Swollen puppy leg after IV. What helps reduce swelling overnight?

Hello, so sorry that Fifa is having this issue. It is very difficult to comment without seeing her leg. I suspect she has cellulitis. Probably some of the IV fluids and/or medications went around the catheter and into the surrounding tissues causing inflammation. It is not typically an emergency but I suggest you call the hospital she was at, or your regular vet, to get her seen for treatment of this problem as soon as you can. Typically oral antibiotics and anti-inflammatories are needed to help correct this. In the meantime you can do some cold water therapy on the leg for 10 minutes 2-3 times per day. This entails using a hose with a firm spray (and cold water) on the leg - move the water up/down the leg for the entire 10 minutes. Use as hard of a spray as she will allow. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. I would still keep the appointment you have with the veterinarian. In the meantime, you could start a pain medication to help her out. I would recommend Well & Good Buffered Aspirin. You can find this product at PetCo and it is specifically for dogs. Follow the dosing on the bottle as directed. The veterinarian will likely give you a different medication that is safer to use long term. I hope this helps! I would definitely get x-rays of the leg tomorrow to look into this further and rule out any bone fractures.

When an IV catheter is placed in a blood vessel for several days, it can eventually pull out of the blood vessel so that the fluids are going under the skin rather than in the blood vessel, or it could mean that the tape holding the catheter in place is a bit too tight. Both of these events occur very commonly in animals that are hospitalized on IV fluids. While a swollen paw is a bit uncomfortable temporarily, the vet and vet tech will be able to either remove or replace the catheter, or simply adjust the tape holding it in place. I've seen several of your posts about Hunter and I'm thrilled to hear that he's doing much better! :-)

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. I am concerned that this may be a broken bone injury judging from the pictures. For pain relief, you can use Well & Good Buffered Aspirin, which you can find online or at your local Petco quite easily. I would also consider looking into CareCredit to see if you are able to apply for a line of credit to address any medical problems for Chino. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Bite wounds are very dangerous, particularly, when a large dog with powerful jaws bites smaller dog. The main damage is under the skin, the extend of trauma cannot be appropriated by only looking at the punctures. What's is more bite wounds are painful and almost always get infected. Please, take Buddy to your local vets as soon as possible as he may be in serious trouble.

This most commonly happens when a string or piece of towel or blanket gets wrapped anound the foot. Please check it carefully to make sure nothing is stuck on it stopping the circulation. Then you can soak the foot in warm water and massage it to increase the circulation which should reduce the swelling. Do this several times a day. Make sure he’s still eating and is kept warm. This sound serious so if this doesn’t help please take him in for treatment. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your puppy.

Poor Luke! Swelling at the injection site is pretty unusual, but can be very uncomfortable. The swelling can be controlled with anti-inflammatory medication, and should definitely be reported to your vet so they can potentially modify the vaccines Luke gets in the future. In the meantime, you should try to keep Luke comfortable and calm until he can be seen by his vet. I hope all is well!