Customer Reviews

Rescuing Rover: A First Aid and Disaster Guide for Dog Owners

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This is an excellent step-by-step first aid and disaster planning guide for your dog. The instructions are easy to follow, and are paired with full color drawings which beautifully illustrate each of the steps in a procedure. The technical artwork alone makes the book worth having. Though originating from the needs of Canine Search and Rescue Teams as noted in the Introduction, it is a practical guide for all dog owners who may need to provide medical assistance to their dog in an emergency situation or a disaster. It is not a replacement for qualified veterinary care, but rather a guide to preparing an injured dog so that it can be safely transported to a veterinarian without further harm. There are sections on the care of dogs in disasters, where to find speciality medical help, checklists for supplies and a first aid kit, and a place to record your dog's vital signs and obedience commands. The entire book is straight forward (what to do and how to do it) and VERY easy to read - you don't have to wade through pages of text to get to the points. I recommend this book for anyone whose dog may become injured under conditions where veterinary services are not readily available, and for all responsible pet owners who are preparing themselves and their families to be prepared should a disaster strike their home or their community.

I anticipated that a book published by Purdue Univ. and by vet school faculty would be useful. Perhaps some day I'll find it will be.

The illustrations are colorful and well done. But these are the topics covered -- HOW TO: restrain a dog, muzzle, examine the eye, bandage an upright ear, bandage a floppy ear, bandage a foot, bandage a lower leg, bandage a tail.

There is a brief section on medical emergencies. However, saying "Always have injuries examined by a veterinarian" is neither sufficient or particularly helpful advice. For poisoning, it recommends "veterinary advice should be sought" and also gives the National Animal Poison Control Center phone number.

I thought the section on the care of your dog in disasters (e.g., hurricanes, evacuations, etc.) was helpful. It also gives the name and numbers of various vet schools which specialize in particular conditions (skin, eye, nutrition, teeth, surgery, etc.) which could be helpful. As also was a section in which you can list the spoken and body language commands you use with your dog.

But I found Bruce Fogle's "First Aid for Dogs: what to do when emergencies happen" to be many magnitudes more useful and practical.

I've referred to this book several times, but was usually left looking elsewhere for what I needed. Good for reference on bandaging and I'm keeping it in my dog bag for just that, but I'm looking for something that will give me more for field emergency first aid.