My dog's neuter incision looks infected and he's constipated. What to do?

Poor Coco! This incision definitely looks swollen and possibly infected. Some dogs will have a local reaction to the internal sutures and become infected as they start to dissolve. Your vet will be able to put him on some meds and anti-inflammatories to help with this. The diarrhea could be unrelated or secondary to the stress of the infection. Your vet will be able to check his fecal and get him on some medicine for that as well. I hope this helps!

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your questions about Hunter. In the first picture, his incision looks great. In the second, it looks a bit swollen, but it may be the angle and the way he is laying down. Some redness is normal, yes. As for the pooping, he may be a bit constipated. Feed him canned food and add water to it to see if that helps. He may be scooting because his behind is itchy, which can be due to something like anal sac impaction or intestinal worms. Give his vet a call to let them know you are seeing these signs, and they can let you know if they want to see him. I hope this helps!

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. From your photo I can tell you that this looks seriously infected and does not look very good post-neuter. I would get him in as soon as you can for treatment before this affects healthy surrounding tissue. He will likely need to be sedated and have the dead tissue removed for treatment and placed on a course of oral antibiotics and pain medications to reduce inflammation. If he has been chewing at the area, he must wear a plastic cone at all times to prevent him from getting to the incision. I hope this helps! Please feel free to contact me with any further questions or concerns you may have. I am also available via consultation if needed.

Batman's incision appears quite red and inflamed. I can't zoom in far enough to be certain, but I'm questioning whether or not the top portion of the incision may also be slightly open. Based on the appearance of his incision, I think there's a high likelihood of infection. I strongly recommend taking Batman to see his vet today or tomorrow for further evaluation. He'll need antibiotics if an infection is diagnosed and will likely need anti-inflammatory pain medications if he isn't already receiving them. Given this redness, he's clearly been licking at his incision quite a bit. Since he's a little guy, you could try putting a baby onesie on him in the crate or use an inflatable donut collar ( I hope that the rest of Batman's recovery goes smoothly!

That does look a bit concerning with the blood, and if Agno is hunching or acting painful (with the quick steps and then sitting), I'd worry that it is bothering him. I would use a warm washcloth compress for 10-15 minutes to help reduce any pain or swelling and also to clean up the area gently so you can see if there is extra discharge or swelling. If this causes him pain, there is discharge that is discolored, green, or yellow, or the site is opening back up again, a trip to the vet is best to treat any infection and make sure the surgery site is healing properly. Until you can get to the vet, strict kennel rest (leashed walks only) is best to help reduce pain and prevent any open wounds from tearing further.

Your picture is a bit blurry but it looks like Charlie might be having a reaction to the suture. I would recommend having your vet examine the incision to make sure there are no signs of infection. If he is having a reaction to the suture underneath the skin as it dissolves then no specific treatment may be necessary.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. The red area next to his incision looks like some bruising that likely occurred due to trauma/pinching of the area during surgery. Bruising can worsen during the first 2-3 days following a procedure, but should start to improve after that time. The dried blood/crusting around his incision is not abnormal either. If Charlie Brown will tolerate it, you can gently wipe the crusting away using a damp wash cloth once daily, but not any more frequent than this. I definitely recommend keeping Charlie Brown's Elizabethan collar on AT ALL TIMES until his sutures are removed by your veterinarian to prevent him from licking at the area and causing trauma/increasing the risk of an incisional infection. If the bruising worsens after day 3-4 post-op, and/or you notice yellow/thick, foul-smelling discharge, and/or if any of the sutures seem to have fallen out, I recommend having Charlie Brown seen by your veterinarian right away. Otherwise, I recommend monitoring the area and keeping his E-collar on. Best of luck with Charlie Brown! And THANK YOU for neutering your pet!