My dog's anal area is draining. Can I use leftover antibiotics?

Using a warm damp compress on the area will make her feel better and help keep the area draining. Keeping the open area clean is important also. After cleaning apply a thin film of antibacterial ointment to the area. If NIni is licking it then use a restraint collar to stop the licking. They now have soft collars and inflatable ones that are more comfortable than the plastic ones. If she stops eating and has a fever you should take her in for an exam and antibiotics. This should heal in a week or so. When you are able please have her anal sacs emptied to prevent this from happening again in the future. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for NIni.

Poor Khaia. Antibiotics are a prescription drug and it is illegal for us to write a prescription without seeing the in person. If this issue is by her anus, it may be her anal sac has abscessed and ruptured. This will be painful for her, and it does need to be treated by a vet asap. Please take her into a vet now to get this treated. Best of luck.

I am sorry to hear that! It may be that the infection is still going on - you may need a longer course of the antibiotic or perhaps a different one. I would recommend having them expressed again to see if there is still debris present. I would also want to double check and make sure there is not a mass present in the area:( You can ask for a biopsy to be done if the lump seems unrelated to the infection. I hope this helps and that it is nothing more than a persistent infection!

If you have cleaned the area well and the abscess has bust, then that will go a long ways to controlling pain and the carprofen would not be necessary. Carprofen is usually fine to give, but does have some contraindications and I cannot legally/ethically advise a dose without examining Nini. However, if I knew that Nini was otherwise healthy and really needed the medication, then I would give 1/4 of the 25mg tablet. If Nini has an abscess, then I also have to advise that you have her examined by a veterinarian, because there may need to be more treatment involved. For now, keep the area clean by flushing with clean water (no soap or antiseptics) once a day for 5 minutes. You can continue to use the antibiotic cream if she doesn't lick it off.

My biggest concern is that he could also have a bladder infection that is causing him to lick a lot and therefore also causing an infection on his penis. Without seeing him to determine exactly what is infected and whether or not the bladder is also infected, I cannot say that the cephalexin will work. I would strongly recommend to have him seen by your vet. If there is a urinary tract infection and it is left untreated, it could get much worse and even start to affect the kidneys. Your vet will be able to determine if the cephalexin you have will work or if you need something stronger. I would also put a cone collar on him to prevent him from licking it any more and causing more irritation. I hope this helps and he starts to feel better really soon!

I usually send home Simplicef for anal gland fistula but Clavamox at an appropriate dose for Lily’s weight would definitely help, especially if you are not able to bring her to the vet right away. It is important to fully express both the ruptured anal gland and the other anal gland to prevent a second fistula on the other side. Ideally the ruptured anal gland should be flushed with a dilute chlorhexidine solution but a sitz is definitely better than not cleaning out the ruptured gland at all. I usually send home an e-collar to prevent licking, antibiotics, a probiotic to prevent antibiotic associated diarrhea, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory for pain such as Rimadyl, and a topical prescription steroid/antibiotic/antifungal ointment to speed up the healing process. Good luck!

The Cephalexin bottle should have an expiration date on it. Also it is not recommended to give antibiotics if you cannot give them continuously for at least 7-10 days duration. So if you don't have enough or if they are expired, then I would not proceed with giving Nike the Cephalexin. Also it is good to get Nike re-evaluated because he may not even have an infection if there is no pus or bumps on the skin. The antibiotics in this case would be unnecessary and would not help with his itching. Instead he needs allergy medications +/- topical medicated shampoo's sprays available through your vet. Until you can get Nike in to the vet, you can try over the counter pet formulated fish oils, which helps to provide a natural anti-inflammatory property to the skin. You can also try an oatmeal based or aloe based shampoo topically if you want to try an over the counter approach. Just keep in mind however that most pets with true allergies require stronger meds at the vet. I would also recommend ensuring that Nike is on a high quality flea preventative such as Nexgard, Comforitis, Trifexis (flea and heartworm prevention), Bravecto, Seresto collar or Simparica. This may be a flea allergy that he is having. I hope that you get his itching resolved soon. Best wishes and take care.