Summer First Aid Tips – Dealing with Animal Bites to Children

For kids, summer is the best time to play, learn new things outside school, and discover different places. For patients, summer is the best time to bring their kids to parks, summer camps, swimming pool, and beaches. Keeping the child safe in these environments is top priority. But no matter how well you protect your child, something might still go wrong.

One possible danger of taking your kids to these places is the incident of an animal bite. It can be someone else's pet (other kids included) or a wild animal. Any bite is dangerous and requires immediate medical attention. All bites can cause infection, including scratches. Severe bites can cause puncture, tissue damage and heavy bleeding.

If happy cheers of children playing in the background are replaced by a horrific scream and cry for help, suspect something is not right. Attend to the victim right away. Take the child away from the site of the incident. If the animal still poses risks, call for animal control.

First aid for minor bite wound
An animal bite is minor if the wound is skin-deep or if it is caused by human (or another child) or a domestic animal that is vaccinated with anti-rabies.

• Wash your hands and make sure they are clean before you attend to the victim. Otherwise, you will just increase the risk of infection.
• Wash the wound thoroughly with antibacterial soap and water.
• Apply antibiotic cream to the affected area.
• Cover the wound with sterile gauze or a clean bandage or with a clean piece of cloth if neither is available.
• Check for infection. Look for signs and symptoms including discharge, swelling, unpleasant smell from the wound, redness around the site of the wound, increased pain, red tracks from the site of the bite to the heart, and swollen glands. Call for emergency help right away if you see any of these signs.
• Call a doctor if the bite is on the hands or finger. Antibiotics are given to these bites.

First aid for severe bite wound
An animal bite is severe if the wound is deep that causes heavy bleeding and tissue damage or if it is caused by a wild animal or domestic animal with unknown immunization status.

• Call 911
• Attempt to stop the bleeding by applying pressure on the wound using clean and dry cloth.