Disinfecting Wound And Aftercare Cream

[Erny]

Medical manuka honey is great as well.

If they don't need stitching, I'll wash them out & leave them to heal. With puncture wounds it's a bit different, I treat those or get them treated.

Oh my gosh!! I forgot I was the Queen of "Active Manuka Honey" !!! I think I've become so obsessed with Calendula Tea that I forgot about AMH!!

I agree .... a tub of AMH in the pantry/first aid box is a definite handy.

I don't usually put anything on shallow non-infected wounds, though.

I confess that I do, even if it is the Calendula. Am I doing the wrong thing by doing this, Staranias? I figure that with a fresh wound inflammation and infection may not be apparent but it might be on its way and always thought a flush out with something such as Calendula or Betadine would help to thwart that.

Edited January 18, 2011 by Erny

[BMAK]

Athletes foot fungal cream just from a chemist is good for foot bacteria on/in a dogs paw that has turned yucky from being constantly wet (from dog licking it) safe to use,

Similar to betadine, quitich (medicated dog shampoo) can be used on fungal/bacterial areas on the dogs skin providing it isn't an open wound and for treating hot spots aswell can be left on for a few days re-applied or washed off after 5-10 minutes.

i have also used and keep a c-zine a cheaper version or zertec does the same thing and maybe lower dosage for any swelling or allergic reations if i know what caused them eg; bee sting or flea bites for one of my dogs who is allergic to both .

these have been handy and available over the counter.

[giraffez]

Thanks all

With Saline, is it the same as the ones you used to rinse the contact lenses.

And with betadine, are we talking about the topical cream or the liquid form in a bottle?

I'm surprised not many people mentioned paw paw cream, i was about to get one at the chemist today but the pharmacist gave me the impression she didn't think it was that effective so i didn't get it. Plus i was reading on the internet that the ones in the red tube contain petroleum, so i started browsing inside health food stores to see whether I could find an all natural. I did find one, but the instructions on the back says its meant for dry skin, or chapped lips (or to that effect) and nothing that says its got antiseptic in it (which the common red tube ones does).

And with Active Manuka Honey - i have a jar at home but not sure how to use it on the dog. are you referring to dabbing the honey on the wound? that doesn't sound right does it ? sorry for asking silly questions

[bonny_beagle]

I prefer spray Betadine to the ointment, is not harmful if licked off.

Vetwrap is a must for a doggy first aid kit.

In NSW you can get chloromycetin ointment if you have an understanding pharmacist or otherwise say you have conjunctivitis.

Saline comes in 5/10ml polyamps or the large bottles used for contact lenses. Both are sterile saline, but once you have opened the big bottles, they are no longer sterile and don't keep so most use the polyamps for first aid purposes.

[dee lee]

I use spray betadine too. Fantastic stuff.

Paw paw ointment I'm not a fan of.

I'd rather let the wound dry out and heal after cleaning and applying antiseptic.

I feel Pawpaw ointment keeps the bacteria warm and moist & ultimately there is no chance my dog wouldn't be licking it off.

Bought Saline is easily replaced with a quantity of salt mixed in warm water

Edited January 18, 2011 by ✽deelee

[SwaY]

Medical staple gun, bloat kit, degas - I hope I never have to use them

but with all the traveling for shows it's best just to have on hand.

Off the top of my head mine has

Manuka honey, betadine, vetwrap, powdered savlon, condys crystals,

aspirin, thermometor, antihistami, tweezers, scissors, neocort

needles and syringes, ampules of saline I will look in the medical

box after and add what else is in there.

[Boronia]

I use medicinal grade Manuka Honey for wounds.

me too Poodlefan...I also use Hypericum herbal ointment, it has lavender and tea tree in it as well, I also have 'The Scarless Healer ointment (it is calendula, Hypericum and aloe in it)...I think the base is beeswax as you have to warm it a bit, it's really sticky and a bugger to wipe off and dirt sticks to it BUT it is a fantastic healer!, I also use paw paw ointment but the dogs eat that off pretty quickly.

if they get green and or black ant bites rub onion on the bite, takes away the pain.

[AussieDog]

I was always told that dogs took good care of their wounds by licking them. Certainly, we have found this to be the case with our own dogs. In treating horses, I've found saline to be excellent really. I just make up my own saline - you can sterilise things perfectly well with hot water and soap - this is what is reccommended today for a newborn babies bottle. So, if you need to flush a wound, I'd use saline. I'd also use saline for regular cleaning of wounds when that is necessary. Saline is safe to use in deep wounds, unlike other topical ointments and sprays. I'd also suggest a fly repellent for applying to wounds (you can get specifc stuff for this, can't remember its name (Cetrigen??) - round here you'd try a landmark or elders outlet for that sort of stuff) Once, in a cow, there was maggots in a wound and the vet told me to spray them with Mortein! Personally, if a wound was too severe to be cared for by the dog naturally, I'd feel it was time to go to the vet. No matter what you spray or cover a wound in, if it is severe enough there is a good chance antibiotics would be required, and they are increasingly difficult to have on hand. Also, not sure if it good for dogs, a chemical which I used alot with horses is Lotagen, which is safe to be used in deep wounds, and helps to manage scarring which can be an issue with horses. It was an excellent treatment. Just be really careful of using harsh topical dressings in wounds which are more than skin deep. Some of those chemicals are too strong for tissues other than skin.

I'd be interested to know if others would agree that dogs take good care of minor wounds themselves (assuming they can reach it).

My Vet mentioned the dog licking to me for my dog that has just had his dew claws removed. Vet told me to wash with warm salt water and ONLY to intervene if he is actually trying to pull the stiches out but not to worry if he is just licking the wound.

12 odd days and no infection.

[anniek]

I just flusjh out wounds with saline then leave them. I don't put on anything "sticky" like paw paw - dirt will attach itself to it.

My going away 1st aid kit containes tweezers, hydrogen peroxide 3%, vetwrap, bandage, cotton wipes, saline, betadine, syringes, thermometor and superglue.

eta and antibiotics

Edited January 18, 2011 by anniek

[Staranais]

I don't usually put anything on shallow non-infected wounds, though.

I confess that I do, even if it is the Calendula. Am I doing the wrong thing by doing this, Staranias? I figure that with a fresh wound inflammation and infection may not be apparent but it might be on its way and always thought a flush out with something such as Calendula or Betadine would help to thwart that.

I don't know much about Calendula or how appropriate it is to put into a fresh wound, sorry Erny.

Topical Betadine is a good thing to put onto fresh wounds (clean out with saline first), the iodine in it helps prevent infection by getting rid of any bacteria in or around the wound site - I just don't normally bother with my guys since their small scrapes seem to heal up nicely by themselves, guess we all have good immune systems around here.

[Erny]

Thanks Staranais and sorry - I didn't mean to sound as though I was questioning you per se. More that I thought there might have been a medical reason why not to douse with something like Betadine. I know what you mean about good immune systems though. Back when I was a kid dogs would have a scuffle/fight every now and again. We'd have a squiz and at most usually rinse it with salt water, if that. Very rarely did it turn to infection IME.

[Staranais]

Thanks Staranais and sorry - I didn't mean to sound as though I was questioning you per se. More that I thought there might have been a medical reason why not to douse with something like Betadine.

Oh not at all! Besides, I don't mind it at all when you question me, sometimes it makes me go away & revise things I'm really going to need to know at the end of the year.

[Miss Danni]

We recently had a very large cyst removed from the hock of one of our show girls. The incision was very deep and long but because of the location, it could not really be stitched except at the very top and bottom because the skin could not support the stitch. So it had to heal "open".

I had to clean and rebandage the wound daily (sometimes more if the bandages were chewed off!!) and would have liked to have had Lotagen but could not get it at the time. So I used saline to clean the wound, dried it and then applied Quit Itch. When it started to granulise, I began to get worried about being left with a horrible scar (proud flesh) so I replaced the Quit Itch with White Ointment from my horse first aid kit.

It took weeks for the incision to close up properly but it healed cleanly and absolutely no scar. You can only see where it was if you know where to look.

I have used White Ointment for years on my horses and it has always done a wonderful job on wounds and fungal problems like greasy heel and it never seems to go out of date! You can buy it in a handy tube for travelling first aid kits or a tub for home. You might need to visit a saddlery or produce store to buy it.

[mumof3]

We recently had a very large cyst removed from the hock of one of our show girls. The incision was very deep and long but because of the location, it could not really be stitched except at the very top and bottom because the skin could not support the stitch. So it had to heal "open".

I had to clean and rebandage the wound daily (sometimes more if the bandages were chewed off!!) and would have liked to have had Lotagen but could not get it at the time. So I used saline to clean the wound, dried it and then applied Quit Itch. When it started to granulise, I began to get worried about being left with a horrible scar (proud flesh) so I replaced the Quit Itch with White Ointment from my horse first aid kit.

It took weeks for the incision to close up properly but it healed cleanly and absolutely no scar. You can only see where it was if you know where to look.

I have used White Ointment for years on my horses and it has always done a wonderful job on wounds and fungal problems like greasy heel and it never seems to go out of date! You can buy it in a handy tube for travelling first aid kits or a tub for home. You might need to visit a saddlery or produce store to buy it.

Hey Muss Danni, a bit OT, but I just wanted to share - disposable nappies make great dressings for horses!

So, they're not sterile, but how sterile is a sterile pad after you've dropped it on the ground a few times trying to attach it to a horse?

Cheap disposables sometimes still come with actually sticky as opposed to velcroe like fasteners - which can hold the dressing (nappy) in place just long enough or you to get a bandage on to. They are cheap to buy, and easy to find after hours and in remote areas. They soak up a HEAP of gunk. I treated a seriously nastly leg wound (exposed bone, ligament involvement, but not completely cut through (just a few of the tiny white strings were cut)), without a vet (was a station horse and owner didn't want to go to the expense of getting a vet out 300km), using nappies, vetwrap, saline, lotagen and cod liver oil (high in vit A, stimulates skin growth) around the skin areas of the wound and of course a course of intramuscular penicilin (often on hand on cattle properties). She recovered well enough to go back into the work horse plant after the wet season. And she was the quietest of all the young horses broken in that year, I think thanks to all the loving handling and care she got from the station cook (I even had her running in the orchard / lawn section near the kitchen cause I didn't think the dirty dusty horse yards were very good for such a nasty wound, in case the dressing came off).

[dancinbcs]

I wouldn't be without Ichthammol Ointment for wounds and anything that may have a foreign body in it. Heals puncture wounds and abcesses without antibiotics. I can't remember the last time any human or animal here needed antibiotics for a wound that didn't need stitching. My family have used it on humans, dogs, cats and horses for over 50 years. My parents where told about it before I was born by an old greyhound trainer and they have used it ever since.

[Boronia]

I think I will buy some of that Ichthammol Ointment dancinbcs.

Also a handy plant to grow so you have it handy is Aloe Vera, just break off a leaf and smooth the cooling gel onto bites, little cuts, grazes or rashes...works a treat!

[Miss Danni]

Thanks mumof3, what an excellent tip

[giraffez]

I think I will buy some of that Ichthammol Ointment dancinbcs.

Also a handy plant to grow so you have it handy is Aloe Vera, just break off a leaf and smooth the cooling gel onto bites, little cuts, grazes or rashes...works a treat!

I have one in my backyard but i was under the impression that its harmful for dogs if consumed (or licked for that matter)

I didn't know there is a spray for betadine, i usualy just get the one with the screw on lid..,, Are they the same, only one is in a spray bottle?

So for the munuka honey you just apply it on the wound? Wouldn't ants get to it? and wouldn't he just like it right off because its yum?

[Erny]

I have one [Aloe Vera Plant] in my backyard but i was under the impression that its harmful for dogs if consumed (or licked for that matter)

No. I have a plant growing as well. You use the inside gel of the leaf for the wound. I think it must be something in the outer leaf that could be a problem but was told the gel is safe.

So for the manuka honey you just apply it on the wound? Wouldn't ants get to it? and wouldn't he just like it right off because its yum?

Depends on where the wound is. If it is in a lickable spot, it can be a problem. I have also been cautious about it attracting flies and whether the wound could be in a spot that would have dirt stick in it. So it depends on where the wound is, the dog's environment, the season. It is good stuff but I find it a bit messy. I prefer to use AMH for internal use but will use it for external if it is the best for the job.