Open Wound Care

[Guest bigorangedog]

So poor Cesar is having a very bad week. He was returned to MNGR from his home of 3 yrs because his people lost their jobs. The volunteer who picked him up was going to hang onto him for a few days until I had a place for him, but he nipped at one of her greys -- causing her other 2 greys to go after him. They got him pretty bad. So now he is back at the adoption kennel (a.k.a. my house).

 

He has a large wound on his shoulder. On Friday afternoon he was put under and sutured up. By yesterday (Saturday) late afternoon, all the sutures had pulled open.

 

Now we have a large open wound, maybe 3" x 1.5" or so. And it is right over the shoulder bone, so it's an area that moves around a lot. It is not terribly deep, just mostly the skin having been pulled away.

 

I do not see any way that they could stitch this up and have it hold. (And of course today is Sunday, so my choices are go to the emergency vet or wait 'til Monday to have it looked at.)

 

What can I do for the wound in the meantime? It's not bleeding much, but oozing some. He'll let me wash away the blood and put antibiotic on it. (He's also on oral antibiotics and Rimadyl.) He can't reach to lick at it, so that is good.

 

It definitely needs to be cleaned up some. There are little bits of suture poking out around the edges and some dead skin, and I don't know that I can do anything about that by myself (and my husband is in China). Do you think it can wait until Monday? What should I do for it in the meantime? And if we leave it to heal as an open wound rather than trying to resuture, what tips do people have for caring for it as it heals?

 

Thank you!!!

Jen

[Guest eaglflyt]

If you think he may need stitches, or some sort of wound closure, take him to the E-vet. After a wound has been open for many hours, they will not attempt to close it due to bacterial contamination and increased chance of abcess/infection. So, if he needs to go, take him now. If they can't stitch it, they will clean it and tell you how best to manage it. That's what I would do. I hope he gets better soon.

[Batmom]

Get it debrided and stitched today.

 

Best luck for easy healing!

[Guest Energy11]

Hi Jen!

 

This is Dee. We have met at Sandy Paws before. I have always been their medical contact ... couldn't make it this year.

 

Anyway, I HAVE HEALED lots of open sores like that WITHOUT sutures on mine. I KNOW you probably do not have it, but THE BEST THING TO USE IS TRYZYME-V ointment or spray. (can get online, and VERY handy to have in the house)!THIS actually starts debreeding and healing a wound. It was developed by an Auburn U. veterinarian.

 

For TODAY, maybe just get some XL bandaids, clean the wound, use the antibacterial ointment, and keep it covered. IF the bandaid works, you can always wrap over it with kling guauze. ... MIGHT have to wrap around the leg, attach to the collar... you can get creative!

 

IF he is on antibiotics, pain killers, and you try the above, I would say, it can wait until tomorrow to see the vet. My Staggerlee had something similar, and I healed it with the above, but also bought some surgical stretch mesh ** can get in surgical supply store (*looks like fishnet stockings :-), which kept the bandaids and dressing in place.

 

Good Luck and let me know if there is anything else I can do.

 

p.s. You used to be with Carl Viener's group, right? I live in the N. Ga Mts., but try to help them out when I can.

 

Hugs! DEE

[Guest KennelMom]

Scout had an open wound on her side that could not be stitched...well, there wasn't enough skin to stitch all of it closed. They stitched as much as they could, but she did pop a few staples open. We just removed those staples. It finally stabilized after a couple days. She ended up with a patch of "open wound" about the size of my palm. I was pretty convinced it was never going to heal, but the specialist assured me that it would. We did water therapy (running cool, clean water over it for a few minutes, 3-4 times per day) and applying bag balm to encourage granulation. It took a couple months but it did close up and now she has a scar about the size of a dollar coin.

 

Healing was under the supervision of the specialist that had done the surgery to put her back together again. He monitored to make sure the edges of the wound were looking nice and healthy, pink. She also had another wound in her armpit that they chose not to stitch close because they did not want to close in infection or the wounds ability to drain...that one healed just fine as well, though it was considerably smaller (more like a puncture).

[Guest KennelMom]

I found this pic of Scout taken a week or so after she came home from the hospital...She's about a 65lb greyhound if that gives you an idea of scale.

[Guest bigorangedog]

Thanks for the input everybody!

 

MNGR is totally broke (no adoptions lately, several "foreclosure" returns) so I'd prefer not to do e-vet if it can be avoided, but if he needs it, then we do it.

 

........

 

IF he is on antibiotics, pain killers, and you try the above, I would say, it can wait until tomorrow to see the vet. My Staggerlee had something similar, and I healed it with the above, but also bought some surgical stretch mesh ** can get in surgical supply store (*looks like fishnet stockings :-), which kept the bandaids and dressing in place.

 

Good Luck and let me know if there is anything else I can do.

 

p.s. You used to be with Carl Viener's group, right? I live in the N. Ga Mts., but try to help them out when I can.

 

Hugs! DEE

 

Hi Dee. Yep, I worked with Carl for about 5 years. Still talk to him sometimes, to give him updates on my personal pups who came through him. :-)

 

Thanks for the advice. I really appreciate that. I will see what I can do about getting it covered. I'm thinking resuturing is not in the cards for this one. Right now it is uncovered. The edges do not look good at all -- it definitely needs to be debrided. (Will he need to be put under for that? I assume so...) But I can keep it washed out.

 

What do people think about those spray-on bandages?

 

And KennelMom -- ouch!!! Cesar's is not that big, maybe 1/2 or 2/3 that size. But glad to hear that did heal okay eventually.

 

Thanks, everybody!

Jen

[Guest Energy11]

Hey again!

 

Yeah, I used to be with GPA Senior Sanctuary of Florida, but now we live in the N. Ga Mts., and I am trying to help "spread the word," here through Carl's group. :-))

 

FOR TODAY, I'd try to clean the wound with antibacterial soap and warm water, PAT it dry, and, yes, DO try to keep it covered. Another alternative is, after doing the above and applying antibacterial ointment, you can get a NON STICK TELFA PAD(s) at the pharmacy ... they come LARGE, and be SURE they are NON STICK ... use that, then, you can even a cut up feminine hygeine pad, over that, THEN the kling, mesh, etc.

 

I am really NOT sure whether the vet will sedate for debreeding, .... but, I would assume something mild to sedate the dog. As you say, I too, doubt, based on where the wound is, that sutures will hold ... again ... see what the vet says, but if you do all of the above, get the Trypzyme-V, and use that surgical stretchy (fishnet stocking looking stuff), you can probably manage it fine. BE SURE he stays on the antibiotics, ... THAT IT VERY IMPORTANT!

 

Let me know how it goes. You can also email me at boldenergy@aol.com, if you need instant advice. I think, once he is vetted, you can probably manage the wound. I did it wtih Staggerlee, and his wound was A LOT larger. Mind you, it was not deep, though.

 

Hugs and good thoughts! Dee

[Wonder]

Sparks had an open wound and it took about a week to close up.

It got bigger before it closed which freaked me out but I'm glad that I just waited for it to close on it's own.

I did clean it 3 times a day with some badadine on a q-tip and put anti-biotic ointment on it at night

I also had him wear a t-shirt since he could reach it and would lick it (I think that's why it got bigger)

 

Good luck!

 

Are you going to the walk for animals next Saturday?

 

[Guest Energy11]

AH... THE T-SHIRT!!!! "Greyt" idea :-) They look cute, too! D

[HopeForHounds]

Once you get the vet to remove the suture material and dead skin I would ask that they make no attempt to close it.

 

I second water therapy 3 - 4 times a day. It flushes the bad stuff out, and stimulates healing. After that use EMT spray or gel, if you have it, or antibiotic ointment then cover with a clean t-shirt. Cheap kids shirts size 10 or so fit greys nicely, although a small human one works well too. Pin it at the back to take up the slack.

[Guest bigorangedog]

Are you going to the walk for animals next Saturday?

 

Nope, wish I could, but my husband comes home on Friday with our new 4-yr-old daughter from China! So I won't be going anyplace until we get her (and us) settled in....

 

--

 

I may try the t-shirt thing. Have to see what old shirts I have around here... I'm not seeing a good way to bandage it. It's a good thing this is a very tolerant dog.

 

To make matters worse, we are having a very loud thunderstorm, and 3 of my guys (including Cesar) are shaking in their boots.

 

Jen

 

[Guest Elaine]

I have healed many open wounds on my hounds without resorting to sutures for various reasons, usually because the wound could not be sutured. There are two really good products available to help heal open wounds. One is a spray called Granulex. You can GOOGLE it and find places to purchase it. It really works and the dog usually winds up growing not only skin but hair! This is a product which may be available at your local farm & feed store, if you have one.

 

The other product I have used is a maltodextrin based product used in human wound care called Multi-Dex. I usually buy the powdered form although I've also used the paste form. One of our hounds had a large gaping wound, about the size you describe, on his foreleg. He had been struck by a rattlesnake and the wound formed where he'd been envenomated. The wound was deep in addition to being large. A couple of times a day, I'd gently clean the wound and then put the Multi-dex in it. Then, I'd put a hydrophilic bandage on top, wrap with gauze & vet wrap. After a fairly short period of time, the wound filled in and the skin grew back, with hair. He was not on antibiotics and the wound never became infected. Multi-dex is available at any local medical supply company and it does not require a script. Again, you can GOOGLE it and get more information about it and how it works.

 

For the wound you are describing & its location, I'd try either product. If you opt for the multi-dex, you can use a 4x4 tefla pad to cover it and just tape the edges to the dog. There are tapes out there that do not come off with movement. One such tape is elastikan. If you use the Elastican, do NOT fully tape all edges, just little pieces here & there as that stuff does not come off without a fight. The Granulex specifically states not to cover it. It cleans the wound when you spray it on.

 

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

Elaine @ DM Greyhounds