First Aid on the Farm: Handling Livestock Injuries and Emergencies

By Sam Barringer and Dvm
Published on April 1, 1999
1 / 4

Cover the wound with nonstick gauze pads.
Cover the wound with nonstick gauze pads.
2 / 4

Know what to do when emergency or injury strikes.
Know what to do when emergency or injury strikes.
3 / 4

Apply antiseptic to a wound.
Apply antiseptic to a wound.
4 / 4

Wrap the wound with cotton and vet tape.
Wrap the wound with cotton and vet tape.

In many rural areas, folks can’t count on 24-hour emergency veterinary care for livestock. Nevertheless, if you own animals, eventually you will have an emergency. What happens when you have a horse with a gaping wound, or a ewe trying to lamb, or maybe a cow that is stretched out flat, and your veterinarian is unavailable? The well-being –perhaps even the life–of your animals is now in your hands.

To stop uncontrolled bleeding from a severed vessel, follow these steps for applying a pressure bandage: clean the wound, apply an antiseptic, cover with a nonstick gauze pad, followed by roll cotton and Vet Wrap. A properly wrapped pressure bandage can stop an animal from bleeding out before the vet arrives.

While panic is likely your natural reaction, it’s unlikely to produce positive, life-saving results. Not everyone has the wherewithal to stay calm in an emergency: however, you’ve a moral and a legal duty to try. Your animals rely on you for food, shelter, and, yes, a calm head when they are injured or sick.

A Basic Livestock First Aid Kit

In addition to your wound management kit, you should maintain a basic health kit for your farm. Most of the items you will need are readily available at local feed stores, through farm catalogs, or from sites an the Internet. Below is a list of items that I recommend my clients keep available:

Comments (0) Join others in the discussion!
    Online Store Logo
    Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368