Emergency 01620 822262
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North Berwick 01620 894471
Prestonpans 01875 814772

First Aid - Wounds & Injury

In an emergency situation first aid can be extremely useful in calming and comforting our pets and also to assess whether professional assistance is required. 


SEEK VETERINARY ADVICE IMMEDIATELY if your pet shows signs of the following:

Breathing Difficulties: If your pet is distressed in its breathing pattern or clearly going blue or purple around its lips/tongue.

Blood Loss: If your pet has lost what you consider to be a significant amount of blood and maybe its lips and tongue are pale looking.

Loss of Consciousness: If your pet has 'blacked out' at any point or is lapsing in and out of consciousness, or indeed appears 'drugged' or 'drunk'.

Uncontrolled Severe Pain: If your pet is experiencing, or seems to be experiencing, severe pain that may or may not be explained by the injury. For example if someone has accidentally trodden on a dogs tail clearly it will be painful but may not be an emergency situation, though veterinary advice should be sought in the near future.  But if it’s unclear why the pet is in pain, or it is severe and unremitting, seek veterinary advice immediately.


If your pet has been injured, but is not showing the above signs, and is not in too much distress, follow these steps:

  1. Keep them feeling calm and safe with a warm bed and minimal noise
  2. Give them easy access to water and maybe a small meal
  3. Monitor them with regards to their ability to move around and also for urinating and defecating
  4. Clean any minor wounds or cuts in clean warm water only (DO NOT USE DETTOL OR TCP) and apply a mild antiseptic cream or gel if available (eg. Germolene)
  5. If small cuts are bleeding a little then gentle but firm pressure can often stop this with clean cotton wool or a fresh baby's nappy held against the wound for ten minutes

If in any doubt and at any time, contact us for advice and peace of mind.  There may be simple things you can do at home to resolve the injury or wound.

Call your local Links Vet Group clinic.