My dog had surgery, now has swelling and a bleeding neck wound. ER?

I am surprised by the amount of medications you are giving. This is way too much and cannot think of a reason to give all of those at once. The cause of the wound would need to be known for me to know how to fix it, but I will give you some advice that should be helpful for any wound. The most important thing is to keep the wound clean. Start by shaving away all the hair around the wound. Wash the wound with just cool water. This is very important. Do not use any soap or gentian violet. These can actually cause more damage than good. Wash the wound with cool clean water 3 times a day. Do not scrub the wound - only gently wipe away crusts or dirt. I recommend only giving the oxytetracycline and cefalexin if prescribed by a veterinarian. If a vet did not advise, then you should stop these medications until given a dose by a vet. Stop the mefenamic acid. This is not a dog medication and can be deadly. If you can bandage the wound or keep covered, this will help it to heal quicker. It is best to keep the wound moist and not let if dry. I know this seems odd that all I am recommending is cool water and bandage, but I promise you, this is the best way to manage a wound. Giving too much medication can be worse for the wound than having no medication. See this video if you are not sure about what I am recommending: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjG3WUinDGc I do think that a veterinarian should see the wound in order to identify the cause. If you want, you can do a consult with me to ask more questions and show photos.

I would get him in sooner than Friday to have that seen. The fluid can be drained with a needle so that the swelling can go down without compromising the suture line. I worry that if it continues to swell, the skin could slough and leave him with a large open wound. Call your vet tomorrow and find out if he can be seen.

Please get him assessed by your vet as soon as possible, this painful swelling may be from internal bleeding, an abscess and infection from the wound or a ruptured salivary gland. Your vet may wish to drain and test a sample of the fluid before starting medications. Keep him fasting for 12hrs before his appointment as sedation may be required

It is a possibility that the tightness of both the collar and cone caused the swelling. I'd keep a close eye on the swelling, and if it gets bigger over the next 24 hours, doesn't go down over the next 48-72 hours, or Max has trouble breathing, take him back into the vet immediately. Best of luck.

Oh no, poor EB! I'm very concerned that the swelling has gotten so big that she has trouble walking, sitting, laying down, and moving. I would be very concerned that this swelling could eventually affect her ability to breath. Based on what you have described, I would consider this a medical emergency as this is not a normal thing seen after surgery. She needs veterinary treatment now in my opinion, and waiting to have her seen could be life threatening. Please take her into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website. I hope this helps!

Thank you for the picture of Apollo's incision, it's very helpful. I agree the incision does look a bit swollen and red, and I'm concerned there is some bleeding. Please feel the skin area, and if it's warm as well, he needs to see an ER vet immediately. Otherwise, wait until the morning and take him in then. Should the area keep swelling during the night, it keeps bleeding, and/or he becomes lethargic, then rush him into an ER vet right away. I hope this helps!

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.