This is an area in which it pays to spend a little time, effort and money. Spend some money to have some first aid products on hand at all times; spend some money using some of the products up practicing with them. Practice bandaging both front and hind legs - both above and below the knees/hocks. If you don't want to do this yourself, make sure you can get your horse to the vet or vice versa as needed - for some kinds of injuries, bandages may need to be changed every day. And in any case, no bandage will stay on a horse for very long - even on a low-motion area, the horse itself is a high-motion environment. As a bandage loosens with the horse's movement, it will begin to let dirt in, defeating its purpose. With some practice, you can learn to wrap a leg in a bandage that will stay on for 3-4 days - that's about as long as you'd want it to stay on between checks of the healing process of a fairly minor skin injury.

Supplies

Some basic first aid supplies

These are some of the basics of a barn first aid kit:
- Clean bucket
- Betadine (concentrate)
- Nitrafurazone ointment
- Cling gauze
- Cotton sheet wraps
- Non-stick gauze pads (not pictured)
- Elasticon (brand-name) stretchy adhesive tape
- Self-stick wrap like Vetrap or CoFlex
- plenty of sterile cotton or pads for blotting, wiping, etc.
- applicators for ointment, like tongue depressors or
plastic knife (to put ointment on the gauze)
- Bandage scissors (blunt ended)

Not pictured, but also important:
- Thermometer with eye at the end to attach cotton string
- Stethescope - doesn't need to be an expensive one
- Duct tape
- Several old, but clean, towels; different sizes if possible

Again, many good books and other resources are already out there on this topic. My purpose is to encourage you to make use of them.

The other big resource for you is your own vet. Most vets are happy to show you some first aid techniques and explain their own bandaging tricks to you as they work. Some even hold seminars where you can purchase supplies and even have a calm, experienced equine subject on which to practice.

The important thing is that you will feel much more confident the day your horse comes in from pasture with a bleeding laceration if you have already practiced what to do in advance.

Here are a few tips:
- Triage: how serious is the injury, do you call the vet?
- If yes, call immediately
- Keep the horse calm; get to a well-lighted area
- Clean water to clean up the area - warm if possible
- If the vet is coming, do not give any medicines or apply any ointment to the area. You don't want to mask the condition or make the area harder to work with.
- If you use Betadine, dilute it to the color of sun tea.

A word about duct tape: don't laugh. It's very useful for bandaging hooves. And I once saw a mare who had gotten cut lengthwise along her belly. Her quick-thinking owner had applied large towels and wrapped duct tape around and around her barrel to hold the towels - and her innards - in place. it worked. Obviously, this was an extreme case. Normally, you do not want duct tape to come into contact with skin or hair. But if it's a choice of losing some hair or losing the horse, I know which way I'd go.

Common Procedures

There are a few basics you should know how to perform. If you call the vet to say, "My horse didn't eat breakfast, and has been standing looking unhappy for the last three hours," it will also help if you can tell the vet your horse's temperature, and what kind of gut sounds you're able to hear.

Get a thermometer with an eye hole at one end to which you can attach a foot or so of cotton twine (not baling twine, please - nylon can easily cut the horse). I've seen fancier arrangements involving surgical tubing and alligator clips, but it's not really necessary. And again, make sure that your horse will stand still to have his temp taken before an emergency occurs. (See also Touchy Subject [under construction] for suggestions.) A little lubricating gel is helpful, too.

A horse's normal temperature can be between 98 and 101 degrees F; check your horse's temperature when she's not ill to determine what normal is for her. It will help the vet to know what she's dealing with if you can tell her your horse's temperature when you call in an emergency. For example, you may notice your horse doesn't eat breakfast, but she may have been in distress since midnight the night before, and a significantly elevated temperature may indicate that it's more serious than just one skipped meal.

Spend some time with your stethescope, too, listening to your horse's gut sounds. At the very least, you should be able to tell your vet if you hear any sounds or not.

A word concerning colic: most experts now agree that it is not necessary to force a colicing horse to walk. As long as the horse is not throwing himself to the ground and thrashing around, you may let your horse either stand and rest or even lie down and rest, as he chooses, while you wait for the vet.

Listen first, whisper later...