Posted on 08/27/2012 4:36:46 PM PDT by jaypounder
I met a guy about 10 years ago who had been bitten by a feral cat. He didn’t think anything of it, but his finger got infected very quickly. They ended up having to amputate his finger. I learned to treat all animal bites seriously, even if they seem like no big deal.
Hope your wife is feeling better soon.
I forgot to mention the breed of dog that bit her.
Jack Russel/Corgi mix.
Freepmail incoming.... Wow !
Glad she’s better....
LOL!
We just watched that again last weekend.
My Lab eventually sent me to a tendon repair surgery. I still love him tho’.
Glad Ms. L recuped!
I hear those little ones like cat litter. lol
OH NO! NOT AGAIN!
Eyes
“Mr Heater” fan here too. Still worjing good after 5 years.
Cover the bottle connection when you store it to keep spiders out!
The second year I got the adapter kit to use a large bottle.
I am so sorry that happened. That tells us to make every effort to prevent an injury from getting worse - to trust ourselves and just do it. Who would have thought it would get that bad? I am so glad she survived.
““Mr Heater” fan here too.”
I’m glad to know it worked well for you. I bought mine in March and haven’t had to use it but it’s here when I DO need it.
I got bit badly just 6 weeks ago by my own dog, who was deaf, senile, in pain and may have just had a stroke. 15 puncture wounds and some bad bruising. My fault for moving his legs when he couldn’t do it himself.
After a bad experience in the ER, where I got no cleaning, a gentle wrap saturated w/Bacitracin (not recommended for puncture wounds right on the label), a tetanus shot (needed), a morphine shot, a script for doxycycline 100mg 2xday for 3 days and instructions to soak in warm soapy water, I went home and irrigated the wounds w/saline and then soaked the entire arm in Epsom salt solution (1 tsp to 1 gallon). I was not convinced about the doxy and called my physician, who gave me a 2 week script for something much stronger (I forget the name)and recommended using silver sulfadiazine ointment after the soaks. I used non-adhesive gauze pads w/the silver sulfadiazine and wrapped the arm w/ gauze for 3 days. After that, I used the cream on adhesive gauze pads.
The important points: irrigate often; soak often w/epsom salts, use a non-irritating, non-occluding antibiotic/antiseptic cream and take an antibiotic that is strong enough for a long enough period. Peroxide can further irritate the tissue and not do that much good. A physician/RN/EMT/corpsman can determine if there are tears that need stitching, but leaving the wound open to drain appears to be the consensual advice and puncture wounds should not be stitched. Ointments that are petroleum based occlude the wound and can increase the chance for infection. Read labels. Keep puncture wounds irrigated and covered w/an appropriate cream until they scab on their own w/no more seepage. Keep a tight eye on swelling and seepage to determine whether the seepage is fluid and blood (this should be allowed to drain out) or pus (thickness/color/odor) and that the swelling is localized w/no spreading red streaks. There will be swelling and deep tissue damage even after the surface wounds have closed. Keep soaking until this disappears.
I have one area that is still a slightly tender lump, where the jaws crushed periosteum (the membrane on the outside of a bone) and another small area that is still slightly lumpy as the displaced tissue regenerates. I have two scars that will need some silicone gel sheets, but right now I am just waiting to make sure there is a mature scar that won’t reopen. Better a scar than an infection, IMO.
We kept our old dog too long and he was past ready to go. He could have severed my arm, but he just bit down multiple times, no tearing, no shaking. It could have been a lot worse.
I was asked if it was my dog and if he had had his shots. He had. Since he was so old, he had been seen by the vet often in the previous ten days and no one followed up demanding a head for a rabies test, thank God. We did end up having him put down and we really should have done it sooner. It is such a hard call.
Oh my goodness! We have one of those, and I can see how quickly that can happen. Glad your wife is OK now.
You got lucky there and learned a valuable lesson.
What I’m most amazed at is you got care that day and was able to see someone on Saturday. Around here, I’m turning into those folks who don’t have insurance and run to the ER for everything because the doctors won’t see you for a week or two and they keep bankers’ hours.
VALLADOLID, Spain—Even though she’s one of millions of young, unemployed Spaniards, 22-year-old Silvia Martín takes comfort in knowing that her bank is still standing behind her. It’s not a lending institution, but rather a time bank whose nearly 400 members barter their services by the hour.
Ms. Martín, who doesn’t own a car and can’t afford taxis, has relied on other time-bank members to give her lifts around town for her odd jobs and errands, as well as to help with house repairs. In return, she has cared for members’ elderly relatives, organized children’s parties and even hauled boxes for a member moving to a new house.
.........
Besides time banks, they include barter markets springing up in barrios, local currencies designed to spur the flagging retail economy, and charity networks that repurpose discarded goods. An environmental group recently launched Huertos Compartidos, or Shared Gardens, that links up owners of vacant land with those willing to plant vegetables in them and share the harvest.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443404004577577352038273664.html?KEYWORDS=time+barter
Wishing her a full and speedy recovery.
Having been bitten by dogs I know that the wound must be kept open because of the high danger of infection. If the skin is broken antibiotics are needed. Tetanus shot too.
If you are speaking metaphorically, I must ask, "Are you mad?"
If you speak of actual Winter...cold weather and snow...then I suggest you bother to click over to the blog. You sort of missed the point.
But I'm with you. I hate warm weather and would rather live in colder climes year round.
They gave the wrong antibiotic. They should have given your wife Keflex at a minimum.
Glad to hear that she is recuperating well.
Thanks for the advice but I’m pretty sure the Infectious Disease specialist had a handle on things.
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