Home Built First Aid kit

[hj60]

If I were me, and I sometimes am, I'd talk to my local fire department.
Most of them offer some kind of basic first aid classes, often for free or little money.
If you're lucky enough to live in an area that has a volunteer FD, and have the time, volunteer.
They'll probably have some slightly more advanced first aid training for volunteers.
Plus, you get the added bonus of giving back to your community.
In fact, when I finish school, I plan on joining a SAR squad.
Lots of desert here. Lots of forest, too. People disappear all the time after a day out in the wild.
Helicopters are fine, but they have much better eyes with a few 4x4s on the ground.

 

[hj60]

Oh, yeah, my fiancee, Yashica, is CPR certified.
And she almost always comes on wheeling trips with me.
Our kit is a basic, store bought one. I added a space blanket and snakebite kit and a small bottle of Aleve.
Never had to use any of it yet *knock on wood* but it's good to know it's there.
We also (until mine screwed me) had different cellphone carriers, to better our chances of having
coverage in the wild.

 

[CDN_Cruiser]

[quote author=hj60 link=board=14;threadid=8301;start=msg98330#msg98330 date=1075788331]
snakebite kit
[/quote]

Please tell me this is the 'Extractor" type and not the 'blade and suck it out' type!

 

[hj60]

It's the blade and suck it out type. But it doesn't have a blade anymore.
Used it to scrape the "Warning: move your Cruiser or it will be towed" sticker my apartment complex seems to get off on putting on my window.
I know those kits aren't much use, but I've never seen any alternative.

 

[CDN_Cruiser]

Go have a look for an item called 'The Extractor" (IIRC) - it is relatively cheap and if anything, is better than the 'blade and suck' method.

The unit is in a small plastic case and is comprised of a thing that looks like a large plastic syringe and (4?) attachements of different diameters that attach the the syringe. It is basically a vacuum - if bit, you attach the right sized tip and apply this over the bite and pump the vacuum syringe. This creates a vacuum and should suck at least some of the venum out. Must be used fast, etc. Theoretically can be used for bees, etc. Obviously not a substitute for getting to a hospital.

Cheers, Hugh

 

[hj60]

Neat.
Nothing beats a dose of anti-venom.
Well, not getting biten is always better.
I'll check that out.
Thanks.

 

[hj60]

Just to pass this along, as it seems to be on topic:
http://www.wisementrading.com/firstaid/snake_bite.htm
The Swift kit looks cool as well.
Obviously no affiliation, as I just heard of it.

 

[Mike S]

[quote author=hj60 link=board=14;threadid=8301;start=msg100221#msg100221 date=1076045584]
Neat.
Nothing beats a dose of anti-venom.
Well, not getting biten is always better.
I'll check that out.
Thanks.
[/quote]

With bird dogs - they seem to get hit by snakes pretty often - the best treatment is a dose of Benedryl. This is readily available and works. Anti-venom is hard to get and hard to store properly.

Mike S

 

[CDN_Cruiser]

The Sawyer unit in the link above is the one you want.

The only time I've ever seen it used for a snake bite was on TV - it was that AUS guy and he was searching for 'The 10 Most Dangerous Sakes in the World' (or something) and was completely nailed by one of them and was very far from help. He pulled the Sawyer Extractor out and started to use it. If it's good enough for him, it's good enough for us

Agree that Benedryl can be very helpful for mild alergic reactions, but I would imagine that this wouldn't help much for a dog that has been fully envenomated (at least for the only dangeous snale in our parts - Rattle Snake).

A good sized snake would probably kill the dog. I remember being on a hike with our dog in an area that has snakes, so we were being quite careful. Two people were ahead keeping their eyes open and I was in the rear. We walked past a spot and my dog stopped and started to stick his head under some brush - then the rattle and I yanked him away. No wonder why dogs are killed - their instinct (German Wire Haired Pointer) is to 'stick their nose in it'!!

Cheers, Hugh

 

[Jesse]

I agree with CDN_Cruiser on sutures in the field. I sliced my foot open surfing and went to the Campus nurse to have stiches. They just sewed it up and said i would be fine. One week later i cant move my ankle or touch my leg without a lot of pain. Went to the emergency room that night and they gave it one day to start healing before they remove my leg from the knee down.

Pretty serious stuff if you asked me. Let me just say i did not sleep to good that night knowing that i could be legless if the medication they had me on did not slow the blood poison.

Jesse

 

[Lars]

A poisonous snakebite is one of those conditions that you cannot treat in the field. Don't waste valuable time f'in around with a snake bite kit. Getting medical help is your top priority. Time is of the essence.

 

[Outer Limit Supply]

Anti-venom, anti-venom, anti-venom.... anything else is fake news!

I'll explain with a quick challenge for those that want to test the effectiveness of their snake bite kits: Pour yourself a glass of water add a couple of drops of food dye. Now, extract the food dye with your kit. The glass is your body, the water your blood, and the dye...the venom.

The good news, most venomous snakes don't inject with every bite. Use caution, be aware of your surroundings, and give them their space.