DIY Heat Pack or Cold Pack

This is something I use and will be making for myself later today, but it's very useful for dogs as well.

Heat and cold packs can be expensive, as they wear out quickly and often tear/break. Once they break, they have to be discarded, as many of them contain toxic substances.

So I use a rice pad. All you need to make one is some plain uncooked rice - not the quick cooking rice - and a clean sock. Fill the sock halfway with the rice, and then tie a knot in the end of the sock. For extra spillage prevention, place this filled sock inside another sock and tie the end of that one too.

For a heat pad, you can then put the rice sock in the microwave for a minute or two with a glass of water. The water adds a small amount of moisture to the heat pack during the heating process, preventing the rice/sock from burning and causing a fire hazard.

For a cold pad, you can place the rice sock in the freezer!


Notes:

When heating the pad, take it out of the microwave and shake it about every 30/45 seconds to ensure that the heat is evenly distributed and that it isn't too hot!

With the first few uses, the pad will probably feel a bit moist and smell strange. This will stop the more you use it!

For larger heat/cool packs, you can use a tea towel, folded in half and sewn up along the edges. Any length of fabric can be sewn against itself to use as a heat pad!

You can scent the pad by adding the contents of tea bags into the rice, some dried herbs or by adding a couple of essential oil drops to the pad.

You can use corn seed (not popcorn!) or flax seed instead of rice.

I do this with wheat. Love it! & jess has used it often when her leg plays up. Lavender oil drops are also lovely on it.

It's so useful, isn't it?

I'm starting to use them 12 days out of each month! I used to have a toy stuffed with flax seed, but Demps got a hold of it and put a hole in it. It was lavender scented as well!

Then use tea tree oil. He prob wont like that but still a nice scent.

Sorry, didn't make myself clear! He didn't chew it because it was lavender scented - he chewed it because it was a toy! I was just sharing the story of poor little Lavender Sheep!

No I got you.  

Oh, okay - fair enough!

Handy tip Eleanor.
I also have a wheat pack.
I got some gel packs from the pharmacy, that their meds come packed in, for free and keep those in the freezer for cold packs.
My hand massager has a infra red lamp that I now use as a heat source.

Never underestimate the healing powers of heat and cold!

Pugsley is walking proof of how fabulously it works.
You just have to be careful of burns and frostbite.

Yes, definitely be cautious! Often a good idea to wrap a small towel around it.

Shisa wrote:Pugsley is walking proof of how fabulously it works.
You just have to be careful of burns and frostbite.