# Puncture Wound



## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

I already posted about this in a thread under Massachusetts regional... but I'd like to get some advice and opinion on this from other forum members as well.

Thursday my little sweet 6-mo. old baby Pacsirta came home from a day care (not the one we usually go to, but a good one, too.....or so we thought) with a punctured wound/hole in the soft tissue where the upper leg connects to the side of the ribs/stomach. The day care didn't call us, and when my husband went to pick her up and asked how it happened and why no one was notified, the staff had no clue how it happened or how long she's been running around like that; they also weren't very apologetic. When he brought her home, I was furious. Took her to the vet immediately. The vet said it didn't look like a bite, more like a puncture wound. The hole was deep and about the size of a dime. The vet put one staple in to hold the wound somewhat together yet left enough open to let it drain. That was Thursday. We are going back to the vet on Tuesday night to see how Pacsirta is healing. Today the wound looks better, but it is still watery and raw. I have to add that this whole time, Pacsirta seems not to even notice she has a hole in her body. She is still happy and bouncy, and wants to play all the time. She's on some painkillers and antibiotics to prevent infection. 
Has anyone's V had any similar trauma to this? Can you please share how long it took for such a wound to heal in your case? Is there anything I can do at home to make her heal faster (except for having her on bully stick chewing regimen to minimize movement and licking)?

Here are some pictures from the wound: the top one is from today, the two bottom ones from Thursday right after the vet. 

I feel so awful...just want to hold her and cuddle with her and make it somehow go away. She probably thinks she did something awesome to get so many hugs and kisses and chewy things  I love her to death :-*

Thank you!


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Suliko - poor Pacsirta, that looks horrible. I have had similar puncture wounds on Fergus from a Bernese Mountain Dog. I would say that is from a canine tooth of a big dog??? However, it is always possible it was caused by a sharp object. 

Just keep the wound clean with hibscrub and it will heal in no time. With puncture wounds, because they can be deep it is really important to have the antibiotic cover to kill any bacteria that might have been on the offending object/tooth that caused the puncture. You have that all taken care of, so I expect she will heal in no time.

Sound like that is a daycare centre to be avoided


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## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

Wound care is in a area that most Vet's are not familiar with - the old school seal it up and they will get better - get more n more opinions - that always works !


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## kellygh (Oct 25, 2010)

Suliko--Sorry about your girl's injury At daycare ! Pumpkin has had 2 puncture wounds. Both pretty deep, both as a result of running though the woods like a wild child, and both healed fine. They were similar in size, and both were on the shoulder. One was stapled, and the other was not. The wound we chose to staple was, because we were going to the beach. Sand in the wound was a "no-no," and we did not want to keep Pumpkin inside the whole trip. Naturally, Pumpkin pulled all the staples out within the 1st 8 hrs (despite the wearing the lampshade :) I am a huge fan of EMT gel! I highly recommend it & consider it a must have in the 1st aid kit-especially for hunting/high octane dogs. I find the gel most useful, but there is a spray as well. Ditto keeping the area clean. I hope Pacsirta heals quickly! Best wishes


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## threefsh (Apr 25, 2011)

We just went through this nightmare about 2 months ago. Just be glad it's not on a joint! We did daily baths in Epsom salt + an antiseptic spray (she was also on painkillers & heavy duty antibiotics). I think we went through at least $200 worth of bully sticks to keep her occupied. We tried raw, meaty bones but she went through them too quickly for it to be cost-effective. I hope your sweet baby heals soon! <3


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## SteelCityDozer (Aug 25, 2011)

My "brother-in-law" (I'm not actually married, just together forever) has a weim that suffered a puncture wound on thanksgiving. Ran into an iron pole in his chest. He had a drainage tube but I don't think it took too long to heal.


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

Thank you everyone for all the great advice and get-well wishes! It does make me feel like there is a light at the end of the tunnel now!  I guess, my biggest fear is to have the wound infected, so I minimize her runs in the woods and only have short on leash walks - doing a little "heel" training while healing  

*kellygh*, thank you for suggesting the EMT gel. I went to the Petco and tried to find the gel, but they didn't have it (everything else is closed). The store had something similar; I did a quick google search on reviews and read that it stings, so I didn't want to risk. Pacsirta doesn't really lick the wound, unless coming across the area while grooming herself. It's like she doesn't know it's there. That's too funny about Pumpkin pulling out all the staples despite the lampshade  The vet gave us one, too. Pacsirta wore it that one evening after the visit. She does not move in it though just stands frozen and doesn't lie down either! I had to carry her around the house until I got tired and removed it. 

*threefsh*, I'm sorry you had to go through this, too  Yes, the bully sticks seem to be the best time-occupiers. But it is so hard to keep her still, especially when our oldest V. Sophie wants to play. AND she wants a bully stick too! 

*SteelCityDozer*, wow, that looks so scary! Good to know their weimy got back on his paws quick. 

Thanks again so much! Pacsirta sends hugs and kisses....while relaxing with me


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## Vizsla Baby (Nov 4, 2011)

That's awful! I think Vizslas have a high pain tolerance. A couple of weeks ago my V took off after a deer. When she came back to me she got caught in a huge standing of thorn/sticker bushes. She just crashed through it and literally ripped herself as she was pulling out of it. She had/has cuts on her legs, chest, shoulders & tummy. She didn't even slow down afterwards, she played normally. 

She literally never even acknowledged the cuts. She never licked them (except to lick off the "yummy" anti bacterial ointment I put on them a couple of times), it's like it never happened! They are scabbed over now & almost healed but I felt so bad for her!

I'm sure your baby will be OK soon. Sounds like that doggie daycare deserves a miss in the future. I know accidents can happen when dogs are running around but to not apologize.....not cool.


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

*Vizsla Baby*, oh, your poor V girl  I too have thought about Pacsirta's pain tolerance and if she made any sounds when the accident happened. Hard to believe she just kept running and playing with her skin hanging ripped loose there. Breaks my heart every time I think about it.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Poor girl that does look like a nasty puncture.
One of my dogs had a tiny puncture wound.
Then one of the other dogs wanted to lick and clean it for them. When I looked at it five minutes later it looked bad, open and deep from her letting the other dog lick it.
It healed up with EMT gel. I just had to keep the other dog from grooming her.


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

*TexasRed*, where can I get the EMT gel? The wound looks really good in the morning, but then Pacsirta starts moving around and it's still watery  Tomorrow we have our next vet appointment. My biggest concern is infection right now. I don't let her run around at all, mostly just on-leash walks and maybe a bounce around the house. She's such a trooper!


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

I know you can order it from gun dog supply
http://www.gundogsupply.com/emtgel.html

I have a Tractor Supply close to my house and they carry just about anything you would use on a farm, so I buy mine there.


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## kellygh (Oct 25, 2010)

Ditto...gundogsupply, Amazon, or local tractor/feed & seed. Worth every cent, IMO. Hope healing progresses uneventfully. P's 2nd puncture wound had more, watery discharge for approx. 10 days. In our case, it was part of the healing process & hope that's true for y'all as well


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## luv2laugh (Oct 6, 2011)

Hi, I'm a little late on this. Oso just got the stitches out from a puncture wound last week. He actually got 3 stitches. It happened at the dog park. I was there and either a tooth or a nail got stuck on Oso while he was playing keep away and created a little hole in his side. He did yelp, but I was watching and wasn't able to tell that he got hurt. He ran over to me and I saw the hole. I didn't want him to be afraid of the other dogs and it was barely bleeding, so I sent him back out to play. 

He played around the same as usual, while I called the vet. If I had not been standing there actively watching and it was in a less visible place, I could have missed the wound. How many dogs are the daycare she was at? While I could be understanding if the puncture wound was in a hard to notice area, you said soft spot of leg, how they reacted/what actions they took after finding out about the injury would be important to me in whether I used them again. They should be asking everyone working there if they saw anything, doing all they can find out if it was a dog/plant, etc. and doing what they can so it would never happen again. You should be getting lots of apologies from them, that they didn't even notice. If not, I would go ahead and write a yelp review.  

Anyways, hope Pacsirta heals quickly and happily!!! So sorry the little girl had to go through that. It is traumatic when our little babies get injuries. It makes me shudder looking at photos of the injury (just posted). It also makes me never want to let the boy out of the house again. Although, if I ever tried that, I would change my mind very quickly. 

Oso was as happy as could be throughout the experience, save anesthesia and lack of play with other dogs. We didn't let him off leash or play with any other dogs for the two weeks the stitches were in. We got to work walking on a leash and heel, but had some behavioral effects from lack of socialization. We actually took the cone off, two days in. We bandaged it and put a vest on it and made the no sound every time he scratched near it (he never tried to lick), but luckily didn't have a problem with that. 

Good luck to the little girl!


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

*luv2laugh*, oh wow!! That is a huge hole.... poor Oso!  I hope he is recovering well. Thank you for the get-well wishes and for sharing your story. Pacsirta still doesn't even know she's got a hole in her body. But her wound is in such a bad spot that every time she moves, it gets aggravated and starts watering. Went to the vet today, and she said we can't close the hole up yet. The water still needs to drain  But it's getting better... Ugh...

The mysterious *EMT gel*! Asked he vet about it today, and she had no clue what I'm talking about... I explained  Oh well, I'm just gonna order it online! Thanks again for the suggestion.


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## hobbsy1010 (Jun 4, 2011)

From an Alaskan Malamute last Aug.

And the scar today.

Took about four weeks to heal. No stitches, antibiotics, and warm salt water wash.

Mrs Hobbsy


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## Darcy1311 (May 27, 2012)

Thats real nasty Hobbsy, I would be looking to hire a big gun, and go and wait for the Malmute...


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

*hobbsy1010*, that's awful  But the wound healed great!

The staple came out yesterday! Yay! Pacsirta has been going completely nuts for the past few days!!  

Thanks everyone so much for your support! The wound has healed really nicely, still can see a little red, but it should be gone in no time.


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## flynnandlunasmom (May 28, 2012)

Happy to hear your little girl is doing better and that she's healing nicely. 
I can't believe that happened at daycare and they knew nothing about it! 
That would make me crazy.


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## dcjwlee (Jun 22, 2012)

I've worked at a "doggy day care". They are essentially pens overcrowded with dogs and a lone "watcher". 

I have seen an old beagle mauled, his shoulder cut wide open, and the managers thought they would leave him alone in a kennel. When they went back, the kennel was covered in blood and the dog had aggravated the wound.

Another incident, a pit bull chomped down on a german shepherd's ear and would not let go. It took me and another manager to coax him off the dog. Seeing blood dripping down his mouth was probably one of the most frightening experiences of my life and I was surprised I did not lose a finger or a piece of my ankle. The dog that bit has a history of aggression and attacking other dogs at the day care, thus kept separated, until someone (a manager) thought it was a bright idea to try to "socialize" him. 



There were two lesser incidents that involved small amounts of blood. 

All in under 3 months of working there...


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

*dcjwlee*, yes, I have heard all kinds of stories...scary! The one where Pacsirta got hurt actually is a smaller one and has three acres of roaming areas for the dogs. So, it could be that no one noticed since the area is quite big. Still, doctors don't think it was a bite wound, and Pacsirta seems to be comfortable around other dogs, at least at the vet's office  Thank God!!

Over the weekend, *dmp* and I had a run-in with a lady who was barely holding on to her two labs. She was bringing them over to "say hi" to Sophie and *dmp*'s Aoife. As soon as she said, "This one is not overly aggressive", one of the labs opened his mouth in a loud growl and was about to "say hi" to Sophie in a not-so-friendly manner, if I may say. I immediately pulled Sophie away and just kept walking the other way. Lab owner - no clue whatsoever! 

So, it can happen anywhere... just have to look out for our Vs the best we can


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

And this is how Pacsirta's wound looks today!  What a relief! It is so great to have Sophie play with Pacsirta again. 

A shot from today's walk: Sophie and Pacsirta taking a break in a tree shade


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## VictoriaW (Mar 16, 2011)

Your little girl GREW! 

So glad she is feeling better.


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## pippa31 (Aug 2, 2011)

The wound looks great! So glad to hear Pacsirta is on the mend!!

I can't believe how big she is getting


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

Thank you, *VictoriaW* and *pippa31*!  I too think Pacsirta has grown, but still not as big as Sophie... going on 7 months now  

*pippa31*, how is Pippa doing? Can she come out and play? I hope she's feeling better!


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## pippa31 (Aug 2, 2011)

Suliko - We're still working through some health stuff, but nothing that is contagious, so, yes, Pippa would love to play 

We are looking forward to the next Vizsla Meet-Up!


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

Glad to hear Pippa is doing better! I hope she is fully recovered soon!  I'll post something in MA regional for next V walk.


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## WillowyndRanch (Apr 3, 2012)

Disclaimer:
I don't wish to degrade concern for the dogs and their injuries, that is not the intent. As a caregiver to client dogs as well as my own, my viewpoint is likely different from most. 

With active, interactive and sporting dogs that run at high speeds over broken terrain with holes, logs, rocks, thorns, seedheads, fences, sticks, critters, wire, broken glass, fish hooks, sharp trash - dogs that bump and play with other dogs, interact with other dogs and sometimes other animals like Horses, skunks, porcupines, snakes, Pigs, deer etc. there is almost one certainty. Like Death and Taxes, sooner or later virtually every active and/or working dog will have an injury. It can happen in an instant, regardless of level of care and supervision. It will happen whether due to interaction with another dog or jumping a log and puncturing on a twig, hitting an unseen barbed wire fence or running through a horse's feet in pursuit of a bird. Stung or bitten by insects causing allergic reactions - sooner or later, it's going to happen.

It concerns me the so quick to condemn the caregiver - after all SOMEONE must be responsible right? But the often fact is that as the saying goes "S**T" happens. Are there places and people who do a poor job caring for the dogs - sure. I wouldn't be so quick to condemn the facility and people. The dogs might not even know what happened and it just did. I think the real litmus test is not if an accident or injury occurred, because it will, it's how did the caregiver respond. 

No one likes to give bad news about their prized dog being injured - but I always think it's very important to be open and forthwright with the owner. Administer First Aid, monitor and take to the Vet if required. Sometimes you lose a client due to an unfortunate injury. That happens. But the most important thing is the animal is cared for post injury and that as a caregiver you know you did everything you could to keep the owner informed and see the dog had appropriate and proper care.

Ken


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

It happens. I would never be mad at or blame a trainer if there was a reasonable accident to one of my dogs.
I say reasonable because its within reason that a dog can get injured in the field.
I do expect a phone call with how it happen and them taken to the vet if its called for. 
We've had wounds, cuts, torn pads, a cornea scratched and that's been on my watch. Even one that will have been on rest for 11 weeks before we will know the outcome, that was on my watch too.
I would rather my dogs be living the dream in the field than live protected on a leash.


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

*WillowyndRanch*, I completely understand what you are saying and agree these dogs are extremely active and can hurt themselves in no time. Like, for example, the other day my oldest V. Sophie was running full speed in the woods while Pacsirta was chasing her. I saw her coming at me, didn't even have time to blink when she plowed right into my knees and knocked me over. Took me a while to get up, few minutes to take a few steps and about 10-15 mins to stop limping  She was very forceful! So I can completely see my little Pacsirta running into something at full speed and not even notice it. However, I wasn't happy when I found out the staff at the day care knew about the wound and hadn't even cleaned it or prevent her from running and playing with other dogs after discovering the fact....and I'm not gonna even mention they didn't notify us. When Pacsirta came home, the wound was full of dirt and had crusty blood all around it. They couldn't tell us how long she was running around like that.
I know I'm not supposed to compare dogs to kids, but I imagine if my kid gets hurt at the day care and needs medical assistance, at least someone would give me a call


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Its okay I call mine the red kids. 
My real kids have always played sports. We've had some injuries but they always wanted to play. There have been times that I hold my breath until I see them get up off the ground.
My dogs love the fields and they hold their own risks.

My kids never went to daycare and my dogs don't either.
I picked who my kids did things with till they went to school and I followed suit with the dogs. I feel there is a difference between a teacher/pro trainer and a person that's just there to get minimum wage.


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

> My kids never went to daycare and my dogs don't either.
> I picked who my kids did things with till they went to school and I followed suit with the dogs.


*TexasRed*, that would be my choice, too. I tried to justify me staying home with the dogs to my husband, but he didn't quite agree on that ;D 



> I feel there is a difference between a teacher/pro trainer and a person that's just there to get minimum wage.


Spot on! Couldn't agree more


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

The daycare should at least express concern. I would be very pissed if it happened to me. Reads like the daycare may be understaffed or too busy. 

Sorry your dog got hurt, Suliko. You have every right to be dissatisfied.


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

Thank you so much, *datacan *  
I am moving on, and this Saturday Pacsirta is having her first bird training session since the incident. I can't wait to see her work! It seems like she's grown and gained so much energy during these past few weeks


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