Veterinary Science Procedures & First Aid

Hospital and surgical procedures to know for New Horizons Veterinary Science class. Also includes lessons on first aid.

How do you prevent spreading zoonotic diseases?

Proper care and hygiene practices

Example of Infection Control Measures

• PPE & Personal Protective Actions

  • e.x. hand washing, gloves, protective outerwear, animal related injury prevention (handling)

• thorough cleaning and disinfection

What are some methods of handling animals?

• Physical restraint

• Muzzles/Kitty Burrito

• Chemical restraint

What should you do if you get scratched or bit?

Wash the wound immediately with antibacterial products and go to a physician. Report incident to animal control

Where do you discard needles?

Inside of sharps containers

What should be your first reaction in an emergency situation?

Call a vet! They will advise you on first aid while you make your way to the vet hospital

First Aid Goals

• Preserve life

• Prevent escalation of illness/injury

• Promote recovery

• Provide pain relief

• Protect the unconscious

…while waiting for medical professionals to arrive

How to Protect Human Safety during First Aid

• Avoid having too many helpers

• Administer in safe location

• One person is “calling the shots”

• Protect humans from bites w/ proper restraint

• If rabies status is unknown, only those w/ vaccine should help

Patient Signalment

Name, breed/species, age, gender, neutered/spayed, problem, history

How do you decide which patient gets care first?

Triage (examine patients), take TPR, “lay eyes on patient",” evaluate airways, breathing, and circulation

Common First Aid Procedures

• CPR

• Control of bleeding

• Treatment for shock

CPR on animals

Not as high of a success rate, try to intubate animal and ventilate with anesthetic machine. Dog is in lateral recumbency for chest compressions. Also administer drugs like epinephrine and atropine to increase heart rate. Maybe IV catheter

Methods to Stop Bleeding

• Direct pressure

  • Bandages

• Elevation

• Pressure on source (like an artery)

• Tourniquet

• Surgery (mainly for internal bleeding)

Signs of Internal Bleeding

• Pet is pale

  • Check gums! White or blue gums are an emergency

• Pet is cool on limbs

• May cough up blood

• Unusually subdued

Hypovolemic Shock

Shock caused by the body losing a severe amount of blood or fluids

How to Treat Shock

• IV catheter

  • helps the volume and keeps blood pressure up

• Pain meds

• If caused by temperature, treat accordingly

Normal Temperature for Dogs & Cats

100.5°F-102.5°F

Hyperthermia

Increased body temperature caused by environmental conditions

When does heatstroke occur?

Body temperatures > 105°F

What can cause heatstroke?

• Leaving dog in hot environments

• Exercise in hot/humid weather

• May be predisposed

  • Brachycephalic, obese, illness

Signs of Hyperthermia

• Panting

• Distress

• Drooling

• Ataxia

• Gums turning blue/purple or bright red

• Could lead to organ failure

What to Do when dealing with Hyperthermia

• Remove pet from hot environment into cool one

• Place pet in cool bath without submerging head

• Wet ear flaps and paws (speeds up evaporation process if placed by fan)

• If possible, record temperature

What NOT to Do when dealing with Hyperthermia

• Do not overcool pet

• Cover with towels

• Forcing water into pet’s mouth

• Leave unattended

Preventative Measures

• Vaccines and medication

• Grooming services

  • i.e. bathing, nail trimming, ear cleaning, anal gland expression, dental prophylaxis (dental cleaning)

Radiology (X-rays) provide information on…

• Bones

• GI tract

• Respiratory system

• Heart

• Genitourinary system

Patient Observations

Key to understanding how a pet feels; 1st step in checking an animal’s wellbeing

When to use IVs

• Surgery

• Animal is dehydrated/losing a lot of fluids

• Hypovolemic shock

Debridement

Removal of dead tissue

Hydrotherapy

Spraying water on a wound to increase circulation and blood supply; rids area of any infection and dead tissue

Bandage Order

• Tefla non-adherent pad

• Tape

• Cast padding

• Soft gauze

• Vet wrap

• Elastikon

Should vet wrap be tight?

NO!

Unwrap vet wrap first to ensure it is not too tight (could cut off circulation)

Physical Therapy

Used to enhance muscle strength, range of motion, pain control, and speed of recovery

Deep vs Superficial Wounds

Deep wounds extend past the skin and expose muscle, fat, or bone. Superficial wounds don’t extend past the skin and don’t bleed as much

What to Do when dealing with Wounds

• Stop bleeding w/ direct pressure

• Protect wound by applying water or saline-soaked compress (don’t remove unless advised)

• Immobilize wound

• Provide shock care

For superficial wounds, just clean and apply bandage

What NOT to Do when dealing with Wounds

• Don’t clean wound unless instructed to do so

• Apply materials (other than those mentioned) to wound unless told so by vet

• Look under the bandage to assess bleeding

Symptoms of Allergic Reactions to Bug Bites/Stings

• Hives

• Facial Swelling

• Vomiting

• Difficulty breathing

• Collapse

What to Do when dealing with Bug Bite/Stings

• Scrape off stringer w/ stiff material (i.e. a card) or use tweezers

  • Speed is of the essence! If no tools, use fingers

• Apply cool compress

• Use baking soda and water paste

• E-collar to prevent licking

• Take to vet

DO NOT administer any medications w/o contacting your vet

How to determine pregnancy?

• Rectal palpation

• Ultrasound machines

• Milk or blood pregnancy test

Sperm Concentration

number of sperm per ml

Total Sperm

concentration x ejaculate volume

Sperm Motility

% of sperm that are progressively motile (swim straight)

Sperm Morphology

% of sperm normal in size and shape

Hypoxemia

physical blockage of the respiratory tract

Hypothermia

abnormally low body temperature

Hypoglycemia

deficiency of glucose in the bloodstream (low blood sugar)

Coloctrum

first milk produced by mother after birth; contains disease-fighting antibodies

Steps of Pre-Surgery Care

1. Evaluate patient & confirm surgery

2. Pre-medication (usually pain control)

3. Prepare and place IV catheter (trim animal and scrub)

4. Administer induction agent (propofol)

5. Place endotracheal tube

6. Attach monitoring device

7. Restrain animal

8. Prepare area for surgery (trim)

9. Scrub animal (chlorhexidine and alcohol)

10. Express bladder (dependent on surgery)

Steps of Post-Surgery Care

1. Turn off gassing anesthetic

2. Leave patient on oxygen (usually 5 minutes)

3. Remove endotracheal tube cuff and begin stimulating patient

4. Once patient can swallow, remove endotracheal tube

5. Transfer to recovery cage (should be warm)

6. Once animal can sit sternly, remove IV catheter and bandage

Why do we run laboratory tests?

• Establish a “baseline” for healthy animal

• Determine illness

• Monitor sick animals’ response to treatment

• Determine risks prior to procedures

Are lab documents LEGAL documents?

YES! These documents can be used as evidence in court in the case of a malpractice claim

Examples of Blood Tests

• Heartworm test

• CBC

• Chemistry

• Snap test-4DX

• Knotts

Methods of Collecting Urine

• Free catch

• Manual expression

• Catheter

• Cystocentesis

Examples of Fecal Tests

• Fecal flotation

• Direct smear

• Gross examination

• Centrifugation

NPS

No Parasites Seen

What’s Evaluated in Urinalysis

• Bacteria

• WBC

• RBC

• Crystals- due to pH abnormalities, presence of infection, toxins, metabolic abnormalities

• Protein

• Specific Gravity

• Casts- can be abnormal!

High SG vs Low SG

Highly concentrated urine = Dehydration

Low concentration = Kidney Concerns

What Urinalysis Findings Suggest

Blood- bleeding in urinary tract

WBC- can be normal due to route, or indicate inflammation/infection

Casts- kidney disease

Bacteria- large amounts suggestive of infection

Why could antibiotics fail?

• Wrong antibiotic prescribed

• Wrong diagnosis’ not a bacterial pathogen

• Antibiotic resistance

Why do we stain slides?

Helps highlight and display yeast/bacteria

Common things stained in Vet Med

• Ear cytologies

• Blood smears

• Fine needle aspirates

How to stain with Diff-Quik Stain

1. Collect sample

2. Place sample on slide in a small layer and allow to dry

3. Dip slide in each solution for about 15s

   1. Blue → Red → Purple

4. Rinse slide w/ water

5. Allow to dry before viewing

How to make a Blood Smear

1. Collect materials

2. Open top of blood tube of NON-CLOTTED, WHOLE BLOOD and dip toothpick into sample

3. Press stick to slide and deposit small drop of blood

4. Using another slide, drag the drop of blood across width of slide at 45°

5. Holding down the slide, use dominant hand to quickly move angled slide to smear the blood

6. Stain

Abnormalities in Blood Smears

• decreased/increased RBC

• decreased/increased WBC

• abnormal amount of platelets

• unusual coloration

• unusual RBC shape

Samples needing evaluation at a reference lab, or can’t be evaluated immediately, should be _____

Placed in the fridge

Splints

temporarily used for partial immobilization, only half of the limb is secured by a firm object ex: spoon splint

Bandage

used to cover wounds, provide support, soft compared to splint/cast

Cast

more rigid immobilization, used for longer term care

Bandaging Considerations

• Not too tight!

• Needs to be kept dry

• Change frequently

• Visualize toes

  • help see if circulation is present

• Remove layer by layer

Needle Gauges

cc = mL

The smaller the gauge, the bigger the needle and vice versa

i.e. 16cc will be a bigger needle than 25cc

Needle Length

IM- LONG needles i.e. 1”-1.5'“

SQ- 1/2”-3/4”

Smaller lengths for things like insulin i.e. 5/16”

Angle for Injection

IM- 90°

SQ- 45°

IV- 25°

Intradermal- 10°-15°

Syringe Uses

• Medication administration

• Blood sample

• Injections

• Syringe feeding

• Wound cleaning/Flushing

Dead Space

distance between the tip of the syringe barrel and the plunger

Air Bubbles in Syringe

Must be pushed out! Gently tap the syringe to move them to the top

Should needles be used more than once?

NO!

• They can get dulled

• Can transmit disease//illness

Autoclave Requirements

250°F for 15-30 minutes

Types of surgical scissors

• dissecting

  • differentiate and separate tissue

    • mayo scissors

    • metzenbaum

    • iris

• surgical

• bandage/utility

  • cut material other than tissue which may dull a blade

    • lister bandage scissors

    • wire cutting

• suture

Types of forceps

• Thumb forceps

  • used for grasping, compressing, cutting, and pulling tissues

    • adson thumb

    • brown-adson

    • tissue

    • rat tooth

• Clamping forceps

  • a.k.a. hemostats

  • controls blood flow by tightly clamping the cut ends of bleeding arteries and veins

• Needle holders

  • has locking mechanism used to hold a suture needle

Scalpels

very sharp surgical knives used to make incisions on animal during surgery; some separately than scalpel handles

Backhaus Towel Clamps

used to secure surgical drapes, have locks, and can be directly clamped to animal skin w/o causing harm

Surgical Drapes

cover animal and surrounding areas for procedure; creates sterile barrier