10 year old Jimmy is our brave pet of the month after a dog attack left him with a dreadful injury. Jimmy was rushed straight in to vet Rachel and it was apparent he'd sustained a large wound to the back of his neck and on his shoulder. Jimmy was admitted to the hospital where he was given pain relief and antibiotics, and placed onto an intravenous drip to treat shock.
Vet Katie assessed Jimmy the following day and although he had received damage to the skin and soft tissue layers, the bite had not damaged vital structures in his neck or chest. He also had a few puncture wounds along his back. Due to the extent of Jimmy’s wound, Katie needed to give him a general anaesthetic so that she could treat the wound further. Because a dog’s mouth is full of bacteria, a bite wound will introduce bacteria to the wound, so firstly Katie thoroughly flushed the wound to reduce the bacteria in the tissues and remove visible dirt. She then checked the skin and tissues for their health and removed some damaged areas – a procedure called debridement. Katie had to reduce the dead space in the wound using stitches; Dead space is formed when the skin is pulled away from the underlying tissue creating a space. Poor Jimmy has likely been shaken cause this wound. When the space is large, as in Jimmy's case, fluid can accumulate under the skin once the wound is stitched closed and bacteria can thrive. To reduce this risk, Katie inserted a drain; a latex rubber tube that allows fluid to drain out of the wound. You can see the drain poking out the bottom of Jimmy's wound (see picture above).
The following day brave Jimmy was feeling a bit brighter and the nurses took him outside for a potter around the garden. His wound looked good and the nurses encouraged him to eat with some freshly cooked chicken. Jimmy’s owners felt confident to have him at home, so they came and collected him later that evening. He came back in over the next two days to have his wound checked and the drain removed. We were really happy with how well Jimmy was getting on especially as there can be complications with infection and the breakdown of stitches.
Katie saw Jimmy back for his next visit and was able to remove some of his many stitches. He continued to do well and two weeks after his initial visit, Jimmy had the last of his stitches removed. We are so pleased with the recovery he’s made.
What a super little dog he is!-Well done Jimmy!
