The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Community => Coffee Lounge => Topic started by: goosepimple on May 22, 2014, 01:17:56 pm
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Needles which have been used on animal injections - how do you discard them?
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Put them in a sharps box - we have a proper one in one handling set up, but a homemade on in another, which is perfectly legal and adequate - use something like an old ice cream tub, cut a wee slit in the top, tape the lid to the box and put on a large label saying SHARPS and that's fine. Depending on how much business you do with your vet, they may charge you to dispose of it when it is full, but there isn't really another option, I don't think. When my mother-in-law lived here, she used to take the real one to the doctors and get a replacement - she did that on a regular basis anyway as she is diabetic and they didn't seem to mind one extra once a year or so.
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Thanks mowhaugh that's a great idea I'm going to use it :thumbsup:
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I bought a sharps box from the vet. It cost about £10. That covers the cost of disposal whenever it's full. That will be years for us.
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I too get a box from the vet and return it when full, cost inclusive. It does take forever to fill them as a rule.
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Sharps box from the vet. The first one was tiny but lasted for several years. Current one is a normal size so I expect it will go on for decades. Our vet charges a very small amount to dispose of them, but they seemed very surprised when I got the first one - said they didn't have a clue how others dispose of sharps :o :tired: I don't put the syringes in, just the needles.
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I don't put the syringes in, just the needles.
Syringes are too useful to be disposed of. Great for injecting different coloured dye into balls of wool.
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I've got a sharps box from vet too
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Don't put them anywhere other than a sharpes box.
One of our staff is currently going through tests for HIV and Hepatitis due to some numpty throwing a needle in a bin which then scraped her leg. It is a 3 months wait and worry for final results :tired:
All because a sharpes needle of unknown origin or use was disposed of incorrectly.
Your vet or chemist can supply you with one :thumbsup:
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I have a sharps box for disposing of glucose monitor needles (for testing for diabetes) and I just put mine in there. It then goes back to the doctors' surgery when full (which takes ages). If you know anyone who has one, they might be prepared to let you use it occasionally. My vet actually tells me to take the needles back to the surgery to be disposed of so I would do that if I didn't have my sharps box.
I don't put the syringes in, just the needles.
Syringes are too useful to be disposed of. Great for injecting different coloured dye into balls of wool.
Brilliant idea, Sally. I'm all in favour of recycling. :thumbsup:
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Our vet said we could take them back to the surgery to go in their sharps box but seeing as my mum has regular district nurse visits I sometimes ask if I can be cheeky and pop a couple of needles in their box...in return I give them a bar of goats milk soap of something.
Sorry to read about your colleague mummyshaz, awful. My husband had a colleague infected with HIV (they were working on an HIV ward ) when someone threw a needle on syringe at the sharps box like a dart, it rebounded and hit her. This was back in the 80's, something that just literally turns a life around by someones sheer stupidity.
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You would think in this day and age of excessive Health and Safety that there would be notices on all needles given from vets, doctors etc to discard responsibly or to have some sort of plastic tip (lid) you could put on them so at least if they end up in the bin they are unlikely to cause harm.
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Boil in water above 114degC for 15mins and reuse. Except ic cases where Prion based disease may be present.
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You would think in this day and age of excessive Health and Safety that there would be notices on all needles given from vets, doctors etc to discard responsibly or to have some sort of plastic tip (lid) you could put on them so at least if they end up in the bin they are unlikely to cause harm.
The ones my vet supplies always have plastic covers for the needles.
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Yes so do mine, I just looked after I wrote that ::) might be more useful if they were attached somehow as obviously people aren't using them. I'm with MKay and have boiled mine up and put them safely away in an animal medicine cabinet (lids on of course).
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I put mine into a plastic tonic water bottle labelled "Needles". If I have to go to the vets, I take the bottle in with me and they are happy to dispose of the needles in their big sharps box.