My dog's mouth is swollen and painful. What if I can't afford a vet?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Based on the picture, this could be a mass of some type or due to an insect bite. If this does not resolve within 24-48 hours, then I would recommend having a veterinarian examine her so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Advil is not usually a medication given to pets as it can cause organ issues and severe stomach upset, however it is possible your vet tried to give a steroid or a pet-safe NSAID for the swelling. The area looks pretty awful and likely infected and should be seen by a veterinarian right away. i would be concerned at how fast it is changing and see if your vet wants to take a sample to send to a lab to rule out any other issues such as tumors/growths that could be causing it in addition to infection. Your vet may also recommend additional treatment or medications that can be given orally to prevent it from being rubbed/licked off. Keeping an Elizabethan (cone) collar on Scrapi is also a good idea to keep him from rubbing the spot.

Do not give any otc pain medications to pets. They metabolize then differently and many are toxic. You can try using warm compresses for 5-10 minutes to see if that helps. I would try to get her to the vet as soon as you can. I'm a bit worried there could be infection from looking at the swelling.

Hello. Most likely Yuki was bitten or stung by something. She may have snapped at a bee or wasp flying by & it is not uncommon to get stung inside the mouth. If she is not having any breathing difficulties, then she will be fine in 24-48 hours. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Oh my. This looks like a pretty serious injury. Your poor fur baby needs to see your local vet to have this wound managed well. The only thing you can do over the counter is to flush the wound with Betadine diluted 50:50 with warm water and then sterile saline daily. The vet will investigate this area to see if any stitches or staples need to be placed and also get your poor baby on oral antibiotics (ie Clindamycin) and anti-inflammatory medicine (ie Rimadyl). Without proper closure and antibiotics, this wound will likely not heal well. Here is a financial resources website link if you need financial help as well. http://m.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_veterinary_care.html I hope that she/ he heals up soon. Best wishes and take care.

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. I would recommend having this examined by a veterinarian. This type of swelling we can see with severe tooth root abscesses. It is likely reksio will need a course of oral antibiotics and an anti inflammatory. I would get this seen sooner rather than later as this type of infection will conti i.e. to grow bigger until the infection is treated and the tooth removed that is causing the problem otherwise, this can rupture through the skin and he will be left with a large wound on the face. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is very hard to tell from the image if the face is swollen on one side or not as we can't see both sides and don't know what his normal face looks like. That being said, if there is generalized (not a specific or discreet area) swelling of the muzzle, +/- around the eyes, +/- the ears, this is more consistent with a bee sting or insect bite and allergic reaction. This can be itchy as well. I would look for areas of hives or raised bumps on his body elsewhere. Ideally he would go to a vet to get a couple injections, one of a steroid (depending on how bad the swelling is and what other medications he is on, steroids can be very dangerous) and an anti-histamine. Without an exam by a vet, you shouldn't give any human medications to dogs, as the drugs may interact with medications he is on or conditions he might have. You vet might prescribe an anti-histamine (Benedryl is a common product used in the US. You MUST make sure diphenhydramine is the ONLY active ingredient as other human medications that are sometimes in anti-histamines can be very dangerous to dogs. The dose for a dog Hercules' size would be about 50-100mg by mouth up to three times a day). Other causes of swelling/lumps would be a bump or hit and swelling, infection, he could have something in his mouth, etc. If it is small lump/swelling and he doesn't seem bothered by it, the best thing to do might be to just monitor it for now. If it doesn't get bigger/more swollen or the swelling doesn't spread, then you can just keep an eye on it. If it isn't gone by 24-48 hours have it seen by a vet. Best of luck with Hercules, I hope he feels better soon.