Hunting

Knives cause more hunting injuries than firearms, usually during field dressing, usually to the hand, usually deep. Add a fall on rough ground with a rifle, a quad rollover, or an animal that is not as finished as you thought.

The SURVIVAL Trauma First Aid KIT is designed for exactly this. Its own product page names hunting and shooting clubs among the uses it was built for, alongside heavy machinery, arborists and remote work.

A TOURNIQUET IS NOT OPTIONAL OUT HERE

In town, a serious bleed is survivable because the ambulance is minutes away. Four hours from a road, it is survivable only if you can stop it yourself.

Carry one, know where it is without looking, and get trained on it. A tourniquet you have never practised with is an object, not a capability. SURVIVAL recommends proper first aid training alongside any KIT.

SNAKES IN THE COUNTRY YOU WALK

Long grass, rocky outcrops, fallen timber, dams. Hunting takes you through all of it, usually quietly, usually looking somewhere other than your feet.

The SURVIVAL Snake Bite KIT carries a SMART Bandage with a pictogram that changes from a rectangle to a square at correct tension, plus a splint, a tick spoon, an emergency blanket and a whistle. The bitten person must stay still, which means your plan has to include getting them out without walking.

HOW LONG UNTIL HELP

Work it out before you go in, and carry to that number rather than to the day you expect.

On private land an hour from a town, a good general KIT and a phone will do. In state forest with no coverage, you need the depth to hold someone for half a day and a way to raise the alarm that does not depend on a mobile network.

The Outdoor Bundle (Gen 8) adds snake bite capability to a full KIT, and the SURVIVAL First Aid KIT - Medium mounts easily in a vehicle as the base.

HUNTING IN A GROUP

Everyone carries something small. At least one person carries the trauma capability, and everyone knows who.

If you split up, that rule stops working, so either stay in pairs or make sure every group carries the serious gear. The SURVIVAL Slimline First Aid KIT is 4cm thick and fits a pack without argument, which makes it the realistic on-person option.

Also see Rural, 4WDing and Tourniquets.