My dog has an oozing bloody spot near his ear. What to do until vet?

Poor Arya. I would gently clean it with warm water and antiseptic soap. To keep her from scratching at it, you can put an Ecollar on her. You can get one at a pet store or make one at home. Keep the wound clean and dry, and monitor it for signs of infection. If you see redness, swelling, warmth to the touch, or pus, then it is infected and she will need to see the vet for antibiotics to treat it. Best of luck.

I would recommend putting an ecollar on Simba so he can't scratch this spot and taking him to the vet. This area may need to be shaved and scrubbed to say what is going on and he also most likely needs antibiotics. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

As you have already said, the blood you are seeing on Khloe's ear could be due to multiple reasons. We could be dealing with self inflicted bleeding due to chronic itching. If this was the case, there is most like an infectious or allergic process taking place that is causing this type of behavior. If you don't go to the vet, you will not be able to verify the presence of absence of an infection under a microscope. There are however several over the counter ear washes and flushes that can be used with antimicrobial / antifungal properties. However, be aware that the use of these products before the ear is inspected for a punctured ear drum can have significant consequences. Should you decide to use them, I would recommend at least a week of use. There should be directions on the bottle. If the bleeding was caused by trauma from a dog bite, systemic antibiotics should likely be administered to prevent and/or treat any infection. I would fashion Khloe with an e-collar to prevent any further damage to the ear that she might inflict out of discomfort. You can obtain one of these at a pet store, veterinarian, or even create a home made one (look for a video on Youtube). I hope you can help Khloe feel better soon!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is likely a hotspot which is a very inflamed focal infection. Usually these occur secondary to allergies, among other possibilities. It is very important to treat these infections appropriately and the sooner they get treated the better for the patient. I recommend that you have Buster evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. They are likely going to prescribe anti-inflammatory medications and antibiotics. In the meantime, you can use an e-collar (which you may obtain from your local pet store), to avoid further self trauma by him scratching at it. Good luck and have a good night!

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Willow has a cut on her ear. It is possible that she caused it herself by scratching, but if you did not observe it happening, she could have traumatized it on something else, or been wounded by another animal. Based on your description of the wound, I recommend bringing her to your local veterinarian to have her evaluated. At the very least, the wound likely needs to be cleaned and flushed with a sterile solution to prevent infection. Depending on how deep or infected the wound is, it may require more extensive management such as surgical closure of the wound, or bandages. Willow likely also needs an Elizabethan (cone) collar to prevent her from further traumatizing the wound. Unfortunately, dogs like to scratch at their ears and can make it very hard for wounds to heal. If the wound is superficial and Willow is otherwise healthy, you may be able to apply compression to the wound to get it to stop bleeding, and monitor it closely at home for signs of infection (redness, swelling, yellow-green discharge, foul odor). If you see any of these signs, Willow should definitely be evaluated by a veterinarian. Just a reminder, NEVER give dogs any pain medications that are intended for humans, as they can be lethally toxic to dogs. I hope this is helpful!

Poor Lucky! I'm glad to hear that his vet will be checking him out tomorrow. From the picture, the skin lesion looks most like a hot spot (aka acute moist dermatitis). If you have clippers on hand, you can try to carefully trip the hair over and around this skin lesion to allow for better air flow. You can also gently clean his skin with an antiseptic solution, such as diluted chlorhexidine or diluted betadine, but be sure to rinse and dry thoroughly. If Lucky is scratching at his neck, it would be best to put an e-collar (cone) on until his appointment. The vet may need to prescribe antibiotics, steroids, or topical sprays to help this lesion to heal. I hope this helps and that all goes well!

Poor Mishka. Thank you for providing a picture, it's very helpful to me. I would gently clean her wound with warm water and antiseptic soap. To keep her from scratching at it, you can put an Ecollar on her. You can get one at a pet store or make one at home. Keep her indoors for now at all times while this is healing. Do not let her outside, especially not with the Ecollar on. I wouldn't even take it off to let her outside, as she will immediately try to scratch the wound. Keep the wound clean and dry, and monitor it for signs of infection. If you see redness, swelling, warmth to the touch, or pus, then it is infected and she will need to see the vet for antibiotics to treat it. I hope this helps!