Looking For Wound Healing Secrets

[Guest Trentsmom]

Both of my grays are always scratching up their lower legs and end up with scrapes and nicks that they lick and the next thing I know they have wounds that won't heal. Anyone with me on this one? If so, you know that attempting to bandage, cover, muzzle, etc to stop the licking is difficult at best. Mine just rip the bandage off and hate the muzzle. So, I'm hoping someone might have a tried and true would healer. I usually clean once with peroxide and use antibiotic ointment once or twice. After that I keep moist with petroleum jelly- a suggested method I found researching on the internet. This does work- but it takes a very long time when the dogs continue to lick and re-open the wound. I also tried liquid bandaid which just makes them want to lick it more. Thanks in advance for your healing secrets.

[robinw]

EMT gel is fantastic! Quickly heals minor wounds without licking.

 

 

[Guest Swifthounds]

EMT Gel is very good for some wounds. It also comes in a spray form.

 

I would avoid cleansing with peroxide and it indiscriminately rids the wound of both dirt and tissue cells, increases healing time, and increases scarring. It burns too. I would opt instead for a foaming wound cleaner or simple saline.

 

If you use tasty treats and behavior sculpting, you can teach hounds not to lick wounds/bandages, but it takes time and consistency.

 

Also, nicks and scratches on the legs are usually from nails that are too long. Keeping them trimmed short as well as removing sharp edges (dremeling is good for this) will reduce those scarpes (though with greyhound skin, you can't eliminate them entirely).

[Guest sheila]

I see a few things that I WOULD NOT do if I were you. First I would never use peroxide because as it was already advised, it will debride the healthy tissue. I would also not use any kind of of gel because I think that it's better to let wound be open to air. Not only will a gel trap any necessary drainage, it will attract dust and dirt and may impede healing.

In the past I have cleaned with water and used an antibiotic spray like Gentocin. I've had luck with a product called Bachs Rescue Remedy Cream.

[Guest DianaJH]

I have very succellfully used a product recommended by our local pet store called Dr. Naylor Blu-Kote. It sprays on the wound and makes a purple stain. (Reminds me of the spray my mom used on me when I was little - gensin violet?)

The bottle says "Veterinary Antiseptic-Protective Wound Dressing Germicidal- Fungicidal"

It must taste bad because neither of mine lick once I have applied it and the wounds seem to heal really quickly. I just reapply as needed.

Cost at my local store was $7.69.

[Guest Swifthounds]

I have very succellfully used a product recommended by our local pet store called Dr. Naylor Blu-Kote. It sprays on the wound and makes a purple stain. (Reminds me of the spray my mom used on me when I was little - gensin violet?)

The bottle says "Veterinary Antiseptic-Protective Wound Dressing Germicidal- Fungicidal"

It must taste bad because neither of mine lick once I have applied it and the wounds seem to heal really quickly. I just reapply as needed.

Cost at my local store was $7.69.

 

Interesting. I've used it on horses (mostly for fungal issues), but never on dogs. I would assume it does not taste good.

[BatterseaBrindl]

I have horses, and so I always have Blue Kote on hand! It comes in a spray, but I prefer the bottle with the little foam 'dobber' brush.

 

And...yes I have used it on dogs, but not my Greyhound.

 

I do like Colloidal Silver...you can get it in spray or gel. I have some gel that also has aloe added.

[cleptogrey]

saline solution, cleans it and helps promote healing. if it's an area that bandaged i will apply a dot of frankensence....yeah the stuff that one of the 3 wisemen brought baby jesus. it's fantastic, my adoption rep told me about it.

[Guest 5greyhoundgirls]

Both of my grays are always scratching up their lower legs and end up with scrapes and nicks that they lick and the next thing I know they have wounds that won't heal. Anyone with me on this one? If so, you know that attempting to bandage, cover, muzzle, etc to stop the licking is difficult at best. Mine just rip the bandage off and hate the muzzle. So, I'm hoping someone might have a tried and true would healer. I usually clean once with peroxide and use antibiotic ointment once or twice. After that I keep moist with petroleum jelly- a suggested method I found researching on the internet. This does work- but it takes a very long time when the dogs continue to lick and re-open the wound. I also tried liquid bandaid which just makes them want to lick it more. Thanks in advance for your healing secrets.

i had my 4 year old greyhound do the same thing and she had this open wound for about 5 months open and it was a pain i tried to bandage it lol that was a joke she did the same thing that ur grey did she tore that bandage right open i took her to the vet and they gave me all kinds of meds to put on it but nothing i mean NOTHING worked i muzzled her with the poop gaurd on it i did EVERYTHING!!!!! well the last time i took her back to the vet she told me to put her on prozac and guess what that worked awwwww finally she is not licking chewing at her wound and guess what it healed up nicely so that might work for u!

[Guest 4dogscrazy]

Ditto on not using peroxide. No good, I threw mine out a long time ago. Jesse was turning up with scratches on his legs, finally figured out he was running through some stumps/sticks leftover from a bush I cut down. I dug it up and he stopped getting cuts. I would seriously try to figure out where the cuts are coming from. When mine get a cut, I apply neosporin one time ususally, just to get rid of any bacteria when it's fresh. I don't think them licking the cut, as long as it's not excessive, is too much trouble. I'm pretty sure it's instinctive and might be stimulating healing. One of mine had a really deep cut from a nip, and I called my vet tech friend over, she said just put neosporin right in the open wound. It healed nicely. And mine got used to wearing their muzzles again!!

[greysmom]

Soaking a wound two or three times a day with warm water compresses, followed by a wash with saline or 1/2 n 1/2 betadine and water, followed by an anti-biotic ointment or spray. After it begins healing, you can stop the compresses unless it looks inflamed.

 

Some people recommend a product called Granulomex. It's another spray mostly used for livestock and is supposed to debride the dead tissue and encourage healing.

 

I've also seen many people glue small wounds shut with super glue, though that seems kind of dangerous to me unless you have a *very* clean wound.

 

Oh yeah! Somebody just recommended using Glad Press-n-Seal plastic wrap to help cover the bandages and keep them dry outside. Brilliant!

[2ndChance]

I can't help you on the upper legs, but Chance had a bad spill and split some of his webbing couple months ago. He licked them a lot and I wanted to keep some neosporin on them during the first few days. Soooo .... I did the soap and water and then put the stuff and gauze on them.. then put baby socks on them and then his winter booties! At night the double layer of socks were enough b/c I did it right before we go to sleep, but during the day, booties were annoying but efficient!

 

Just a thought...

 

Good luck & thx everyone for all the salve tips. I found a feed store near me with the EMT gel.. yay

 

eta: This feed store also sells TOTW $2 cheaper! Double yay!

Edited January 3, 2011 by 2ndChance

[Guest greydogluvr]

I swear by Vetericyn. It is amazing. Wounds heal quickly and it is completely non-toxic. Vetericyn click to check it out!!!

Edited January 3, 2011 by greydogluvr

[silverfish]

EMT Gel is very good for some wounds. It also comes in a spray form.

 

I would avoid cleansing with peroxide and it indiscriminately rids the wound of both dirt and tissue cells, increases healing time, and increases scarring. It burns too. I would opt instead for a foaming wound cleaner or simple saline.

 

Also, nicks and scratches on the legs are usually from nails that are too long. Keeping them trimmed short as well as removing sharp edges (dremeling is good for this) will reduce those scarpes (though with greyhound skin, you can't eliminate them entirely).

Ditto on the peroxide, and yes, it does burn. Our vets over here no longer recommend it for anything much, including inducing vomiting. They recommend washing soda instead. That's WASHING soda, just to be clear, NOT caustic soda, which would be extremely dangerous and probably fatal. Make sure you use the right one, which is sodium carbonate. That's not aimed at you, Sheila, just making sure we're all clear and safe.

 

By the way, I know I keep my dogs' nails longer than many people (especially in the US) like, but I've never had any nicks from nails. Any lower leg scrapes, which are very rare in my house, are usually from bushes etc outside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have very succellfully used a product recommended by our local pet store called Dr. Naylor Blu-Kote. It sprays on the wound and makes a purple stain. (Reminds me of the spray my mom used on me when I was little - gensin violet?)

The bottle says "Veterinary Antiseptic-Protective Wound Dressing Germicidal- Fungicidal"

It must taste bad because neither of mine lick once I have applied it and the wounds seem to heal really quickly. I just reapply as needed.

Cost at my local store was $7.69.

 

Interesting. I've used it on horses (mostly for fungal issues), but never on dogs. I would assume it does not taste good.

 

Aaah, Gentian Violet! It was great stuff - and yes, it tastes foul!! Very bitter. They used to paint it on children with impetigo when I was young.

[Guest lizmego]

I've had really good luck with Colostrum Plus. Got the information from Whole Dog Journal. Take the powder and mix with water to make a paste and apply to wound. Leave it on for a couple of minutes, while also trying to keep the dog from licking it off. It tastes really good to them (it's bovine/cow milk). Then you can wrap it with non-stick pads, gauze and vet wrap.

 

I applied it to DH's finger when he fell and ripped up his finger really good. His finger healed well. We should have used it more often, but DH didn't like the smell.

 

You can find Colostrum Plus online or at health food stores. Let me know if anyone is interested in reading the article in Whole Dog Journal.

[Hubcitypam]

EMT gel is the go to here but I have used blue kote also. They were trying to push colliodal silver on me at the pet store but man, is that stuff expensive -- It was $28 I think. I said I'd just mosey on over to the horse aisle at Tractor Supply and get some $12 EMT gel.

[Guest Diablo]

I've had great results with aloë vera cream. There are 2 types of cream, one for open wounds and one for closed wounds.

A friend had a realy bad accident with one of her dogs, the poor thing was missing a whole chunck of skin, the vet couldn't sow it cause it would open again in a nick of time. she started with the 1st one and within a few days you could see it heal, afterwards she used the other one and now you can barely see the scar.

 

I also use Vulketan gel for horses

[Guest ChasesMum]

I've had really good luck with Colostrum Plus. Got the information from Whole Dog Journal. Take the powder and mix with water to make a paste and apply to wound. Leave it on for a couple of minutes, while also trying to keep the dog from licking it off. It tastes really good to them (it's bovine/cow milk). Then you can wrap it with non-stick pads, gauze and vet wrap.

 

I applied it to DH's finger when he fell and ripped up his finger really good. His finger healed well. We should have used it more often, but DH didn't like the smell.

 

You can find Colostrum Plus online or at health food stores. Let me know if anyone is interested in reading the article in Whole Dog Journal.

 

interesting! human breastmilk (the first milk being colostrum, especially) has antibacterial properties and always with my human babies I have been advised to put a drop of breastmilk on the facial scratches they always give themselves... its not a stretch for cow colostrum to be the same since it serves the same purpose for baby cows!

Edited January 3, 2011 by ChasesMum

[Guest Swifthounds]

By the way, I know I keep my dogs' nails longer than many people (especially in the US) like, but I've never had any nicks from nails. Any lower leg scrapes, which are very rare in my house, are usually from bushes etc outside.

 

Is that even possible? With the exception of the performance hound folks, nails in the U.S. tend to be pretty long. I have to just bite my tongue when an adopter bemoans that her hounds nails are getting long and she just took the hound to Petsmart/Vet last month!

Edited January 3, 2011 by Swifthounds

[Guest sheila]

Ditto on not using peroxide. No good, I threw mine out a long time ago.

 

just a note to say that keeping peroxide on hand is not a bad thing. If your dogs eats something they shouldn't it's a good thing to use to make them puke it up.

[Guest Swifthounds]

Ditto on not using peroxide. No good, I threw mine out a long time ago.

 

just a note to say that keeping peroxide on hand is not a bad thing. If your dogs eats something they shouldn't it's a good thing to use to make them puke it up.

 

Also the absolute best thing for getting blood out of all kinds of things.

[Guest bluefawn]

Ditto on not using peroxide. No good, I threw mine out a long time ago.

 

just a note to say that keeping peroxide on hand is not a bad thing. If your dogs eats something they shouldn't it's a good thing to use to make them puke it up.

 

Also the absolute best thing for getting blood out of all kinds of things.

 

Yes, we kept it at the Rescue Squad for getting blood spots out of our white uniform shirts! Nothing better for just about any organic stain.

[Guest bluefawn]

I've had really good luck with Colostrum Plus. Got the information from Whole Dog Journal. Take the powder and mix with water to make a paste and apply to wound. Leave it on for a couple of minutes, while also trying to keep the dog from licking it off. It tastes really good to them (it's bovine/cow milk). Then you can wrap it with non-stick pads, gauze and vet wrap.

 

I applied it to DH's finger when he fell and ripped up his finger really good. His finger healed well. We should have used it more often, but DH didn't like the smell.

 

You can find Colostrum Plus online or at health food stores. Let me know if anyone is interested in reading the article in Whole Dog Journal.

 

interesting! human breastmilk (the first milk being colostrum, especially) has antibacterial properties and always with my human babies I have been advised to put a drop of breastmilk on the facial scratches they always give themselves... its not a stretch for cow colostrum to be the same since it serves the same purpose for baby cows!

 

Interesting indeed! I breast fed my daughter, but would have never thought of this. I know you can freeze breast milk for up to a year in the right container, so I guess you could also freeze the colostrum (assuming you could find some if you aren't a new mother).

 

Just thought of something else: When Penny had the 3rd degree burns, I used Nolvasan wound cleaner and then followed that with Trypzyme-V spray (it comes in a liquid as well). It promotes tissue granulation so the wounds heal more quickly and with less scarring.

Edited January 4, 2011 by bluefawn

[silverfish]

By the way, I know I keep my dogs' nails longer than many people (especially in the US) like, but I've never had any nicks from nails. Any lower leg scrapes, which are very rare in my house, are usually from bushes etc outside.

 

Is that even possible? With the exception of the performance hound folks, nails in the U.S. tend to be pretty long. I have to just bite my tongue when an adopter bemoans that her hounds nails are getting long and she just took the hound to Petsmart/Vet last month!

 

Don't wanna hijack the thread, I'm just going by those threads where folk say you should be able to slide a coin under the dog's nails when standing.

 

Another thing to use for wounds that won't heal is Manuka honey, of course, but probably not best for small wounds since it will need covering or they lick it off.

[Guest Houndstown]

just a note to say that keeping peroxide on hand is not a bad thing. If your dogs eats something they shouldn't it's a good thing to use to make them puke it up.

 

 

Yes, I learned this the hard way! Had to run to all the neighbors houses one time because we didn't have any. Now I, and all my neighbors, keep peroxide just in case their dogs eat something they shouldn't!

Edited January 4, 2011 by Houndstown