My Havanese recently got a nasty little infection on her paw near the leg area. I noticed her licking it quite a bit. There is a debate as to whether you should let your dog lick a wound in order to heal it or stop them from licking and applying medicine and a bandage.
I let her lick the little infection (small bump) for a couple of days and it showed no improvement. I decided to mix some Epson Salts with warm water and dipped a small piece of a cotton ball into it. I put the cotton on the sore and then wrapped gauze around it and then a bandage when we went outside.
Everyday I noticed the little infection get better. It finally broke open and drained. I continued to apply the Epson Salts poultice to the sore for about 5 or 6 days. When she was home at night and didn't have the bandage on I would clean the area with Apple Cider Vinegar (common store type). Within a week the wound had almost completely healed. When I wasn't looking she did lick the scab off it so I had to keep it clean and not let her lick it at all.
The strange part of this is that she does great licking wounds that are located on her side, belly and inside the leg area. She always heals them in those areas by licking. I suspect since the paws come into contact with dirt which has bacteria mixed into it that this is the reason licking does not heal the paw area.
So 4 paws up for the Epson Salts Poultice Cure!
2 comments:
I had to take my dog to the vets for a wound on his paw. They told me it was grass that had gone to seed. They were all in his paws in mouth, so needing an antibiotic they started him on Clavamox 250mg and an warm Epsom salt soak 3 times per day for about 10min. Trying to draw out any of the seed spores that might have worked up in his paw. My friend said Tea Tree oil and Baking Soda does well as a drawing agent as well. I never thought to put a cotton swab on his paw and I'll be doing that too as he is still sick. He has licked off his fur in some spots on his toes. It looks really bad, I just wish there was more I could do for him.
Oh I did use Hydrogen peroxide and pored on the paw and it fizzed right up.
Melanie,
Sorry to hear of your dog's problem. I can relate as I'm sure most dog owners can at this time of the year.
I made a "Poultice" for my dog's leg-read about it on the web. Dipped the small piece of cotton in warm epson salts and laid the cotton on the sore spot. Then wrapped it in gauze(not too tight) to keep the cotton on the spot. When she went for a walk I would wrap that in a elastic bandage to keep the dirt out. It's possible the bandage alone irritated the infection she had and it broke open and drained. I kept repeating this for about a week and a half and the wound healed. I would keep the wrapping on during the day and take it off at night.
Every time I took off the Poultice, I cleaned the sore with "Apple Cider Vinegar" which is a natural germ killer. I would take all the wrapping off at night and tell her not to lick the wound. Licking a wound on her leg didn't make the wound better-it just irritated it further.
Maybe your dog is the same way. Try and stop it from licking the wound(s) if you can. Maybe you can get a baby bootie or one of those booties they make for dogs at Petsmart to keep the wound from getting dirt in it and your dog from licking it.
Perhaps a combination of wrapping it and stopping the dog from licking it will eventually heal the spots.
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