Camping and travelling with your furry friend is one of life’s greatest joys, but just like us, pets can have unexpected accidents or health scares on the road. That’s why packing a dedicated pet first aid kit – and knowing how to use it – can make all the difference between a minor hiccup and a serious emergency.
To help pet owners prepare, we turned to Dr Tania Mitchell BVSc (distinction), Veterinarian and Practice Owner of Vet in a Van. Since 2020, Dr Tania has been travelling full-time around Australia in a caravan with her husband and four children, giving her firsthand insight into the challenges pets face on the road and in remote areas.
With 17 years of experience across veterinary clinics, animal shelters, exotic pet care, and work in remote Indigenous communities, she has seen just about every situation you might encounter while travelling with pets. Her advice is shaped not only by professional expertise but also by her own experience as a pet-loving traveller. After seeing a real need for a kit designed specifically for camping and travel, Dr Tania developed the Vet in a Van Pet First Aid Kit in collaboration with Navigator.
The most important first aid contents to include when camping with pets are:
Include your pet’s vaccination certificate and chat to your vet about any medications (like antihistamines, pain relief or regular medications and supplements) which are suited to your pet.
A muzzle can be added if your dog is used to one, as even the friendliest dogs might bite if they are in pain.
This list may look long, but these items are lightweight, compact, and could be lifesaving in the right situation.
First aid can save lives or prevent further pain or complications until you can get your pet to a veterinarian. A Pet First Aid Kit is more practical and useful if you know what the contents are and how to use them.
Firstly, get everything out and familiarise yourself with your Pet First Aid Kit. It can be helpful to choose a kit that contains a list of contents and their uses, otherwise you might need to do some extra research. Next, read a Pet First Aid guide or sit a pet first aid course to get a general idea of how to use items like a tick remover, or how to apply a bandage properly. It’s not necessary to memorise every detail but just be aware of where you can find help should you need it. If you want to practice putting a bandage on your dog’s paw or leg, then go ahead, your dog might need the practice sitting still too. Practice leads to competence which leads to confidence.
A good Pet First Aid guide will also help you distinguish between whether it is a situation that can be managed yourself, or whether immediate veterinary assistance should be sought. Veterinary telehealth services are available, and come in very handy if you are remote, if you need help to triage and assess the severity of a situation, or extra guidance with how to use items in your Pet First Aid Kit.
In other words, owning the kit is just step one – knowing how to use it is what truly gives you peace of mind on your adventures.
Camping in a remote location might mean limited phone or internet service and no vet clinic for hundreds of kilometres, so it becomes impossible to immediately Google a problem or call for veterinary advice if the unexpected happens.
We all tend to panic and worry when there’s an accident or emergency involving our fur babies, so having access to Pet First Aid equipment and easy-to-follow instructions helps to reduce the stress and stay calm in a potentially scary situation.
A few case examples from travellers who have successfully used our Vet in a Van Pet First Aid Kit and Quick Reference Guide whilst camping or living in remote locations:
A family camping on Perlubie beach in SA, who’s old chihuahua had started vomiting, used advice from the Kit to feed a bland diet and give the electrolyte mix. This helped their pup’s upset tummy to recover and rehydrate, leading to a fast recovery.
Vomiting in older animals can quickly lead to dehydration and make them very unwell requiring hospitalisation, so this was potentially life-saving given the closest veterinary hospital was 4 hours drive away.
A couple doing the Gibb River Road in WA noticed their dog was licking his paw a lot and realised that he had multiple grass seeds embedded in his paws which were starting to abscess. They were able to follow instructions to remove the grass seeds, clean the wounds, give him a full once over to check for more seeds and know what complications to watch for. Grass seeds embed in the skin then quickly migrate deep into the body forming nasty abscesses, this is painful, usually requires surgery to find the grass seed internally and can lead to a life-threatening infection.
The fast actions by this owner to know that something wasn’t right with their dog and take action saved the potential need for antibiotics and surgery, or worse.
A couple working at a remote airfield with no veterinary access noticed that their labrador was limping one night and they could see that she had broken a toe nail. With instructions from the Kit, they cleaned the nail bed with antiseptic, then sought veterinary telehealth advice for how to manage the broken nail and pain relief options. A broken nail is very painful and can lead to a deep infection in the nail bed or toe. This dog didn’t develop an infection thanks to the quick thinking of her owner, so no further antibiotics or veterinary intervention were required.
A travel family camping at Winderabandi in WA were worried when their dog developed vomiting and diarrhoea. They used advice and electrolytes from the Kit, along with individual instructions from Dr Tania via a telehealth consultation, and their dog soon passed a big sandy poop and was feeling much better.
Eating sand directly or in small amounts stuck to food or toys can be enough to make a dog quite sick, and potentially cause a life-threatening gut obstruction, so this owner followed the right steps to notice that their dog was quite unwell and seek extra veterinary advice in addition to the supportive care instructions in their Pet First Aid Kit.
A young couple travelling with their golden retriever in Queensland became concerned when their dog seemed lethargic and unsteady on her back legs. After a visit to the local vet, arthritis was assumed as the cause, but the dog continued to get worse. They discovered a paralysis tick attached near the dog’s ear and were able to use the tick remover and advice from the Kit to remove the tick immediately then take their dog to an emergency veterinary hospital for further treatment.
Paralysis Ticks are common on the East Coast of Australia, especially during the warmer months, so effective and regular tick prevention is necessary. The toxin from a Paralysis Tick bite can quickly spread within the body, potentially causing paralysis and death if the tick isn’t removed as soon as possible and the pet hospitalised for life-saving anti-toxin treatment.
These stories show just how valuable a pet first aid kit can be, turning a stressful moment into a manageable situation and, in some cases, saving a pet’s life.
Vet in a Van is a travelling mobile veterinary clinic run by Dr Tania Mitchell. It offers health checks, vaccinations, parasite prevention, medical treatments for minor issues, euthanasia, and telehealth advice for travellers and residents in remote areas.
The Vet in a Van Pet First Aid Kit was developed in collaboration with Navigator, after Dr Tania saw a real need for a kit designed specifically for camping and travel. It includes her exclusive Pet First Aid Quick Reference Guide with step-by-step instructions and video links, helping owners confidently manage common pet emergencies when a vet isn’t nearby.
By combining years of veterinary expertise with life on the road, Vet in a Van is helping pet owners feel more confident and prepared, wherever their travels take them. Follow Dr Tania and her family’s travels and vet advice @vet.in.a.van on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, with Dr Tania’s new Pet Advice YouTube channel soon to be launched.
Camping and travel with your furry family member can be incredibly rewarding for you and your pet, though it is not suited to all pets and does need some prior planning.
Remember to visit your vet before your trip for a health check, to check microchip details, and discuss appropriate vaccinations and parasite prevention for the area/s you are heading to.
With the right preparation – including a well-stocked Pet First Aid Kit – you can travel with peace of mind, knowing you’re ready for whatever adventure (or mishap) comes your way.
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