Pet Forum

What do you do when your dog cuts his foot? Do you take him to the vet?

I was taking my dog for a walk in the woods today and he sorta cut his foot. Not sure what he cut it on, but it's a little gash half-way between his ankle and his paws on the back/underside of his foot/lower leg area.

It's basically a slice along the surface, exposing a little bit of red flesh under a flap of skin. It bleeds occasionally, but he seems to be doing a good job of keeping it cleaned up.

Just wondering what you think I should do. Should I let him clean it himself or try to get some disinfectants and bandage him up. Have you ever had to deal with minor cuts.
I hope I can avoid the cost of taking him to the vet because I don't know if I'll be able to afford it.

Hoping I can get some advice.

From what you described it seems like a big gash. Maybe it's better to have him checked at the vet, I mean if he cut himself in the woods he might have picked up some germs or bacteria from the floor. And you did say that it bleeds occasionally which is not a good sign.

In the meantime, you can clean up the wound from time to time with alcohol and maybe some antiseptic and maybe place a bandage. I'm not sure about the bandage though cause some say that you have to leave it open because wrapping it with bandage may harvest some bacteria which can be harmful.

I assumed that it is not a serious cut. I think you just can clean it yourself and check it once in a while. If it doesn't look better after 2 to 3 days, you better have him check by the vet to avoid further infections.

I agree with Patty keep it clean and dry. I would bandage it as its not the best thing for dogs to keep licking and getting all that saliva in a wound. Colloidal silver is good for healing wounds on dogs. I have used it on some nasty wounds and gotten good results.
I think its ok to use triple antibiotic ointment on it as well. I would call the vet to confirm this and have the wound checked if you dont see improvement in the next day or so.

I am agree with PoodleParade.I also think so.keep it clean and dry.

__________________
Pet Supplies

If it's deep or keeps bleeding, it needs to be stitched which should not wait due o tissue necrosis. If it's not deep, you need to avoid excessive walking on it while healing, and keep it disinfected with betadine diluted, starting with a very thorough flushing of the wound, then continued cleaning 3 times daily. You may need a bandage when out and about on it. Both these topics (cleaning wounds and a correct pressure bandage) are discussed in my veterinary med blog http://dogscats.today.com

Good luck.

__________________
Christine
http://www.justanswer.com/profile.aspx?PF=4329681&FID=0