Dog Bite Injury on Front Left Shoulder

by Chris
(Sacramento, CA., USA)

Reader Question:


A few months back one day I noticed an injury on my dog which appeared to be a bite from another animal, perhaps a possim or rat bite. It appeared all of a sudden and was sore swollen and painful to touch.

So I cleaned it with peroxide and kept an eye on it and today it's not as sore to the touch, but it is still inflamed, scabby but still just in that one spot .. please help me learn what else it can be.

Dog Bite Wound Editor Answer:

As you described, it is an open wound caused by the bite of some other animal. Any injury of this kind would cause the body to generate an inflammatory response, which in other words is an acute response of the body’s immune system.

Certain types of inflammatory cells infiltrate at the site of the injury and causes specific symptoms such as pain, warmness, redness, swelling and body tissue in the area that becomes inactive or functionless.

Along with the inflammatory response, to control bleeding another phenomenon called blood coagulation occurs which results in the formation of a scab over the surface.

Remember that these two modes of the body are normal and are required for keeping external infectious agents away as soon as an injury occurs. Sometimes, if the inflammatory response is excessive or the injury is of a high
degree, the patient may experience some generalized symptoms such as fever etc, in this case there is nothing to worry about it.

First aid for conditions includes clearing of the injured area of dust, debris or any foreign matter and then a quality antiseptic should be applied. Peroxide is very effective and an approved antiseptic, but you should be careful while using it as peroxide is also used as an emetic (nausea and vomiting) in veterinary practice. You can use it as an antiseptic but make sure that your dog does not lick the injured part of its body after application.

In addition to first aid, sometimes topical antibiotics might also be required to heal and keep the wound clear of microbial agents, but antibiotics can only be used with a prescription.

As an alternative, you can try some natural remedies. To treat mild injury, as in this case, consider a product such as Clenzor to keep the dog wound clean. To support the healing process there are products such as Wound Dr. to speed healing and reduce the extent of symptoms you are seeing.

Also, there are some diseases, which can be transmitted from one animal to another on contact, such as a bite etc, this is specifically called zoonosis. If you see some other unusual symptoms and a change in behavior after the incident, consult a veterinarian for a detailed examination and screening.

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