Navigated to K9 Medicine - Dr. Jason Donohoe

K9 Medicine - Dr. Jason Donohoe

Mar 4, 2025
54 mins

Episode Description

🔹 Key Topics:

🔸 Why medics need to understand K9 trauma care

  • The overlap between human and canine emergency medicine
  • Common injuries in police, military, and search-and-rescue dogs

🔸 MARCH for Canines—What's Different?

  • The first "M" stands for Muzzle—securing the dog's "weapon" before treatment
  • Understanding the similarities in trauma care between humans and dogs
  • Key differences in how canines respond to injury and shock

🔸 Massive Hemorrhage Control—Why Tourniquets Don't Work on Dogs

  • Anatomical challenges—why dogs' limbs aren't suited for tourniquets
  • When to use direct pressure, wound packing, and hemostatic agents
  • Junctional bleeding—where life-threatening hemorrhages happen in dogs

🔸 Airway & Breathing—Why Intubating a Dog Is Easier Than You Think

  • How to recognize respiratory distress vs. normal panting
  • Why dogs have larger, straighter airways than humans
  • Needle decompression for pneumothorax—landmarks and technique

🔸 Transporting an Injured K9—Avoid These Mistakes

  • Best positions and vehicles for safe transport
  • What paramedics, police, and handlers need to plan for before an emergency

🔸 Shock & Fluid Resuscitation—The Critical Role of Femoral Pulse Checks

  • How to assess perfusion in a dog without a blood pressure cuff
  • Why EZ-IO is the best choice for vascular access in canines
  • When and how to administer fluids, TXA, and blood products

🔸 CPR for Dogs—Does It Work?

  • When CPR can save a dog—and when it won't
  • How to perform chest compressions correctly
  • Naloxone for K9 opioid overdoses—it works, but dosing is different

🔸 Medications & Pain Management—What Paramedics Can Safely Use

  • NSAIDs are dangerous for dogs—avoid them in trauma cases
  • Opioids, TXA, ketamine, and antibiotics—what's safe and effective?
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