My dog got attacked today...anything I should do?

[Entity]

My dog was at a dog park today, and as we were leaving, another dog owner let his dog off his leash and the dog immediately ran over to Neeko and began attacking. The owner stopped his dog almost immediately, but not before Neeko was the recipient of a few incisor-marks on his front-left paw. We've checked with the other owner, and both the dogs are up to date on rabies shots, etc. - his dog just has aggression problems, apparently. Anyway, I'm wondering if there is anything I should do to make sure Neeko's bites heal properly. He's licking them incessantly right now, but they aren't big bites - the largest is about the size of the head of a screwdriver, at the biggest. The rest are tiny. I consulted one of my friends, a vet. assistant, and she suggested that other than making sure they are both current on shots, I should just let it heal; I just want to make sure it heals properly.

Any advice would be appreciated; the only "dog bite" pages I could find info on were info for people bitten by dogs, not other dogs bitten.

Rob

 

[Azraele]

Are they puncture wounds? Those can get infected, most vets will put the dog on antibiotics just to be on the safe side.

Just make sure the wound is kept clean and doesn't swell or anything.

 

[ohtwell]

Poor puppy!!

He'll probably take care of the wounds himself. Just keep an eye on the wounds. I hope that he gets better soon.

Why would you let your dog off the leash if you know that it has "aggression problems"? Some people just shouldn't have animals.

: ) Amanda

 

[Entity]

Originally posted by: ohtwell
Poor puppy!!

He'll probably take care of the wounds himself. Just keep an eye on the wounds. I hope that he gets better soon.

Why would you let your dog off the leash if you know that it has "aggression problems"? Some people just shouldn't have animals.

: ) Amanda

I think the guy was actually trying to train his dog to alleviate the aggression problems; one of the things a lot of owners do is gradually get their dogs used to being around dogs, with the coup de gras being to go to a dog park. I guess his dog failed the final test. :|

Rob

 

[Entity]

Originally posted by: Azraele
Are they puncture wounds? Those can get infected, most vets will put the dog on antibiotics just to be on the safe side.

Just make sure the wound is kept clean and doesn't swell or anything.

One is a puncture wound - that's the only one I'm concerned about. The others are basically scratch marks. I'll keep an eye on them daily; should I make sure that he doesn't lick them, or is it ok for him to lick it?

Rob

 

[The Stigenator]

this is america.. sue him...


sorry about the dog.. but all I can say is let it heal naturally.. if you put something he is going to lick hit.. unless you put him in a muzzle.. which is bad because they cool off with the tounge. If its the front leg its going to be hard to hold him from licking it, if it was the rear leg you could have done something about it.

 

[Entity]

Originally posted by: The_good_guy
this is america.. sue him...


sorry about the dog.. but all I can say is let it heal naturally.. if you put something he is going to lick hit.. unless you put him in a muzzle.. which is bad because they cool off with the tounge. If its the front leg its going to be hard to hold him from licking it, if it was the rear leg you could have done something about it.

I'm not gonna sue him. It was an honest mistake, and I'm not a litigious person.

I'm going to wrap it in gauze and see if that helps, for now. I'll look at it every day to make sure there are no signs of infection.

Thanks for the advice, guys.

Rob

 

[Azraele]

I'd let him lick. If you're really worried you can put some peroxide on it (just make sure doggie doesn't lick that). Watch out for puss.

 

[gopunk]

doesn't the dog licking it make it heal faster?

 

[Entity]

Originally posted by: gopunk
doesn't the dog licking it make it heal faster?

I always thought that was an urban legend. I've had tons of dogs before (used to raise 'em), but we were always kinda laissez-faire about it; now, being older, I'm not always sure that is the best strategy. Just trying to do what's best for my pup.

Neeko, for those wondering.

Rob

 

[HappyPuppy]

Whenever I get a cut or scratch at home I let my dogs lick it. They really enjoy it and my wounds never get infected.

 

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: Entity

Originally posted by: Azraele
Are they puncture wounds? Those can get infected, most vets will put the dog on antibiotics just to be on the safe side.

Just make sure the wound is kept clean and doesn't swell or anything.

One is a puncture wound - that's the only one I'm concerned about. The others are basically scratch marks. I'll keep an eye on them daily; should I make sure that he doesn't lick them, or is it ok for him to lick it?

Rob

Try to keep him from licking if you can help it. Contrary to popular belief, it really doesn't help the wound heal faster or stay cleaner. You should flush it with hydrogen peroxide a few times per day (a syringe without a needle on it is really great for this) since puncture wounds can easily "hold" bacteria and get funky quickly. Put a radar hat on your dog if he won't leave it alone....he'll hate it, but you'll save yourself a ton of time and money in the long run if you don't have to make five separate trips to the vet to get his foot cleaned up. I was a vet tech for years and sometimes the simplest wounds would be a month-long healing process because owners would feel sorry for the dog, take off the hat, the dog would rip the wound open, and they'd have to come back to the vet.....again.

If the foot starts feeling warm to the touch or gets puffy/swollen at all, get your dog to the vet pronto.

Oh, and slap the sh*t out of the other dog's owner for letting a dog with "agression problems" off-leash.....or for even bringing him to a dog park for that matter. I have zero patience for idiots who can't/don't control their dogs. :|

 

[Azraele]

Originally posted by: HappyPuppy
Whenever I get a cut or scratch at home I let my dogs lick it. They really enjoy it and my wounds never get infected.

Gross.

 

[her209]

Neosporin and some Band-aid?

 

[The Stigenator]

oops i forgot to put the in there..
i was joking. .i know this was a honest mistake.. lets just hope the dog would stop licking.. I can suggest putting it on a light gauze and some "edible medicine" but only you know your dog.. if he doenst like bandages.. he will bite it off.

 

[Entity]

Originally posted by: Fausto1

Originally posted by: Entity

Originally posted by: Azraele
Are they puncture wounds? Those can get infected, most vets will put the dog on antibiotics just to be on the safe side.

Just make sure the wound is kept clean and doesn't swell or anything.

One is a puncture wound - that's the only one I'm concerned about. The others are basically scratch marks. I'll keep an eye on them daily; should I make sure that he doesn't lick them, or is it ok for him to lick it?

Rob

Try to keep him from licking if you can help it. Contrary to popular belief, it really doesn't help the wound heal faster or stay cleaner. You should flush it with hydrogen peroxide a few times per day (a syringe without a needle on it is really great for this) since puncture wounds can easily "hold" bacteria and get funky quickly. Put a radar hat on your dog if he won't leave it alone....he'll hate it, but you'll save yourself a ton of time and money in the long run if you don't have to make five separate trips to the vet to get his foot cleaned up. I was a vet tech for years and sometimes the simplest wounds would be a month-long healing process because owners would feel sorry for the dog, take off the hat, the dog would rip the wound open, and they'd have to come back to the vet.....again.

If the foot starts feeling warm to the touch or gets puffy/swollen at all, get your dog to the vet pronto.

Oh, and slap the sh*t out of the other dog's owner for letting a dog with "agression problems" off-leash.....or for even bringing him to a dog park for that matter. I have zero patience for idiots who can't/don't control their dogs. :|

Thanks, fausto. I knew you were a vet tech, so I figured I'd wait for you to answer. Being a diabetic, I've got tons of syringes to apply the peroxide with, and we just bought a new bottle of it to make sure we had enough to clean it up. Sounds like we did the right thing after all.

Rob

 

[CaesarX]

Back when my Rottweiler was a puppy, it got attacked by an adult Great Dane - the largest dog on the planet. The Dane literally tore it up, and the pup barely escaped death. Little did i know that the tip of the Dane's fang created a tiny puncture wound in it's heart, and many years later, when my Rottweiler was fully grown, it caused a temporary loss of oxygen to it's brain. It just so happened that i was standing right in front of it when that happened, and out of panic, the dog tore up me up pretty badly - around for areas on my upper body and arms. I had to have him put down, and only found out about the puncture after it's death. And you're worried about a couple of scratches?

 

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: Entity

Originally posted by: Fausto1

Originally posted by: Entity

Originally posted by: Azraele
Are they puncture wounds? Those can get infected, most vets will put the dog on antibiotics just to be on the safe side.

Just make sure the wound is kept clean and doesn't swell or anything.

One is a puncture wound - that's the only one I'm concerned about. The others are basically scratch marks. I'll keep an eye on them daily; should I make sure that he doesn't lick them, or is it ok for him to lick it?

Rob

Try to keep him from licking if you can help it. Contrary to popular belief, it really doesn't help the wound heal faster or stay cleaner. You should flush it with hydrogen peroxide a few times per day (a syringe without a needle on it is really great for this) since puncture wounds can easily "hold" bacteria and get funky quickly. Put a radar hat on your dog if he won't leave it alone....he'll hate it, but you'll save yourself a ton of time and money in the long run if you don't have to make five separate trips to the vet to get his foot cleaned up. I was a vet tech for years and sometimes the simplest wounds would be a month-long healing process because owners would feel sorry for the dog, take off the hat, the dog would rip the wound open, and they'd have to come back to the vet.....again.

If the foot starts feeling warm to the touch or gets puffy/swollen at all, get your dog to the vet pronto.

Oh, and slap the sh*t out of the other dog's owner for letting a dog with "agression problems" off-leash.....or for even bringing him to a dog park for that matter. I have zero patience for idiots who can't/don't control their dogs. :|

Thanks, fausto. I knew you were a vet tech, so I figured I'd wait for you to answer. Being a diabetic, I've got tons of syringes to apply the peroxide with, and we just bought a new bottle of it to make sure we had enough to clean it up. Sounds like we did the right thing after all.

Rob

Happy to help. Hope your pooch feels better.

Oh, and some elaboration on the lick thing. It's pretty much OK for superficial wounds (unless the dogs licks it a LOT which can cause a granuloma....whole other problem), but puncture wounds have a tendency to get bacteria in them, close over quickly (since the outer surface area of the wound is small) and are then an excellent environment for bacteria, including extra-nasty anaerobic varieties, to go nuts. Once this happens, you have to open up the whole area, flush it, cut away all the necrosed tissue, put the dog on antibiotics (and the party hat) and let it heal. Real PITA if it gets that far. This is why I like the syringe method as it really shoots the peroxide down in the puncture and kills the bacteria. Just FYI.

 

[Entity]

Originally posted by: CaesarX
Back when my Rottweiler was a puppy, it got attacked by an adult Great Dane - the largest dog on the planet. The Dane literally tore it up, and the pup barely escaped death. Little did i know that the tip of the Dane's fang created a tiny puncture wound in it's heart, and many years later, when my Rottweiler was fully grown, it caused a temporary loss of oxygen to it's brain. It just so happened that i was standing right in front of it when that happened, and out of panic, the dog tore up me up pretty badly - around for areas on my upper body and arms. I had to have him put down, and only found out about the puncture after it's death. And you're worried about a couple of scratches?

I'm terribly sorry to hear about your ordeal, but like most dog owners, I care about my dog. I understand how infections can happen, and want to ensure that they don't, in this case - hence me asking here.

Yes, I'm worried about a couple of scratches. If you think that's anal, that's fine, but don't bring it up here, in this thread - it's neither the time nor the place.

Rob

 

[CaesarX]

Well, my dog has had quite a few minor incidents since the one described above, and his wounds always healed pretty quickly with no outside intervention. Infections can happen though, just check to see if everything's alright every so often, and the dog should be fine.

 

[SuperSix]

Why not take him to a vet?

*I* would at least make the other dog owner pay for a vet visit, it's the least he can do.. If he wants to let his aggressive dog offthe leash for training, he shouldn't do it around other dogs. If it was your child would you be posting for advice here?

 

[Angrymarshmello]

What SS said - make the owner pay for the bills. If not, go over to his house and kick his dog

 

[BD231]

1.) Change your dogs name(the name Neeko is probably why he got bitten in the first place )
2.) Let him taste human blood every day for a year
3.) Release your new killing machine into the other owners house and lock all the doors

 

[AndrewR]

What an adorable dog!

That's too bad that he had a bad time at the dog park. Our pup (Rhodesian Ridgeback mix) is with my in-laws right now and has been going to a dog park nearby for months now without any bad experiences in the slightest. She greeted a newcomer to the park the other day by running up and kissing him -- seriously!

I hope Neeko feels better soon.

 

[Hoober]

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH
What SS said - make the owner pay for the bills. If not, go over to his house and kick his dog

Yeah, cause beating the snot out of the other guy's dog is going to make Neeko better.