|
When a pet
gets into a fight with a dog, many different medical problems may
arise. This handout is intended to help you understand these
problems and how we can address them in order to maximize the
chances for your pet’s full recovery.
Dogs are natural
hunters. In the wild, they are use to killing
their prey in order to survive. Nature has given
them very powerful jaws with strong, sharp teeth to be used as their
weapons for both hunting and defending their territory.
When dogs get into fights with other animals, they
instinctively attempt to kill them by focusing their biting in the
neck area. Because of the large blood vessels
located in the neck, a well-placed bite can cut off the blood supply
to the brain and kill their prey. Of course, dog
bites occur over the body and do serious damage in other places
besides the neck.
If you’ve
ever witnessed a dog fight, you know that frequently, a dog will
inflict a bite and hold onto that area and tear at it unrelentingly.
When this happens, the dog is ripping the muscles, nerves and
blood vessels under the skin. When the dogs come
apart, you may notice only one or two small puncture wounds,
however, there may be severe damage to the underlying tissues that
must be addressed if your pet is to heal. When the teeth penetrates
the skin, they drags dirty hair, debris and
bacteria from their mouth through the wound into the sub-cutaneous
tissues. The bacteria then begin to reproduce in
the blood and crushed tissue and can form an abscess.
Frequently, a
larger dog will pick up a smaller dog or cat in
its mouth and shake it. This can lead to damage
to the spine or neck. Your pet may have
difficulty using one or more legs as a result of this type of
injury. This may require x-rays to help determine the extent of the
injury.
In addition to
the obvious injuries associated with dog fights, your pet may suffer
from severe pain and actually go into shock as a result of the
fight. Small dogs and cats are particularly
prone to these problems.
How do we treat dog bite wounds?
If you know your
pet got into a dog fight, it is important to bring them into the
veterinarian as soon as possible. Once there, the veterinarian will
evaluate your entire pet, checking all the major organ systems and
then focusing on the damage done by the fight.
Most often, your pet will need to be treated for shock and pain with
intravenous fluids (to restore the blood pressure) and pain relief
medication. Then, it may be necessary to sedate
your pet to evaluate the full extent of the damage.
Once sedated, the bite wounds are clipped of hair and cleaned
of debris, then we probe the wounds to determine how much damage was
done to the underlying tissues. Frequently,
x-rays and/or blood tests may be needed to ascertain the extent of
the injuries. When we know where the injuries
are, we then anesthetize your pet completely and open the wound(s)
surgically. We remove any debris and unhealthy
tissue and repair any tissues that can be repaired.
Finally, we implant a plastic drain tube to allow any blood,
serum or pus to drain out of the body rather than forming an
abscess. We close the skin with stitches and
place the pet on antibiotics for 7 to 14 days.
The drain tube is usually removed in 3-6 days and the pet is most
often sent home with a plastic “Elizabethan” collar to prevent the
premature removal of the drain and/or stitches.
Pain medication is frequently dispensed to help reduce your pet’s
suffering.
What can I
do at home to ensure my pet’s recovery?
We encourage you
to apply warm moist compresses to the wound(s) 2-3 times daily
during the postoperative period. This encourages blood to come to
the area to help it heal. It also encourages
contaminated pus to drain from the wound. You
should keep the Elizabethan collar on your pet at all times during
the healing phase. The medication must be given
as directed and you should keep your pet indoors until the sutures
are removed. If the wound begins to open up,
smells bad, or doesn’t appear to be healing, as you would expect, be
sure to bring your pet in for evaluation.
What is
the prognosis for my pet?
Bite wounds can
be very serious diseases. If left untreated,
bite wounds can readily kill your pet. When
treated with appropriate surgical technique, 80-90% of bite wounds
will go on to heal in a couple of weeks. In some
cases, the skin around the wounds may continue
to die off, in spite of the surgery and the wounds may pull open.
In this case, a second surgery may be warranted.
Occasionally, a bite wound becomes infected with bacteria
that are resistant (can’t be killed) by the antibiotic selected.
In these cases, a culture and sensitivity test and addition
of other antibiotics would be necessary. If
neurologic (nerve) damage was sustained during the fight, the
long-range prognosis may be more guarded, as nerves are very slow to
heal.
What can I
do to prevent bite wounds?
Obviously,
maintaining your pet on a leash when in public is the first defense
against bite wounds. In the home (frequently
bite wounds occur between house mates) feed pets in separate areas
since most fights begin over food or treats.
Learn to “listen” to your pet’s warnings. Low
growls, bared teeth, and snarled lips are all signs that your pet
may bite. When you see these signs, separate the
pets immediately and review what factors may have just contributed
to the aggression. Sometimes, behavioral
counseling and obedience training may be needed to help prevent this
type of behavior.
|
