Dog first aid: what to do in the most common emergencies

A cut paw pad, heatstroke on a July afternoon, a chunk of toy lodged in the throat… Dog emergencies don’t come with a warning, and what you do in the first few minutes can make a real difference. Knowing basic dog first aid helps you stay calm, avoid mistakes that make things worse and get your dog to the vet in the best possible shape.

Here’s what to keep in your kit, your dog’s normal vital signs and what to do in the most common emergencies. First aid doesn’t replace veterinary care: it stabilizes your dog and buys time.

First things first: your safety and the call to your vet

Before you touch an injured dog, take a breath and follow this order:

1. Make the scene safe. If your dog is in traffic, in water or near a downed wire, don’t put yourself in danger.
2. Protect yourself from bites. Pain and fear can make even the sweetest dog bite. If there’s any risk, use a muzzle. To improvise one, loop a long strip of gauze around the muzzle, tie it on top, cross the ends under the jaw and tie them behind the ears. Don’t muzzle a dog who is vomiting, struggling to breathe, unconscious or flat-faced.
3. Call your vet or a 24-hour emergency hospital while you act.
4. Check the basics: Is your dog conscious? Breathing? What color are the gums? Is there bleeding?

What to put in a dog first aid kit

A small waterproof box works well, with a stripped-down version for the car or your hiking pack:

Check the kit every six months. Leave out hydrogen peroxide and rubbing alcohol, which damage tissue in wounds, and keep human medications out of it.

Normal vital signs for dogs and how to check them

These are resting values and rough guides; they go up with exercise, heat, excitement and fear.

How to check each one:

• Breathing: with your dog calm or asleep, count chest rises for 30 seconds and multiply by 2.
• Pulse: place two fingers (not your thumb) on the inside of the thigh, halfway down, or your hand on the left side of the chest just behind the elbow. Count for 15 seconds and multiply by 4.
• Gums: they should be pink and moist (except naturally black areas). Pale or white, blue or gray, brick red or yellow gums are warning signs.
• Capillary refill time: press a fingertip on the gum until it blanches, then let go. The pink should return in under 2 seconds.
• Hydration: gently lift the skin between the shoulder blades; it should snap back right away. If it’s slow and the gums feel tacky, your dog may be dehydrated.
• Temperature: use a digital thermometer rectally. Here’s the step-by-step guide on how to tell if your dog has a fever.

Wounds: how to clean them and when to see a vet

1. If there’s heavy bleeding, skip to the bleeding section first.
2. Trim the fur around the wound with blunt-tip scissors.
3. Flush it generously with saline or lukewarm tap water using the syringe until dirt and debris are gone.
4. Apply the antiseptic your vet recommended, if you have it.
5. Cover with gauze and a light bandage: you should be able to slide two fingers underneath. On a leg, include the toes and watch for swelling.
6. Use a cone (e-collar) to keep your dog from licking it.

Your vet should see the wound if it’s longer than about half an inch (1–2 cm), deep, a bite wound (even a tiny puncture can get badly infected), on the chest, belly, eye or a joint, or if something is stuck in it. Don’t pull out an embedded object such as a stick or fishhook: pad around it with gauze and head to the clinic.

Bleeding: how to stop it

1. Apply direct pressure: place several gauze pads or a clean cloth over the wound and press firmly for at least 5–10 minutes without lifting to check.
2. If blood soaks through, don’t remove the gauze: add more on top and keep pressing.
3. Once the bleeding slows, wrap a pressure bandage over the gauze and go to the vet.

Avoid tourniquets: applied incorrectly they can damage the limb, and direct pressure controls the vast majority of bleeding. If blood is spurting or doesn’t stop after 10 minutes of pressure, keep pressing on the way to the emergency hospital.

For a nosebleed, keep your dog calm, hold a wrapped cold pack on the bridge of the nose and call your vet: causes range from a foreign object to rat bait.

Heatstroke: cool first, then transport

Suspect heatstroke if your dog is panting heavily, drooling thick saliva, has a bright red tongue and gums, is wobbly, vomits or collapses after time in the sun, exercise in the heat or a parked car. It can turn deadly quickly.

1. Move your dog into the shade or air conditioning right away.
2. Wet them with cool, not icy, water, especially the neck, armpits, groin and belly, and put them in front of a fan or moving air. Don’t drape wet towels over them: they trap heat.
3. Offer small amounts of water to drink without forcing it.
4. Go to the vet even if your dog seems to recover, and keep cooling on the way.

If you can take a temperature, stop cooling once it drops to about 103 °F (39.5 °C) so your dog doesn’t get too cold. Our full guide to heatstroke in dogs covers prevention and warning signs.

Choking: what to do if your dog can’t breathe

Typical signs are pawing at the mouth, gagging, trying to cough, drooling, panic, noisy breathing and, in severe cases, blue gums and loss of consciousness.

• If your dog is breathing and coughing, let them cough, stay calm and go to the vet. Don’t do a blind finger sweep: you could push the object deeper.
• If you can see the object and your dog allows it, open the mouth by holding the upper jaw and remove it with your fingers or tweezers, coming in from the side. A bone or stick wedged across the roof of the mouth usually comes loose if you push it forward.
• If your dog can’t breathe or passes out, do this:

1. Lift the hind legs so the head is lower (you can carefully hold a small dog upside down) and give 4–5 firm blows with the heel of your hand between the shoulder blades.
2. If that doesn’t work, do abdominal thrusts. For a small dog, hold them with their back against your chest, place a fist in the soft hollow just below the ribcage and push firmly in and up 5 times. For a large, standing dog, wrap your arms around the belly from behind, make a fist just below the ribs and thrust up and forward 5 times; if the dog is lying on their side, push just below the ribs toward the head.
3. Check the mouth, remove the object if it’s come loose and repeat on the way to the clinic.

Even if the object comes out, get your dog checked: thrusts can cause internal injuries. If you see string, thread or fishing line coming from the mouth or rear end, don’t pull it: it may be anchored in the intestines.

Poisoning: what to do and what not to do

If you think your dog ate or licked something toxic, like a medication, rat bait, chocolate or a plant:

1. Take the product away and keep the packaging or a sample.
2. Call your vet, an emergency hospital, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center or Pet Poison Helpline right away, even if your dog seems fine. Have ready what they ate, the most they could have eaten, when, and your dog’s weight.
3. Don’t induce vomiting unless a vet tells you to: it makes things worse with caustic products or sharp objects, and salt or hydrogen peroxide carry their own risks.
4. If the toxin is on the skin or coat, rinse with plenty of lukewarm water and keep your dog from licking; if it’s in the eyes, flush them with saline for several minutes.
5. Don’t give milk, oil or food to “neutralize” it.

You’ll find symptoms for each common toxin in our guide to dog poisoning symptoms, and dangerous people foods in toxic foods for dogs.

How to move an injured dog safely

• Small dogs: in their carrier or a box lined with a towel.
• Large dogs: use a blanket or board as a stretcher, with two people supporting the whole body.
• Possible spinal injury (hit by a car, a fall, can’t move the hind legs): move them as little as possible, on a rigid surface, keeping head, neck and back aligned.
• Fractures: don’t try to set the bone or splint it; support the leg with a rolled towel.
• Keep them warm, since shock lowers body temperature, unless it’s heatstroke.
• In the car, have someone else drive while you watch your dog. Call ahead so the team is ready.

Never give your dog medication on your own

It’s the most dangerous temptation: reaching into your own medicine cabinet for “something for the pain.” Acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), naproxen (Aleve) and aspirin can cause stomach ulcers, kidney failure or liver damage in dogs, even in amounts that would be small for a person. Learn the signs your dog is in pain and let your vet treat it.

Frequently asked questions

How do you do CPR on a dog?

Only do CPR if your dog isn’t breathing and you can’t feel a heartbeat. Lay them on their side on a firm surface and compress the widest part of the chest at 100–120 compressions per minute, pressing down one-third to one-half of the chest’s width. After every 30 compressions, hold the mouth closed and give 2 breaths into the nose. Do it while someone drives to the clinic, and consider taking a pet CPR class.

What should I do if my dog has a seizure?

Don’t put your hand in their mouth: dogs can’t swallow their tongue, and you could get bitten by accident. Move furniture and objects out of the way, dim the lights, keep things quiet and time the seizure. Afterward, talk to your dog calmly and let them recover. Always call your vet; a seizure lasting more than 5 minutes, or one that follows another before your dog recovers, is an emergency.

What do I do if my dog gets stung by a bee or wasp?

If you see a bee stinger, scrape it out sideways with a fingernail or card rather than squeezing it, then apply a wrapped cold pack. Mild swelling at the site is common. Call your vet if your dog was stung in the mouth or throat or many times, and go to an emergency hospital right away for spreading facial swelling, hives, vomiting, weakness or trouble breathing.

How can I tell if my dog is in shock?

After an accident, heavy bleeding or a serious illness, shock shows up as pale or grayish gums, a capillary refill time over 2 seconds, a fast, weak pulse, rapid breathing, cold paws and severe weakness or confusion. Keep your dog lying down, warm and as calm as possible, control any bleeding and go to an emergency hospital immediately: shock can get worse within minutes.

Sources

• American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA): pet first aid and what to do in an emergency.
• American Red Cross: pet first aid guidance for dogs and cats.
• RECOVER Initiative: cardiopulmonary resuscitation guidelines for dogs and cats.
• Merck Veterinary Manual: reference values for canine vital signs.
• ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center: human medications that are toxic to dogs.