rolled gauze
- Rolled cotton
- VetWrap
- Elastikon
- Baby Diapers
Anti-Inflammatories
- Horse: Banamine and Bute
- Human: Advil, Tylenol, Excedrin Migraine
Clean towels
Disposable Syringes and needles
Tweezers
Fingernail clippers
Hoof Pick
Rubbing Alcohol & swabs
Gorilla Tape
Instant Hand Warmers
Bandaids
… I think that’s it…and I somehow managed to get it all into a fairly small tote…:eek:
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