Disaster Cures the Kitchen Medicine Cabinet Hold

What Cures the Kitchen Medicine Cabinet Hold (copyright Amber Higgins)

Here's an article I wrote for a newspaper about 20 years ago and the same advice remains true!

This is great information to know when other medical supplies are not available and after  disasters when first aid is needed..look in the kitchen cabinet for these natural medical aids.

All of these kitchen cures are safe for pets too!

Back in the day when the kitchen held the cures
free source photo

When injuries happen at home it’s good to know what can be used immediately to prevent further harm until a doctor can be reached or help arrives.

The majority of kitchens in America contain four basic commodities that are extremely helpful when injury strikes. The kitchen holds a wealth of medicinal cures that are often forgotten during emergency situations. These common ingredients can be carried in vehicles, back packs and camping gear in case of an emergency while away from home.

Onion

The first and most common medicine in the kitchen is the onion because onions have the amazing ability to extract poisons and venom from a person’s skin in the event of a spider bite or bee sting.  A fresh onion works best but pure onion powder works for traveling or when a fresh onion is not available, moisten the onion powder a tiny bit to help the powder stick to skin.

Apply a fresh slice of onion to a spider bite or bee sting immediately and hold or bandage in place for fifteen minutes. Then remove and the bite should be hard to see and almost gone. The onion will have pulled out any stingers that remained also. If the bite is still apparent apply a fresh paste of onion powder or slice.

Black Tea Bags

Regular tea bags are the most important emergency medicine in the home because the common tea bag stops bleeding. Common tea bags, such as those used for ice tea, make an easy bandage that stops the bleeding on an injured finger by wrapping the finger in the bag and using the string for tying in place.

Large tea bags come in handy for large wounds or wounds that are bleeding profusely. Moisten the tea first and then apply to the wound and hold in place. The tea bag will soak up the blood and the chemicals in the tea will stop the blooding within fifteen minutes on the most serious of wounds.

 Do not give up on the tea. Change the tea bag when necessary. If the bleeding is not slowing within five minutes call 911 but continue to apply the tea bags until the paramedics arrive.

One of the most stubborn of bleeding areas can be a pulled tooth cavity and biting down on a moisten tea bag not only stops the bleeding faster then cotton but also stops the pain and taste better.

Cloves

Cloves are an old fashion home cure for tooth ache and pain. Infant teething formulas often contain clove extract for this very reason.  To apply cloves to a sore gum or toothache wet a finger and touch a small amount of clove powder so that the powder sticks to the wet finger then rub on the affected area. 

Do not eat the cloves in any form for pain; because the nut is to bitter in large quantities and will make a person sick.

Honey

Honey is one of nature’s natural bandages that not only seals a wound to keep out germs but also contains ingredients that fight infection and pain. The honey will dry like an invisible bandage when a small amount is applied in a thin layer over a non bleeding wound. This will seal the wound to keep dirt and germs out plus increase healing.

Read more about preparing at Family Disaster Dogs

House Dogs Help Owners in Emergency and Disasters

Any house dog can help its human family during emergencies and disasters. 

The most important aspect of learning how your dog can help your family during a disaster or afterwards is that while you and your dog learn these exercises in my book you will begin to understanding the fundamentals of surviving the aftermaths of emergencies and disasters.

You will learn what to do to save yourself and family.

Freddie Knows!

House dogs do this every day by showing us when they want to play with a favorite ball or go outside for a walk. Most dogs are not obedience or police dog candidates; they are pets whose owner takes the time to show them what we would like them to do.

House dogs are preforming search dog skills all the time without us recognizing or knowing they are. When the family dog follows the children around the yard or comes to find you at dinner time they are doing what search dogs do.

One of the easiest ways to find a lost person is to give a dog the person's scent and watch him find the scent. The dog is only looking for the smell and not for the actual person. They do not necessarily associate the scent with the person unless the person is somebody they know with that scent. 

To a dog, a scent is a scent.

Therefore, the fastest and surest way to teach or ask a dog to find a person is to use the person's scent to show them who we seek. No two people smell alike. Everybody smells different and we smell slightly different at various times during the day or if we are sick.

Learn more in the new edition of the Family Disaster Dogs Book available in paperback only $14.99 for 147 pages of fun easy lessons and games do do at home with your pet dogs

Kindle for any device only $4.99 free preview and share in the Kindle lending library

 This makes a great gift for any dog owner.

Learn how Your dog is a Family Disaster Dog

New edition has 50 more pages of lessons..Check it out Free Preview and please share so others learn too. Available in Paperback and Kindle

What is a Family Disaster Dog?

( From the Family Disaster Dogs Book)

A Family Disaster Dog is a family pet who has learned how to rescue its family and assist others during emergencies. To learn these valuable skills dog owners only have to add a few search dog skills from this book to their daily schedule.

The lessons in this book will explain how you can teach your family and pets vital skills to use in case a disaster ever hits home.

When the huge earthquake hit Japan on March 11, 2011 the tsunami that was generated spread as far as the Oregon Coast where I live. Our local emergency warning system and tsunami sirens had the whole town awake at three in the morning.

During the tsunami warning I sat prepared and waiting to evacuate with my retired Search and Rescue Bloodhound, Daisy. As I watched Daisy sleeping on the sofa the idea came to me for this book.

The average family dog could assist its owner just like search dogs do. The family dog is already on site which would save valuable time. Yes, I could teach people how their family dog could rescue them during earthquakes, floods and tornado.

The more I thought about the idea the more lessons came to mind.

These are those lessons penned with Daisy at my side until the end of the first draft like she would have been to the end of a trail. She helped me start this site. Miss Daisy passed away as this book came to the end in Sept of 2013. 

Bloodhounds taught me that one of our biggest fears and chores during a disaster is losing or finding a loved one. Twelve years spent training them and other dog breeds in search dogs skills taught me that every dog has the ability to find its own family members or friends.

Dogs do these skills on their own every day without us noticing.

Teaching your family pet to come to the aid of the family during an emergency is not as difficult as one might think. Our dogs are usually following us around very willing to offer a helpful paw whenever we need one.

All we have to do is learn how to ask the dog for help in unusual or disaster situations.

These lessons take into consideration that family dogs come in all sizes, shapes, ages and personalities like the families they are a members of. Each lesson is tailored to fit into a family situation instead of a formal show dog and obedience classroom.

For this reason, this book is not the ordinary step by step manual of how to train your dog to be on a leash doing exactly what you say. Search dogs have to think on their own like family dogs do while interacting in human lifestyles which makes a family dog the ideal student for search dog purposes.

Read more in the book and at Family Disaster Dogs online

How to Clean-up your Pet After a Hurricane

Hurricanes leave behind scenes of disaster and devastation. The cleanup effort after a natural disaster is a massive process, depending on the damage done by the storm it can take months, even years to clean up. During such devastating times it is very important not to forget about your pets. Just like the rest of their surroundings they also need to get cleaned up after a hurricane. Going through a hurricane is a very traumatic experience and the thought of having to figure out how to clean up your pet can seem very daunting at that point in time.



Let’s look at some basic tips that will help pet owners clean up their pets easy and effectively after a hurricane.

A.Higgins Photo
2 poodles groomed

Vaccinate your pet

Stagnant water left behind after flooding from a hurricane is a breeding ground for bacteria. Dogs in particular come in contact with wet soil when flooding occurs. Leptospirosis is a bacteria that lives in such wet areas, Not only is your dog at risk of getting infected by the bacteria, but the dog’s owners are also at risk since the bacteria can be transferred to them from their pet.

Puppies get vaccinated against leptospirosis, but in order to guarantee protection it is recommended to get your dog vaccinated against it annually. It is especially recommended if you live in areas that are prone to hurricanes and flooding.  

Give your pet a good scrub

Emma Bulldog photo by A. Higgins

Angela G. Clendenin, Ph.D., M.A., is an Instructional Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the Public Health Department of Texas A&M University. She suggests that the first thing pet owners should do after a hurricane is to decontaminate their pet. 

Pet owners might think that veterinary products are needed for this, but in reality Dawn dish washing soap is the best product to bath your pet with post hurricane. Dawn breaks down the chemical components on your pet’s fur and skin leaving them clean and decontaminated.

Protect your pet against parasites

Standing water from flooding attracts mosquitoes and other insects. It is important to protect your pet against these insects. Mosquitoes carry diseases such as West Nile Disease and Heartworm which can be very costly to treat. Ensure that your pets get treated against parasites, and try to keep them indoors away from standing water after flooding has occurred.

Max Bulldog photo by A.Higgins

Keep your pet’s fur clean post hurricane

A deshedding tool is a must have item for pet owners in areas that are prone to hurricanes. Pets and dogs in particular with long fur that get exposed to mud etc. from flooding will need to have their fur cleaned properly. Must pet owners will be used to using a deshedding pet shampoo but actually a deshedding brush might be more appropriate in some scenarios. Not only will a deshedding tool get rid of tangled fur, it will also clean out their coats to protect them from diseases post hurricane.


Pet owners have a responsibility towards their pets, and during a natural disaster these animals need all the help that they can get in order to secure their safety. Cleaning up your pet after a hurricane is a must in order to protect them and yourself from diseases.

Thank you to Jenny for the great information!