Post by sarahshoemaker on Jun 30, 2013 19:46:46 GMT -5
Our 13 year old Britney Spaniel woke up this morning with blood and pus matted on the side of her neck. My first impression was a infected tick bite, but when I started looking closer I don't know anymore.
Last night I noticed a HORRIBLE smell whenever she was around but I didn't link it to infection. My DH just trimmed her Friday and he said there was NOTHING there.
This morning there was a lump about the size of an egg, which she has scratched the top off of, which was causing the bleeding and drainage. I washed it up good, painted it with chlorahexadine, and put on some triple antibiotic for good measure.
Tonight, it started bleeding quite badly, I know it's because it is delicate because of the infection. I was a wound care nurse, I know how to treat stuff like this in humans, but because it is a dog, I am stumped. And she is my husbands baby.
I cleaned her up again, but this time noticed a definite center to the wound and it looks like dying tissue around the center.
Here is a picture
The greyish stuff is where I am seeing a "center". It is in medical terms called slough. Just dead skin. There is a depression under it which I am assuming is where the pus is coming from. Around it, in the picture it looks almost a pale yellow, it slightly raise, and squishy. Looks almost frostbitten to me. This is what is confusing me. The only time I have ever seen this is in a brown recluse spider bite, which we aren't supposed to have around here.
It is a holiday weekend here so the vet isn't opened. I do have some antibiotics on hand, but would rather stick to the topical's until it looks like it has gone systemic which at this point it hasn't.
Does anyone have any clue what this might be? And how we can keep some kind of dressing on it until we can get ahold of the vet? I think we are either looking at an infected tick bite, a spider bite, or a boil, but in the back of my mind is also wondering if it could be some type of tumour?
Thanks for any and all suggestions.
Last night I noticed a HORRIBLE smell whenever she was around but I didn't link it to infection. My DH just trimmed her Friday and he said there was NOTHING there.
This morning there was a lump about the size of an egg, which she has scratched the top off of, which was causing the bleeding and drainage. I washed it up good, painted it with chlorahexadine, and put on some triple antibiotic for good measure.
Tonight, it started bleeding quite badly, I know it's because it is delicate because of the infection. I was a wound care nurse, I know how to treat stuff like this in humans, but because it is a dog, I am stumped. And she is my husbands baby.
I cleaned her up again, but this time noticed a definite center to the wound and it looks like dying tissue around the center.
Here is a picture
The greyish stuff is where I am seeing a "center". It is in medical terms called slough. Just dead skin. There is a depression under it which I am assuming is where the pus is coming from. Around it, in the picture it looks almost a pale yellow, it slightly raise, and squishy. Looks almost frostbitten to me. This is what is confusing me. The only time I have ever seen this is in a brown recluse spider bite, which we aren't supposed to have around here.
It is a holiday weekend here so the vet isn't opened. I do have some antibiotics on hand, but would rather stick to the topical's until it looks like it has gone systemic which at this point it hasn't.
Does anyone have any clue what this might be? And how we can keep some kind of dressing on it until we can get ahold of the vet? I think we are either looking at an infected tick bite, a spider bite, or a boil, but in the back of my mind is also wondering if it could be some type of tumour?
Thanks for any and all suggestions.