When I was a kid the advice would have been "shrug it off"
January 29, 2012 12:22 PM Subscribe
Basic dog first-aid (not an emergency) filter: what is the best approach to cleaning up/treating a minor cut from a rock?
I have a nutty and energetic 1-year old puppy. She's some sort of working breed mix, I assume, probably a shepherd. She likes it when fetch is made a bit more extremem with the addition of water, rock faces to run up and down, etc.
Today she got a really small cut. Really not a big deal, and there's no way I'll be calling her vet. It's on her front leg, near the paw, and is about the size of a pea. By the time I noticed it (my dog has no idea it's there at the moment) it had stopped bleeding. She hasn't shown any interest in biting or chewing it so far.
My question is this: should I do the same basic stuff that I would do if I, myself, had a very small cut? All the advice I can find on the internet seems to end with either "panic" or "buy my series of videocassettes," and something tells me there's a simpler solution.
TL;DR: What's the best way to deal with a very minor cut on a dog's leg?
I have a nutty and energetic 1-year old puppy. She's some sort of working breed mix, I assume, probably a shepherd. She likes it when fetch is made a bit more extremem with the addition of water, rock faces to run up and down, etc.
Today she got a really small cut. Really not a big deal, and there's no way I'll be calling her vet. It's on her front leg, near the paw, and is about the size of a pea. By the time I noticed it (my dog has no idea it's there at the moment) it had stopped bleeding. She hasn't shown any interest in biting or chewing it so far.
My question is this: should I do the same basic stuff that I would do if I, myself, had a very small cut? All the advice I can find on the internet seems to end with either "panic" or "buy my series of videocassettes," and something tells me there's a simpler solution.
TL;DR: What's the best way to deal with a very minor cut on a dog's leg?
If it's not bleeding, and the dog isn't worrying at it, I'd treat it very similar to a human cut - clean it out and check it regularly to see if it's healing. We try to apply Neosporin but our dog will lick it off.
For superficial leg/paw injuries we bought a spray that is basically liquid bandaid. It won't help a serious wound but it does keep superficial wounds from getting dirt/water in them. It also tastes bitter to discourage the dog from licking. Your local pet store should have some.
posted by muddgirl at 12:32 PM on January 29, 2012
For superficial leg/paw injuries we bought a spray that is basically liquid bandaid. It won't help a serious wound but it does keep superficial wounds from getting dirt/water in them. It also tastes bitter to discourage the dog from licking. Your local pet store should have some.
posted by muddgirl at 12:32 PM on January 29, 2012
Honestly, I would ignore it. I maintain that dogs are capable of administering their own first aid. Rinse it with saline and get on with it. Anything else will be licked or chewed off.
posted by DarlingBri at 12:35 PM on January 29, 2012 [4 favorites]
posted by DarlingBri at 12:35 PM on January 29, 2012 [4 favorites]
With a leg wound that the dog can clean herself, I'd leave it alone aside from checking it several times a day to see if it's changing in a bad way.
She should be allowed to clean it, so don't intervene unless she's really going to town. And if she is, then you may have something that a vet needs to look at. I do put Neosporin on wounds they can't clean themselves after I clean it for them (putting it where they can reach means it'll be gone 10 seconds later anyway).
My dogs get all kinds of dings. I don't bother it unless it's really dirty or weird and the only time I've ever had a real problem was one dog who got a cut from another dog's toenail in a place where he couldn't clean it and it looked so small to me that I didn't bother. But other dogs' toenails are pretty disgustingly dirty and it did require treatment for infection.
posted by Lyn Never at 12:37 PM on January 29, 2012
She should be allowed to clean it, so don't intervene unless she's really going to town. And if she is, then you may have something that a vet needs to look at. I do put Neosporin on wounds they can't clean themselves after I clean it for them (putting it where they can reach means it'll be gone 10 seconds later anyway).
My dogs get all kinds of dings. I don't bother it unless it's really dirty or weird and the only time I've ever had a real problem was one dog who got a cut from another dog's toenail in a place where he couldn't clean it and it looked so small to me that I didn't bother. But other dogs' toenails are pretty disgustingly dirty and it did require treatment for infection.
posted by Lyn Never at 12:37 PM on January 29, 2012
If you want to put some kind of antiseptic on it, our dog seems to like the taste of neosporin (and licks it off) but leaves things alone if they have betadine on them. If your dog has long hair, it'll also be easier to clean/monitor if you clip the hair around it.
posted by juliapangolin at 1:01 PM on January 29, 2012
posted by juliapangolin at 1:01 PM on January 29, 2012
A minor cut that has stopped bleeding is probably best left alone, but cleaning out a fresh wound isn't necessarily a bad idea. Invest in some povidone-iodine scrub if you're worried about future cuts. All you need to do is dilute it with water - a ratio of 1:10 should be ok - then dip some cotton balls in the solution, squeeze out the excess and give the wound a gentle but through clean. I would be cautious about using products intended for humans on an animal as they may contain irritants or toxins (for example, salicylic acid is in a whole myriad of skin products but toxic to dogs). If you feel the wound needs anything beyond that (ie a bandage), call the vet.
posted by wigsnatcher at 3:20 PM on January 29, 2012
posted by wigsnatcher at 3:20 PM on January 29, 2012
My vet told me it was fine to use neosporin and cortisone creams on dogs - you only needed to prevent them from licking at it for around 10 minutes so the active ingredient had time to be absorbed. After that it was harmless to ingest.
posted by noxetlux at 9:47 AM on January 30, 2012
posted by noxetlux at 9:47 AM on January 30, 2012
I use tea tree oil as my dog loathes the taste.
posted by kamikazegopher at 11:50 AM on January 30, 2012
posted by kamikazegopher at 11:50 AM on January 30, 2012
If there are flies where you are this time of year then I would put some SWAT on it. It's for use on dogs as well as horses but your best bet for finding it is still in a saddlery. (Happy news is that a normal jar of the stuff will last for years unless your dog is incredibly accident prone.)
posted by anaelith at 1:02 PM on January 30, 2012
posted by anaelith at 1:02 PM on January 30, 2012
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by vers at 12:30 PM on January 29, 2012