My dog's surgery wound is red and leaking. Is it infected?

Some drainage after drain removal is often expected as the volume is increasing I recommend you get her rechecked at your vets office in the morning, it may be necessary to replace the drain until the wound has further healed. It is positive that the fluid is not foul smelling and pinkish-brown indicates no current, active bleeding so unless anything changes waiting for regular office hours would be appropriate

A small amount of straw-colored or blood-tinged fluid is common after surgery and usually isn't a concern. Just try to keep the incisions free of discharge by gently cleaning with a warm wash cloth. If the incisions look very red, puffy, and have thick discharge that has a foul odor, then an infection could be developing. If this is the case, I would recommend taking her to a veterinarian to have the incisions evaluated. I hope this helps and that Seide feels better soon!

This does look very moist and like an infection is starting. If your veterinarian sent home any pain medication, make sure to continue using it as directed. If you didn’t get any, make sure to get some tomorrow morning along with some antibiotics. You can use hydrogen peroxide or warm soapy water to gently dab on the area and then gently pat it dry. Apply some topical antibiotic ointment or cream such as Neodporin or Neosporin Plus which has topical lidocaine. Make sure the cone stays on as he will want to lick or bite at this. Try to get in to your vet first thing in the morning for a recheck.

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It can be normal to see a small amount of blood-tinged/clear fluid (what we term serosanguinous discharge) from an incision within the first 24-48 hours following a surgical procedure. This discharge will typically decrease in amount and should have resolved within 48 hours following surgery. Clinical signs that could indicate a problem with the incision (such as dehiscence or infection) or abdomen would include a swelling that was not previously noted that is painful and may be firm or fluid-filled, discharge that looks purulent (pus) or has a foul odor, extreme reddening of the incision, or if Ashleigh is exhibiting lethargy, fever, inappetance, vomiting, or diarrhea.

The incision appears closed in the pictures and the blood around the incision appears dried, so that is all good news. However, the incision is much redder and more swollen than I would expect it to be the day after surgery, so I would be concerned that she has been licking at the incision. If you don't have one, I would recommend getting an e-collar to prevent her from licking at the incision and keep her in a kennel to make sure that she cannot run and jump and risk opening the incision. If the incision starts to ooze or continues to be red and swollen, you may need to have your veterinarian examine it to make sure that it isn't infected. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and that Maggy heals quickly. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

It looks like a penrose drain was placed these drains usually stay in 3-5 days. It is normal to see a blood discharge or seriosangenous fluid like it see in the picture. I would monitor the wound for drainage. It should be decreasing each day. If at anytime the patient is lethargic or not eating/drinking I would take him back to the vet to have it checked.

A little bit of blood/tinged fluid is not uncommon but I would schedule a post surgery recheck with the operating vet as soon as possible just to be sure, especially as one end of the wound has loosened a little. An emergency visit would be recommended if any swelling develops behind the wound, it starts to gape open more than 0.5cm or if it is persistently dropping blood.