My dog's paw wound is still raw and not healing. Vet visit needed?

The toe does look very inflamed and swollen and it might be getting infected which would warrant oral antibiotics. You could also try to soak the foot in a dilute betadine solution (use warm water and dilute to the color of weak tea). Dry it thoroughly, then place triple antibiotic ointment on the wound and then bandage it. You should do this twice daily. If the wound isn't improving, you will most likely need to take Jimmy to the vet for further care and medications.

Paw pad injuries should heal pretty quickly if they are going to heal at home. You can use sharp scissors and remove that flap of skin (but don't cut super close to the edge of the paw). Most of the time, this flap of skin will be like a cuticle on your finger so it doesn't cause pain to remove it. If it seems painful, don't cut it. After 5 days, the tissue underneath the flap should be looking more like the exterior paw pad. It should be darkening in color and not looking raw. If this is occurring, that's a good sign and Hercules seems to be healing it on his own. You can stop bandaging it. Continue to antibiotics for a full 10 days or until the wound is fully healed. You must prevent all licking and he should wear an elizabethan collar at all times. You must also prevent all trauma so no walks, running or jumping until the paw is fully healed. The paw shoudl be completely healed within 10-14 days from the time of the cut. If the paw still looks raw, has any discharge, pain or swelling at this time, Hercules needs to be examined by the veterinarian as this is abnormal and not expected. If at any point the cut shows any of these symptoms, he should be examined. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hello, my name is Dr. Elizabeth and I am happy to help. I hate to hear that Victra did not respond to the medication as expected. When this happens, it generally indicates that underlying cause of the issue has not been fully identified or that they may be issues with antibiotic resistance. Yes, Victra will likely need to head back to the veterinarians. Give them a call today to let the vet know the medication didn't help and that things look worse. In the mean time, make sure to stop any licking (since this can make it worse). Victra may need to wear an elizabethan collar at all times. Remember that the collar must come out past the nose in order to be effective. Since it's the foot, she needs to rest and avoid trauma so only short, controlled walks. No running, jumping, vigorous play and minimize stairs and climbing off/on furniture. I hope things get figured out quickly for Victra!

Many problems can cause abscesses such as puncture wounds, migrating foreign object, bone infection, and even a sterile inflammatory disorder called panniculitis. I would encourage you to have a follow up appointment with your veterinarian and consider an x-ray and culture of the wound as the next step. Best of luck and I hope he improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Ember. If her wound has been present for several weeks and is increasing in size, then she will need to see her veterinarian. She will likely need an oral antibiotic. In the meantime, stop bandaging the wound to allow it dry out. Be sure to prevent her from licking the area with an E-collar. She likely injured herself as you mentioned, but there other more rare causes of non-healing skin wounds. I hope this information helps!

This may need more time to heal, however I would take her back to the vet for a recheck as there may be possibly more severe damage. Now that most of the swelling is gone, it may be easier to find out what the exact cause for the lameness is. If the paw was not xrayed before, now may be the time to do so. Soft tissue damage should be healed after 4-5 weeks.

This appears to be an infected wound. It looks like it has been caused by some sort of penetrating object. The antibiotics should start to kick in and sort the infection. You can clean the outside with warm water that has been boiled. If it is not improving go back to the vet in case there is a foreign body inside it.