Five Steps to Follow If a Dog or Other Animal Bites Your Dog
By: Kelly Marshall
Submitted: 2008-09-02 02:05:18 | Word Count: 508
If an animal or other dog bites your dog, the possibility of it becoming serious is very likely. The saliva of other animals or dogs contains huge amounts of bacteria, which can certainly induce an infection throughout the wound. Even a little bite that does not look serious can critically damage your dogs underlying tissue. Regardless of the size of a bite wound, it is best to have a veterinarian check and treat the injury to make sure it remains infection free and does not end up worse. Here are five things you should know and do if your dog does end up bitten by another animal.
1. When a dog experiences pain, often it will lash out, even at their owners or family members. This is extremely common so the first thing you should do if your dog receives a bite is place a muzzle on your dog, which gives you protection in case the dog snaps and tries to bite you or someone else. Before touching the animal, use a muzzle, or if you do not have one available, use a makeshift one and carefully tie the dogs mouth closed using panty hose, gauze, or other material available but without covering the dog’s nostrils. If the dog suddenly gets stick or starts having trouble breathing, remove the muzzle immediately.
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2. If the pet is tiny and cannot wear a muzzle, use a towel and place it around the dog’s head to protect you from a dog bite. You certainly want to avoid blocking the dog’s air supply, so wrap its head loosely and only leave the towel on for a short period.
3. Once you have muzzled the dog, you should use K Y or another type of water soluble jelly and carefully put a thin layer directly on the dog’s bite wound. You are now ready to trim the hair near and around the bite wound area. This makes it simpler to clean the wound along with helping it air out so it heals quicker. Use electric clippers, a disposable razor or scissors to gently, carefully trim the hair. The K Y jelly will protect the injury by preventing the hair from getting into the bite wound. After trimming the dog’s hair, clean the injury carefully to prevent infection. Use running, lukewarm water to flush the wound for approximately five minutes. If the bite is more than twenty four hours old, use antibacterial soap to scrub the bite injury as there may already be bacteria in the wound. Flush with running, warm water and dry the wound.
4. Once you thoroughly clean and dry the injury, apply Neosporin or another antibiotic over the counter ointment on the wound. A clean cloth or gauze makes an excellent bandage but slip your finger under the bandage to be sure it is not too tight.
5. Always keep your dog’s rabies vaccination and other vaccinations up to date.
Watch the dog bites carefully and have your veterinarian examine the dog wounds for your own peace of mind.
