My dog was hit by a car and has a leg gash. Is euthanasia necessary?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! You can rest her as much as possible to try to prevent further injury. Aside from that, she should be evaluated by a veterinarian as soon as possible to check if there are any fractures and to see what would be the best therapeutic step for her. At the very least pain medications can be started right away. Good luck and have a great day!

Oh no, I'm sorry to hear about your dog! She should ideally be taken right in to the vet. If you're unable to do so, the most important thing you can do for her is keep her quiet, and well supervised. Sometimes with hit-by-car incidents the injuries are not all immediately apparent. If there is internal bleeding, it can take a number of hours for the symptoms to appear. So, watch her closely, and if she becomes lethargic, or her appetite decreases, or new symptoms develop (such as vomiting), then take her in immediately. In the meantime, keep her wound clean and dry. If the wound is superficial you can wash it with a mild hand dishsoap (such as Dawn dish soap) and pat it dry with a clean paper towel. Do this 1-2 times daily to clean any discharge and soften any developing scabs. I hope this helps!

The best thing to do right now is keep it covered with a clean towel. It can be secured with masking tape. Don't try to clean it since that could cause bleeding to start if it dislodges a clot. Gypsy needs to see the vet in the morning so it can be evaluated and she can get started on antibiotics and appropriate pain medications. Depending on what the vet finds, it may be able to heal on its own (called second intention healing) or it may need surgery to remove dead tissue or cover bones if they are exposed.

She needs to be examined by your veterinarian or at the nearest veterinary ER. A complete physical exam and x-rays may diagnose or rule out serious injury and fracture. The abrasions should be properly cleaned and dressed, if indicated, to prevent infection. She may need antibiotics and pain management.

Yes, Beauty could have been run over. It sounds like she has some pretty serious injuries to her face. She needs to see a vet immediately, this cannot be treated at home. Please take her into a vet now.

This sounds like a bad situation. Yes euthanasia may be the most human option, however, if that is not an option for you than it is VERY important to involve a veterinarian so that the puppy can be protected with antibiotics and something to help with pain. Your veterinarian may advise a surgery to remove any bony remnants if the traumatic amputation left behind parts that could lead to pain and arthritis. Please, please take her in for some antibiotics at the very least. She could develop a life threatening infection.

I am sorry to hear that your pet has an injury to his leg and paw. Unfortunately, how to treat injuries like this depends entirely on the extent of the injury itself. This would require a more in depth conversation so that an appropriate wound management plan can be devised for your pet and this is not easy to do at home without any medical treatment (pain mediation, antibiotics if needed, or anti-inflammatories). Not to mention it could be a very painful and prolonged situation for your pet. Generally if there are broken bones then a fixture device such as a splint or cast are best used to help keep the bones stable for long enough (typically 4-6 weeks) until they are healed. However this would require splint/cast changes every 1-2 weeks depending on how fast the pet grows. Also the fracture must not be an open fracture (through the skin). If there are no fractures (sometimes can only be ruled out with an x-ray of the leg), then proper shaving of the hair and cleansing of the external wounds using chlorhexidine solution 3% or iodine (diluted 50:50 with warm water) is needed. The hair itself carries a lot of bacteria so clipping it is essential. Then depending on the extent of the skin damage bandaging this area may be needed and changed every 2-7 days. Then once the wounds are seen to be healing well and the top layer of skin is intact the bandages can finally be removed. As I mentioned before typically if there is extensive damage then your pet should get proper medications to a) prevent infection and b)ease discomfort and pain. I just don't see how any of this can be achieved without getting a professional involved unless you are knowledgeable about managing wounds in pets. I do have a couple of financial resources that you can try if the wounds seem too severe and your pet is in need of professional help and guidance so that this is treated appropriately for your pets overall care and well being. Here they are: www.carecredit.com redrover.org www.youcaring.com GiveForward  God's Creatures Ministry Harley’s Hope Foundation Hopefully some of this will be helpful for you to make the best decision for your pets care.