Half of first aid is simply being able to see. A dog with something lodged at the back of the throat, a kitten with a gummed-up eye, a wound hidden under thick fur at nine on a January evening: none of it is assessable by the light of a phone held awkwardly in your teeth. A pen torch is small, cheap and the thing you will actually reach for.

The barrel is plastic and wipes clean, which matters in a first-aid kit where everything gets handled with dirty hands, and the chrome clip holds it in a pocket or against the lining of a bag rather than letting it rattle loose at the bottom among the bandages. Two AAA batteries come supplied, so it works from the moment it arrives instead of waiting on a shopping trip.

• Pocket-sized reusable pen torch
• Wipe-clean plastic barrel
• Chrome pen clip for secure carrying
• Supplied with two AAA batteries
• Finished in blue

Two things worth knowing. Our catalogue had this filed under crates, which is plainly wrong, and we have corrected it to first aid. Second, a torch is for looking, not for diagnosing. Do not hold a beam on an eye for more than a moment, and if a pupil looks the wrong size or does not respond to the light, that is a same-day veterinary call rather than something to keep examining at home.

Who it's for: Anyone assembling a proper pet first-aid kit, and owners of dark-eared or heavily coated breeds where a good look means a bright light.