April is Pet First Aid Awareness Month

Six Ways To Honor Pet First Aid Awareness Month

April is National Pet First Aid Awareness Month, and DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital encourages pet owners to honor the occasion by being as informed and proactive as possible. “Every year, DoveLewis provides emergency veterinary care to more than 12,500 patients,” said Dr. Christy Michael of DoveLewis. “No one expects or hopes to deal with a pet emergency, but it’s important to be prepared so you can remain calm and focused in any type of situation.”

1. Take a free pet first aid workshop. DoveLewis is proud to offer free pet first aid workshops taught by leading veterinary professionals, including 2014 Veterinary Technician of the Year Megan Brashear. The next workshop will be held on Thursday, May 8 from 7:00-8:00PM. Those interested in attending may register online here. All workshops are held in the DoveLewis Community Room at 1945 NW Pettygrove Street in Portland, Oregon.

2. Pack a pet first aid kit. Keep a first aid safety kit on hand at home and in your car. Not sure what to include? Download this free list of pet first aid kit supplies. Make sure to also include essential medical record information including your pet’s name, age, breed, sex, microchip number, vaccine history, and any pre-exiting health problems with any kit. This will make it easier to relay this information to a veterinarian if you call for assistance.

3. Keep important phone numbers on hand. It’s a good idea to keep key resources at your fingertips, so that you can act quickly in an emergency situation. Add the following organizations’ phone numbers to your contacts: DoveLewis (503.228.7281), Animal Poison Control Center (888.426.4435) and Pet Poison Help Line (800.213.6680).

4. Know where you can take your pet for emergency veterinary care. Often times, your regular veterinarian will be equipped to handle a pet emergency. But many general practice veterinary clinics are not open in the evenings or on the weekends. Remember DoveLewis is open 24 hours per day, seven days per week, every single day of the year (even on major holidays). DoveLewis also accepts referrals, so if your pet requires emergency care that is beyond the scope of your regular veterinarian, the staff at DoveLewis is here to help.

5. Set aside some money to help pay for emergency veterinary care. Just like emergency care for humans, emergency care for animals is not cheap. Set aside a bit of money every month so you’ll have funds to draw from if an emergency situation arises. Low-income families facing a pet emergency may qualify for financial assistance through the DoveLewis Velvet Assistance Fund, a donor-funded program. Its $120,000 in annual assistance is one of the highest totals provided in the entire country.

6. Consider getting pet insurance. If you’re on the fence about it, you might want to read this article by Canine Journal and then do some of your own research to determine what’s best for you and your pet.

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About DoveLewis
DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital, established in 1973 and based in Portland, Ore., is the only nonprofit, 24-hour emergency and intensive care unit in the region. DoveLewis provides donor-funded programs to the community, including one of the United States’ largest volunteer-based animal blood banks, a nationally recognized pet loss support program, a partnership with Guide Dogs for the Blind to bring animal-assisted therapy and education to the community, 24-hour stabilizing care for lost, stray and wild animals and financial assistance for qualifying low-income families and abused animals. Celebrating 40 years of service to the community, DoveLewis has treated over 500,000 animals and has been deemed one of Oregon’s Most Admired Nonprofits by The Portland Business Journal for seven years! For more information, please visit http://www.dovelewis.org.

(courtesy of Media Contact Shawna Harch)