surgical wound care + bandages

I typically like to provide a little variety in the content presented here - usually avoiding too many posts in a row focused on the same subject.

As an eventer, this is relatively easily managed bc even if I'm just writing about one schooling ride or lesson after another, at least we've got three distinct phases to work on, right?

old shot from when we first moved in - but this shows the tack locker's general space blocking and storage capability

Right now tho, obviously Charlie is doing none of those phases. Rather, he is sitting in his stall looking bored and disinterested while nosing through the mountains of hay I can't stop myself from throwing at him.

And, perhaps you'll understand that this boring monotonous unchanging situation takes up the greatest portion of my attention and thoughts. It's on my mind, ya know?

So here's another post talking about Charlie's post-surgical care. This time, looking at the ungodly amount of material needed to keep his wound safe from infection -- and how I've updated the tack locker to accommodate all that.

top drawer clockwise from top L: sandwich baggies (for pre-measured supplements); freezer bags (for packing meals on the go); vet wrap; latex gloves; spare kitchen sponges; non-stick sterile pads; bandage kit inc. multiple sizes of rolls of guaze; and more variously sized non stick pads

First up on the chopping block: that nifty set of drawers needed to be cleared out and organized in a major way. It had over time grown into being a "catch all" space for small odds and ends that I didn't necessarily want to trash, but that weren't otherwise very utile.

Each drawer was fairly well stuffed, and the important stuff that I used most often was beginning to take up disorganized, stacked up residence on the floor space directly in front of the drawers (thus rendering the drawers less accessible).

So I finally threw out all the useless junk that I tend to hoard (OCD Brita was so proud of me!), clearing out some of the latest mice nests in the process (ew). Then I tried to think a little more deeply about how to restock the drawers in a way that makes sense and is useful.

Top drawer became: mostly baggies and bandage pads, and other boxed up medical stuff that didn't fit into the tool box described below. I hope to not need this drawer often, but do want to keep this stuff easily within reach should the need arise.

middle draw clockwise from top L: rolls of duct tape and clear packing tape; mini cordless clippers; tubes of bute paste; flash light; epsom salts; random mug bc why not; supplement tupperwares; SMZs; spray wound flush; half used tube of bute paste; alushield; furazone; bute tables; measuring spoons; ichthammol ointment; and baytril.

The second drawer is a little more cluttered but I'm hoping the shallow nature of the drawer will keep from letting it get overrrun. All my medications and topical treatments that aren't likely to leak are stored in here. Exceptions are the MTG, Animax, Betadine and Keratex that are stored in the hanging organizer.

A lot of the stuff here had been previously left out on the floor of the tack locker for easy grabbing when needed, but I'm actually happier to give them all a dedicated 'space.'

new stanley tool box - perfectly sized to nestle between the above set of drawers and the tack locker wall

I also picked up a new tool box that would ideally have enough space to fit a fair amount of goodies in it, while also being small enough to squeeze between the drawers and the wall. I had envisioned more of a fishing tackle box style, but this is shaped perfectly: long and wide but not very deep.

It doesn't really have many meaningful compartments, but that actually worked out well for my purposes. It's nice that the lid opens from either side and can come entirely off too.

absolutely filled with bandaging materials

I had planned to fill the box with more of the stuff that went into drawer #2 - all those medicines and ointments and whatnot - plus maybe the gloves and some rolls of vet wrap.

But actually it only fit a fraction of the bandages for Charlie's wraps so..... Yea I maybe was a little delusional about how much space this stuff really occupies.

In any case: the box holds my full supply of brown cling gauze, animalintex pads, telfa pads, elastikon, and most of my rolled gauze and vetwrap. All the rest of the vetwrap and non stick wound pads are in the top drawer.

omg and even more.... rolls upon rolls of cotton gauze and wraps

Naturally tho, there are other elements of Charlie's wound care supply that take up even MOAR room -- and are also maybe highly susceptible to mouse infestation. This would be the fluffy rolls of gauze and the big leg-sized rolled cotton wrap for encasing the whole cannon.

These goodies.... don't really fit anywhere and I've taken to storing them in my car for fear of the mice getting in there and making a poop-filled mess of things.

So.... yea. It's a lot of materials. Most of them are specifically devoted to Charlie's post-surgical wound care and will be used up in short order and not replaced at nearly the same volume. The rest tho are just every day first aid type stuff that's nice to have on hand. I imagine once a lot of the stuff in that tool box is used up, I'll be revisiting ways to pack it up to be a little more versatile.

the hospital bandage after 2 days. top two layers: blue vetwrap and elastikon at top and bottom to seal.

In the meantime, let's talk about the surgical wound and it's bandaging in particular. The vets at New Bolton changed the bandage the morning before he was discharged to make sure all was well - then left detailed instructions for care over the next two weeks.

The bandage is to be changed every 2-3 days. Early if it's wet, slipped down, or really nasty. Later if all looks well. In Charlie's case, the advantages of frequent changes (being able to visually assess the wound) are outweighed by the need to keep the site as sterile and clear from contamination as possible.

The top layer of the bandage is all about reducing the risks of contamination: a thick layer of vetwrap covers the entire bandage. And at each end, sticky elastikon seals the edges of the bandage directly to Charlie's knee and hoof. This creates a barrier protecting against anything slipping underneath the bandage.

middle two layers: brown cling gauze covering a full size cotton roll

The next layer of the bandage is essentially a standing wrap: thick rolled cotton covered by brown cling gauze. I'd never used this brown gauze before and am not totally sure what hugely important purpose it serves in existing between the cotton roll and the vet wrap.

But that's ok - I'm more than happy to do whatever it takes to keep that wound wrapped up like Fort Knox. The brown gauze is kinda nice too, as it sticks to itself relatively securely so you don't have to keep a hand on the bandage while gathering materials for each successive layer.

bottom layer: cotton gauze covering a telfa non stick pad

And finally, the innermost layer of the bandage - and arguably the most important: a non stick pad (in this case a Telfa pad) to dress the wound directly, held in place by a roll of cotton gauze.

The cotton gauze rolls from New Bolton are giant and fluffy and take up a ton of space compared to the vacuum sealed sterile rolls in some of the packs I've picked up (that you can see in the tool box pic), but again I'm not convinced there's a major difference. Both seem to work just fine, tho there's more volume to the hospital rolls. Like a big fluffy pillow lol.

the sutured up surgical site. chicks dig scars tho, right?

Below all that, we get to the wound itself. Idk. It's ugly. It's long and is closed by two different layers of sutures (for different tension relieving purposes) and definitely looks like a leg that has undergone some trauma. Poor Charlie.

i'll probably have this wrap figured out by the time i don't need to wrap it anymore lol

I'm not the world's greatest bandage wrapper but this whole situation seems mostly fool-proof. Plus it doesn't hurt that Charlie is an easy patient: he mostly keeps his leg pretty still when I'm working on it (tho all bets are off when I step away - he hates the feeling of a loose wrap and will shake and stomp the leg to make it come off. this is.... not helpful lol).

But it helps me feel a little better about the whole thing by getting all the materials organized and stored for easy access. Small wins, right? And maybe I'm not the only one who gets that odd self-satisfied feeling when looking at a freshly organized, well-stocked kit?

How have you gone about building out your first aid kits? By necessity bc of some major disruptive illness or injury? Or slowly over time as needs arose for this or that?

How do you keep things organized? Do you like everything to have its place, with similar items stored together? Or is it more a function of how often things get used? Is there any one item in your kit that you rely on head and shoulders above the rest? Or things you thought were very important that have gone unused for ages?