Lion bite

[newby]

Hey we treed tom and my son shot it today. It came out alive and long story short, my 7 month old pup dove into and ended up getting bit or scratched, not sure which, on her front leg. How would you guys treat this? Penicillan? shots, pills? use the cattle stuff or should i go to the vet and get a prescription? what about cleaning it? Thanks for the information guys.

[Big Horn Posse]

A few years ago my dog Sandy got swatted in the shoulder and bit in the back by a lion. She got it bad and the vet put her on pennicillan. The shots work best at first and then when she was sent home a week later they had her on pills. Cats mouths are full of bacteria same with their claws. Keep the would clean and keep the dog on antibiotics for a week. If you do shots give 2 times a day. When in doubt call the vet.

[sheimer]

I don't know how bad the bite/scratch is, but dogs are amazing at healing themselves. I had a female get bit last year and she got over it just fine, twice. Good luck with her, she sounds like she's got what it takes.

Scott

[newby]

Scott,
She's a real firecracker...i didn't see the bite until i got her home, but a switch seemed to flip on her today and now I know why...SHE WAS PISSED!

Did you do any antibiotics or cleaning?

[Big Horn Posse]

Betadine scrub works good

[sheimer]

A little betadine goes a long ways. I didn't do much as she kept it clean herself for the most part.

Scott

[TomJr]

depends on location and depth.

For most leg wounds I would just say let the dog heal on its own. Unless there is a big flap of skin hanging... or its realy deep with a smalll opening.

If its a realy deep wound with a small opening then anti-boitics might be a good idea. pennicillan is a good catch all.

If the wound is in a place that the dog can't reach then I like to give a shot. One of mine got bitten in his muzzle last year right through into the top of the mouth saw lots of blood and when we got home he was swelling some so shot him up. He healed up just fine in a week.

If the wound is hanging open bad ( a flap folded over ect.) then stitches or staples are not a bad idea but make sure you don't close it up too much. Leave the wound open enough to drain or you could cause more problems than you fix.

I usualy leave my dogs to heal on thier own if they can reach the wound even if its hanging open some, as long as its not a total flap folded over, it will heal up from the inside out and usualy not show much of a scar.

If they can't reach the wound then clean it for them soap and water is usualy plenty good. then spray it with a topical anti-septic scarlex, blue coat ect. I don't bother if they can reach it as they will just lick it off.

[newby]

Thanks guys,
It seems to be healing up good, washed with peroxide then betadine and put triple antibiotic ointment on it per the doc. I appreciate the fact that my new vet didn't hard-sell me into bringing her in and "running tests", x-rays, and antibiotics...She said not to really stress about it. Anyway, thanks again for the input.

[chilcotin hillbilly]

Sounds like you did the right thing, just next time don't use peroxide.

[newby]

chilcotin,
why no peroxide? thx

[twist]

betadine is great to use along with a little cut and heal for a few days and should be just fine. if its just a minor bite you can elect to do nothing and more times than not be just fine also. peroxide is said to kill the good cells along with the bad and can drive the bacteria deeper. Andy

[chilcotin hillbilly]

chilcotin,
why no peroxide? thx

Newby, The peroxide I believe actually kills tissue cells and slows the healing.
I squirt antibacterial soap water in the holes and give ashot of Penicillan. 2 cc first day and 1 cc for the next 4 days. This has always worked for me.

[TomJr]

peroxide causes bigger scars due to killing good tissue, other than that it likly didn't hurt her but soap and water work just fine. And that triple antibiotic ointment is good stuff for keeping the scars smaller, it keeps the wound protected from drying out. Problem with it is dogs usualy lick it off if they can reach it. But I do use it on wounds they can't reach and it works well.

[newby]

Thanks for the info guys...Always glad to learn something new.