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My dog picked his neuter incision scab. Should he wear the cone?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Small (up to 22lb) | Male | 1 year and 2 months old | 13 lbs

Hi there. Our dog was neutered 11 days ago and 2 days ago we removed his cone. This morning we noticed he may have removed part of the scab from the scrotum area. He appears to be guarding the area as well. Would you return to cone or will this heal? Photos below

4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

Veterinarian

Published on January 8th, 2019

Thank you for your question about Lucky. Yes, Lucky needs to wear the cone at all times until the incision is completely healed. If he leaves it alone, there is a high likelihood that it will heal on its own. It takes roughly 10-14 days to heal an incision and he damaged it around around day 10 so that is going to delay things a bit.
Check the incision daily for redness, swelling or discharge. If you see this, he needs to go to the veterinarian for a likely infection from licking.
Keep the incision clean and dry. Don’t worry about putting anything on it. It will likely form a new scab and will continue the healing process.
I do recommend to have him checked by his veterinarian in about 1 week.
I hope you found this helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

17Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Daniel Fonza, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on August 10th, 2017
Hello! Thanks for posting your question. In regards to snowball licking her incision site, no licking is better than licking. Licking can introduce bacterial infection into the incision site. It sounds as if the incision was healing quite well, but over grooming or excessive licking at an area that is healing may cause more irritation and potentially cause an infection. I would suggest keeping the cone on until she is no longer interested in licking at it. If you are concerned with how the incision is looking, then I would take her to your vet to have it checked out just to be on the safe side
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Dr. Leigh, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on October 26th, 2017
Based on the picture it looks okay but you need to prevent him from licking the area. You could clean the incision with a small amount of hydrogen peroxide. If he won't keep the cone on then you could try an inflatable E-collar and see if that works better

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Andrea M. Brodie, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on October 18th, 2018
Observe your dog very closely so it does not lick the incision. If you catch him at it , put the cone back on. Sometimes it takes more than 10 days for the "healing itch" to go away. Licking can indeed open the incision again at this stage.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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My dog pulled neuter stitches. Incision open. Emergency vet needed?

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