BingBlaze n Skyla Posted July 12, 2013 Report Share Posted July 12, 2013 Sorry to bring this thread back up - what would the signs of infection be and when would you say you're in the clear? Cloud got bit by another dog and other than a couple scrapes on his face he is fine. I was going to go the route to just let it heal on its own, that's how I let my own bites heal before and any of my scrapes/bruises however of course to me my pups getting hurt and me getting hurt is completely different so I had to come running to the forum to check lol. usual signs of infection would be discoloration , Yellow/creamy colour, discharge (same colour) and possibly a smell too . If u aren't sure tho I'd get a check up done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
valkyries Posted July 12, 2013 Report Share Posted July 12, 2013 red, puffy/swollen or discharge would also be signs of infection. if i went to the vet's every time i found a wound i'd never be away lol i can be brushing or stroking mine and find a scab or a puncture wound. mostly on my boys lol they play hard but i just clean and leave. their tuffer than you think an i'm sure they laugh at us when we worry so much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mobezilla Posted July 12, 2013 Report Share Posted July 12, 2013 is it bleeding? I don't really understand what "in the clear" means but I guess I'll reply just to bump this thread for the experts to see.. No its not bleeding, by in the clear I just meant when I would be able to stop checking it and stop worrying about it. usual signs of infection would be discoloration , Yellow/creamy colour, discharge (same colour) and possibly a smell too . If u aren't sure tho I'd get a check up done I know its fine right now, it just happened last night, but I've never had anything happen to them so thank you just wanted to know the signs so I can take him to the vet if anything changes. red, puffy/swollen or discharge would also be signs of infection. if i went to the vet's every time i found a wound i'd never be away lol i can be brushing or stroking mine and find a scab or a puncture wound. mostly on my boys lol they play hard but i just clean and leave. their tuffer than you think an i'm sure they laugh at us when we worry so much I'm the same way haha, Link and Yuki have gotten scrapes before.. I guess I just got all freaked out because Cloud's so small and thought he was more fragile or something. He seems perfectly fine though, he didn't even whimper when he got bit and was just growling and biting at the other dog telling them to go away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Removed #5 Posted July 12, 2013 Report Share Posted July 12, 2013 Megan, I'll put my view on this - and basically I'll agree with everyone else but put a little more order into it. The most obvious sign of a new infection is that the skin around the wound will be inflamed - a, normally, bright red with possibly some degree of swelling. Don't confuse this with the normal red that you'll see with a scrape or small puncture. One is red and goes away within a couple of hours, the other (infection) remains a bright red. Initially, after a clean cut or scrape you'll see a clear fluid - that's serum - and that carries the initial white blood cells that assist in the healing and will eventually become the scab. This should appear within within an hour and should scab over within - let's say - two to three hours. An infection, however, will not be a clear fluid, it'll be milky to yellowish to greenish (depending on the cause of the infection) and won't go away till the wound begins to heal. What should I do? Again, this is *my* take on this. If we're talking about a minor cut or scrape, make sure it's clean (no debris in the wound) wash it with plain water if needed (or epsom salts, good comment) be careful with soaps since with the nerve ending being exposed most soaps will sting. If we're talking about a scrape, I wouldn't be adverse to using a little antibiotic ointment; but not for a puncture as you don't want to introduce anything into the wound that might cause it heal less rapidly. So far I've been talking about the normal result of Husky play ... when there's a significant amount of blood, and we're talking about something more than a "simple" scratch or puncture then it's time to see the vet. A deeper wound will bleed more and longer - while it may look like a simple puncture the bleeding is an indication that the wound is deeper than it appears. Most simple wounds will stop bleeding within minutes. When is it "in the clear"? Since I presume you mean the same thing I would here ... when the wound scabs over and there is no longer any flowing fluids (blood or serum) you can assume that you're well on your way to being in the clear. Depending on the size and location of the wound the scab should fall off (or be picked off, they itch as healing progresses) in less than a week - possibly only a couple of days. If the scab forms over an area that flexes (ears, joint, etc) you may see more serum come up - that's normal - to refresh the scab. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mobezilla Posted July 12, 2013 Report Share Posted July 12, 2013 Megan, I'll put my view on this - and basically I'll agree with everyone else but put a little more order into it. The most obvious sign of a new infection is that the skin around the wound will be inflamed - a, normally, bright red with possibly some degree of swelling. Don't confuse this with the normal red that you'll see with a scrape or small puncture. One is red and goes away within a couple of hours, the other (infection) remains a bright red. Initially, after a clean cut or scrape you'll see a clear fluid - that's serum - and that carries the initial white blood cells that assist in the healing and will eventually become the scab. This should appear within within an hour and should scab over within - let's say - two to three hours. An infection, however, will not be a clear fluid, it'll be milky to yellowish to greenish (depending on the cause of the infection) and won't go away till the wound begins to heal. What should I do? Again, this is *my* take on this. If we're talking about a minor cut or scrape, make sure it's clean (no debris in the wound) wash it with plain water if needed (or epsom salts, good comment) be careful with soaps since with the nerve ending being exposed most soaps will sting. If we're talking about a scrape, I wouldn't be adverse to using a little antibiotic ointment; but not for a puncture as you don't want to introduce anything into the wound that might cause it heal less rapidly. So far I've been talking about the normal result of Husky play ... when there's a significant amount of blood, and we're talking about something more than a "simple" scratch or puncture then it's time to see the vet. A deeper wound will bleed more and longer - while it may look like a simple puncture the bleeding is an indication that the wound is deeper than it appears. Most simple wounds will stop bleeding within minutes. When is it "in the clear"? Since I presume you mean the same thing I would here ... when the wound scabs over and there is no longer any flowing fluids (blood or serum) you can assume that you're well on your way to being in the clear. Depending on the size and location of the wound the scab should fall off (or be picked off, they itch as healing progresses) in less than a week - possibly only a couple of days. If the scab forms over an area that flexes (ears, joint, etc) you may see more serum come up - that's normal - to refresh the scab. Thanks so much! And yes, I'm very much one of those people who likes to let things heal on their own, I don't go to the doctor over the sniffles and neither do my dogs, It seems more like a scrape - I know it was her teeth that did it, but I can see a bit of torn skin (just a little bit) across the wound. I already rinsed it with just water and was planning on going out and getting some neosporin today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Posted July 12, 2013 Report Share Posted July 12, 2013 Yeah I'm the same as Linda. Mine used fight for real, and were forever getting cuts, bites and scrapes. Just keep and eye on it. they are usually ok and heal up with very little attention need. Now they are "freinds" they get less injuries, but still get the odd one or two just from playing. Two of them have "Spock ears" (a split) from pulling away from a nip. Echo a couple of months back put a gouge in her forehead trying to get a ball out of a bush !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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