kudzu Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 My sweet old guy, Luke, had an unfortunate accident involving another Grey's teeth. Meaning, someone bit his ear & in the process a large section of skin was removed. Though they could clean up & stitch the edge of the ear, there is nothing to be done for the large open wound where the skin is missing. It is simply to big. Vet said we just have to let it go through granulation. He is on Clavamox & will continue the meloxicam he was already on for arthritis. They gave me silvadene cream to apply twice a day. He came from the e-vet with a bandage from his forehead down his neck with just his uninjured ear exposed. That was fine as long as he was sleeping. As soon as he got up & started moving this morning the bandage slid down to be a turtleneck. Removed it & rebandaged it but my bandaging left my ol' dude hurting & crying. Quickly took it off & redid it. That one had slid into turtleneck position by the time I got to class this morning. Bought some supplies on the way home & tried it with a stretch knit designed to hold bandages in place on elbows & knees. Tried it twice. Didn't work. So now he is unbandaged but the vet has recommended bandaged to keep the tissue from drying out. Plus he is currently sleeping with that unbandaged ear resting on the comforter. Doesn't seem particularly good for an ear with so much exposed flesh. We have a follow up appointment tomorrow at his regular vets. I have little confidence they will be able to bandage it well & was reluctant to go back to the e-vets tonight to pay $100 for rebandaging that won't last. Anyone have any bandaging suggestions? How in the world do people keep snoods on their dogs? Also, would manuka honey be something good to try? Have not tried it but would like to get this wound healed ASAP. TIA, Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BauersMom Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 What I've used in the past was a piece of stocking or nylons - cut at both ends. I'm not sure that will work in your case though. Can the damaged ear be covered? If so, you can cut a hole for the good ear and use it as an 'anchor'. Quote With Buster Bloof (UCME Razorback 89B-51359) and Gingersnap Ginny (92D-59450). Missing Pepper, Berkeley, Ivy, Princess and Bauer at the bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Your regular vet should be able to show you how to do that. Dogs of all breeds injury their ears! I have seen it done in the manner you describe--basically the injured ear is sort of wrapped down flush with the head. I guess you need the right mix of gauze, tape, vet wrap, whatever! Poor guy! I hope you have a good visit with the doctor and your boy feels well soon. Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted October 20, 2009 Author Share Posted October 20, 2009 Have tried that with a couple things but not stockings. The items I tried have slid off quickly in spite of feeling very tight. Worth a try though. Thanks for the suggestion. Off to rummage through a dresser drawer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahicks51 Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 One step up (in terms of coarseness) from stockings are the mesh bags like the sort that onions come in. They make a surgical-grade mesh; I'm not sure if they make any that you can buy by the foot for something the size of a greyhound head and neck, but it might be an option. Quote Coco (Maze Cocodrillo) Minerva (Kid's Snipper) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krissn333 Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I was just going to echo what others have said. Bandage the ear to the head. They end up looking like head wound victims, but it's almost the only way. In the past I've used the kind of mesh used for burn victims and stuff. If you have a medical supply store nearby they'd defnitely have it. Cut a hole for the good ear - that will help keep it in place. At first you might want to do vetwrap (again leaving the good ear out) to keep the ear fully covered and keep medicine on it. As it heals and needs air the surgical mesh will be good. Quote Kristin in Moline, IL USA with Ozzie (MRL Crusin Clem), Clarice (Clarice McBones), Latte and Sage the IGs, and the kitties: Violet and Rose Lovingly Remembered: Sutra (Fliowa Sutra) 12/02/97-10/12/10, Pinky (Pick Me) 04/20/03-11/19/12, Fritz (Fritz Fire) 02/05/01 - 05/20/13, Ace (Fantastic Ace) 02/05/01 - 07/05/13, and Carrie (Takin the Crumbs) 05/08/99 - 09/04/13. A cure for cancer can't come soon enough.-- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greytluv Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 (edited) Here's my Doni Rae when she was attacked by my foster. The vet folded her ear on top of her head and wrapped her head. She was also on tranquilizers so she wouldn't shake her head and damage her ear more. You can kinda see where the ear is folder over. On the right side. Edited October 20, 2009 by Greytluv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MZH Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Antibiotic bandaids actually stay on ear wounds. They hold to dog skin better than regular bandaids. This is a tip from Suzanne Stack, DVM, that goes back many years. Unfortunately, I needed to take her advice for a bad ear tip bite once, but the thing did indeed stay on! If it's too big a wound, back to the big coverings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyAcresMom Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I just can't ever tell anyone how much I like the purple packaged paper tape. I get it at walmart. I found it when we were trying to save Jack-foos leg. You can tape right on the hair and it does not pull the hair when we take it off. I just cut Max's ear when I groomed him...** *I mean I really CUT him** grabbed the tape and when it was done just took it off. That is a Yorkie ear. tape Quote Sheila and COwww.greyacres.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SusanP Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Could some sort of liquid bandage be used on it, even though it's a large area? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greytluv Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 I like the idea of the paper tape. I'll get some of that for me first aid kit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MyBoys Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Try spraying some EMT on it, it is great for healing quickly and also works to protect the skin, I use it on every wound and am totally amazed at how quickly it helps heal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest greybookends Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Sheana and the gang recently got a cat in the back yard and in the melee Sheana's ear got injured enough to require surgery. This is what the vet did to keep her from shaking her head and tearing the stitches. I think maybe a sock with the toe cut out might work or maybe a bandanna tied to her head like a babushka. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greytluv Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 Sheana and the gang recently got a cat in the back yard and in the melee Sheana's ear got injured enough to require surgery. This is what the vet did to keep her from shaking her head and tearing the stitches. I think maybe a sock with the toe cut out might work or maybe a bandanna tied to her head like a babushka. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest greytbookert Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 When Annie's ear got degloved, we used burn bandages (we got them at CVS) for a couple of days to keep in the moisture, then wrapped gauze around that, then vet wrap, then we used a sleeve of a long sleeved t shirt. We found the tubular gauze from the vet to be too stretchy and it would fall off. After the wound starts to granulate, we let the air get at at but as you know, ear wounds will stay "wet" for awhile. The healing process is long and sometimes frustrating, but the wound will heal with time. Good luck! Here are some pics our contraption vs. vet contraption. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted October 21, 2009 Author Share Posted October 21, 2009 Thanks so much for the additional suggestions. Did manage to get something, the elastic knit tubing type bandage covering, to stay on last night but it involved Elastikon which is just too sticky for longterm use especially with twice daily changes. So will try the paper tape. Tried XL tube sock but it was too narrow. Stockings didn't work. Will see if I have a long sleeve shirt or perhaps the leg from some longjohns that will work. The burn bandages sounds interesting. I've yet to find something that works for actually covering the ear itself without sticking to it. Since we are supposed to be applying cream twice a day but wanting granulation, it doesn't make sense to keep pulling things off if they stick & take bits of flesh with them. Why is it that vets want to charge you for bandaging that refuses to stay on? I'm just askin'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greytluv Posted October 21, 2009 Share Posted October 21, 2009 Why is it that vets want to charge you for bandaging that refuses to stay on? I'm just askin'. Kinda makes you wonder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MZH Posted October 21, 2009 Share Posted October 21, 2009 I just remembered -- an ER vet once did an ear repair with surgical super glue. Worked great. He didn't want to put the dog to sleep for stitches because the boy had just eaten. Re: the rebandaging charge. The may charge for this but it doesn't seem right, especially if the thing just slipped off and the dog wasn't bothering it. The $30 charge sure annoyed us when it happened to us about 15 years ago. Don't know what they charge nowadays for that! Plain old gauze wrapped around the head usually works. Maybe vet wrap could work too. Vet wrap might keep it all on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Shermanator Posted October 21, 2009 Share Posted October 21, 2009 Patton was attacked with damage to his ear. We were fortunate to be able to stitch them; however, the evet left them open until our reg vet could see him. For reference - here is where the damage was: And the evet's bandaging (poor P was drugged out of his mind. The bandaging @ his chest was for another bite...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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