I would like to have materials on hand to be prepared if anything goes wrong with my pets. I have heard people suggest a first aid box so that you are prepared, but I don't have much idea what to put in this.
Things that I already have or have access to so far:
- emergency heating (disposable hand warmers) in case the power goes out
- prescription food we got given by the vet when one of them wasn't eating
- small syringes, for the above
- equipment to bathe the geckos, in case of shedding problems or prolapse
- usual household stuff like cotton wool balls, cotton buds, kitchen roll, etc.
- ability to make stuff from usual household ingredients, e.g. saline solution
- lots of human first aid stuff - bandages, steri-strips, plasters, antiseptic cream/wipes/liquid (no idea if any of this is safe/useful for reptiles)
Not much of this really covers what I would call "first aid" - in particular, I don't think I'm covered for cuts or bites, and I'm sure there are other accidents that might happen that I haven't thought of because I simply haven't kept reptiles for long enough.
Of course, if anything serious happened, we would rush to the vet, so I am looking to be prepared for the following situations:
- I want to be able to treat things which are not serious enough to require a trip to the vet, but that require prompt treatment (if it doesn't require prompt treatment, it's not really first aid, and I can buy required materials as and when it happens).
- If something happens which requires a trip to the vet, I want to be able to do what I can to minimise the damage/danger at once, before we make it to the vet.