Basic First Aid for Horses

 Compliments of:
Golden Animal Hospital, Inc.
17575 South Golden Road
Golden, CO 80401

 Motto: "Foremost, do no harm."

Wound Management

 1. Stop bleeding. The best method to control hemorrhage is to apply direct pressure. Often, application of a tourniquet above the wound on a horse will compress venous return, without decreasing arterial flow, resulting in increased bleeding. This is due to the large mass of a horse's limb and relatively low pressure obtained by a tourniquet.

 Hemorrhagic shock will occur when a horse loses 25% of the total blood volume, or about 3 gallons (a lot of red). 9% to 11% of a horse's body weight is blood.

 2. Clean wound. Infection is a major factor negatively affecting wound healing. The rate of infection is affected by wound contamination, tissue damage, host defenses, and the presence of foreign material.

Motto: "The solution to pollution is dilution."

 A. Clip the hair from around the wound edges, keeping hair from entering the wound. Clippers, scissors, or a razor may be used.
 B. Scrub the skin surface.
 C. Lavage the wound.
 
Water vs. Saline
 
  • Povidone iodine (1%) is inactivated by proteins, increases tissue reaction and interferes with neutrophil function.
  • Chlorohexidine (1:40 dilution of concentrate) has a prolonged antibacterial activity.
  • Irrigants should be delivered at 7 lbs. / square inch (forced through a 18 ga. needle on a 35 cc syringe).
  • Hydrogen peroxide is a poor disinfectant for equine pathogens.
    • 3. Bandages. The function of a bandage is to protect the wound, absorb drainage, and to provide compression. Only elastic materials should be used to bandage the horse's lower limb, due to the horse's propensity to swell.
     
    Contact layer:
    Adherent bandages
    • used in debridement phase
    • sterile, wet or dry absorbent material applied directly to the wound, debris is removed along with the bandage
    Nonadherent bandages
    • used in reparitive phase
    • apply nonstick dressing to wound (i.e. Telfa, Release)
    Intermediate layer:
    • absorbent material, which also provides padding and support
    • Kling, SoftBand, Combine Pad
    Outer layer:
    • Holds other layers in place
    • Vetrap, Elastikon, Equisport
    Wounds receiving proper initial attention may be sutured several hours after the occurrence. Contaminated wounds, or those treated with caustic or drying agents, may be difficult if not impossible to surgically repair.

    Avoid undue pressure on boney prominences, such as accessory carpal bone, or the point of the hock.

    Bandages which become wet heavily potentate infection, and are far worse than an unbandaged wound.

    4. Stages of wound healing

    Debridement phase
    • Any dead or damaged tissue must be removed before "healing" will begin.
    Reparitive phase
    • Granulation
    • Epithelization
    • Reorganization
    • Wound contraction


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