My dog has a leg wound, can I treat it at home without a vet?

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.

Unfortunately, the pictures are blurry and I can't get a good view. It looks like there may be some crusty discharge in the area which could signify a bacterial or fungal cause but I am not certain. That's going to be tough to heal if he will not let you touch the area to clean it. There are a couple things you can do at home and they can help but they may not address the underlying cause. If he will let you handle it, then home care will be easier. Do be careful not to be bitten. You can try adding in an omega 3 fatty acid supplement for dogs, this can help improve the skin health. You may also try changing his diet to something like Royal Canin or Nutro as they are aimed at skin health. You can wash the lesion once a day (not his whole body, just the lesion). You can use a topical hot spot spray or something similar for pets as well. OR you can also apply a tiny dab of organic coconut oil and rub it in well. The MOST important thing is to protect the area from trauma by having your pup wear an elizabethan collar at all times. If the lesion does not start improving within a week or if it is getting worse, call your veterinarian to find out if you have any options. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. It is difficult to make out what the problem is with the hair around the affected area but from the picture, it looks as though there is a severe hot spot or abscess at the region of the left elbow. If you have no veterinarians near you, I would recommend using a mixture of betadine and saline (mix the two together until you have a light brown mixture) to clean the area. First, you will need to remove the hair from around the wound so that you can treat this properly. Once the hair has been clipped away, I would recommend soaking the elbow in this solution three times daily for 15 minutes each time until resolved. If this does not resolve or worsens, then I would strongly suggest you find a veterinarian that can treat this appropriately. Kaju will likely need an oral antibiotic and anti-inflammatory for further treatment. I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

I am so sorry to hear that Felicia had this wound on her leg. I am sure it is very unsettling for you both. From the pictures you have provided it looks as though the wound may be deeper than appears, and thus may require a trip to the veterinarian. The wound appears to have been caused by a puncture, such as a bite, or perhaps if Felicia got caught In a Fence. These types of puncture wounds are often deeper and have caused more tissue damage then can be visualised from the surface. I bet would start by examining Felicia, and the wound itself. The wound would be cleaned and disenfected, the vet may need to sedate Felicia to debris even the wound, if necrotic or unhealthy tissue is present. The vet may chose to surgically close the wound with sutures or leave it open to drain and heal wiith scar tissue. The vet may also prescribe pain relief, anti-inflammatory medictaions and antibiotics to treat a possible infection, or prevent one. I would advise the seeing the vet within the next 24 hours. In the meantime you can continue keep Felicia as calm and rested as possible, and do not use any over the counter medications without the direct advice from your vet. I hope that this answer was helpful, and more importantly that Felicia feels better soon. Warmest regards to you both.

Hello. You should be able to treat this yourself. By the way it looks, I would be using wet dressings to help with drainage. You can use many materials, but the least expensive would be a woman's sanitary napkin or other thicker absorbant pad. Cut the pad to slightly larger than the wound & wet the bandage with sterile saline ( most pharmacies will have some type of simple saline wound wash ). Wet the pad so it is damp but not dripping & bandage this to the leg. No need for antibiotics, although plain granulated sugar or even honey placed on the pad will add an antimicrobial element to the dressing. Change the dressing daily & you will be surprised how much debris will be on the pad each day. Just keep doing this & the wound should start to look much better in another week to 10 days. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

This presentation could be due to a trauma or localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). Ideally a check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. The area must be clipped more and disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths (twice daily). Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any licking (if any). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

While there are certainly things you can do at home, the would appears to be badly infected and may become significantly worse without medications. I would definitely encourage you to obtain your dog's temperature at home to check for a fever. Anything above 102.5 is considered elevated. It also appears that the edges of the wound are somewhat blackened and may require trimming in order to heal appropriately. The only things you are going to be able to do at home is to clean the area with an antiseptic like chlorhexidine or dilute betadine, and apply a topical antibiotic ointment. You can also obtain an e-collar from a store or veterinarian to prevent Tito from licking the wound. However, I would strongly encourage you to seek out a veterinarian who is willing to work with you financially or for you to obtain a payment plan through a company like CareCredit. I do not believe trying to treat this at home is the correct move. Hope this helps.