Paging @animaldoc? I know of at least four vets here...Post pics/more details - some human docs maybe able to help too.
Last edited:
Paging @animaldoc? I know of at least four vets here...Post pics/more details - some human docs maybe able to help too.
8 puppies rescued after being dumped on Fort Worth highway
A litter of eight precious puppies were rescued after they were dumped on the side of a highway in Fort Worth, the Humane Society of North Texas said Wednesday.
www.nbcdfw.com 
Long story short, our 3 yo Akita had surgery to remove a benign growth on his rear ankle, just above the joint. The sutures ripped day one. He went back three times and the edges were trimmed to approximate the edges which again failed. New surgeon laid in two mattress stitches to remove some of the tension. We're contacting the vet's office thinking he's here and he's not. He's doing following up via phone which we found up yesterday and won't return until the 4th. This is what it looks like today; the edges are not approximated and the bottom mattress stitch is failing. There are no local vets that can see him and the nearest ER is swamped (they haven't gotten back to me since yesterday with two followup calls). I don't think this will close and there's a 1cm pocket towards the pad that is not adhered to the underlying tissue. Surgeon returns on the fourth. I think this needs to be immobilized to keep the joint from flexing, re-bandaged at least daily and possibly treated with MG honey. 
No idea about a dog, but in a human that would require debridement, skin grafting, and immobilization. Or allow to scar in while keeping covered until dry. Antibiotics as well.
Found a vet. Mattress sutures removed, irrigated with saline, and we're doing Manuka honey and open wound treatment plan for the next month it appears. Can't do the debridement of the edges, or the now abscessed mattress suture points, without anesthesia and the vet thinks he's had too much in the last week to do it again. Because he's so big, I made a splint (lazy "L") that immobilizes the joint to the hock and keep him from walking on the paw. Vet thinks it's OK (at least until Dr. wonderfull returns from Aspen) and we'll reassess the rest of the sutures on Wed. What a mess. The sutures that were pulled looked like they were done by a 4H fishing club.
Many thanks to the hide.
Many thanks to the hide.
Last edited:
Sad that you and your furry friend have to go through this crap, hope it all works out for the best without any lasting after effects.
Glad you found him some care. Keep us updated!
Love manuka honey in this application! Actually silver + honey is my ideal topical wound care.
Is he chewing on it or pulling the stitches from moving around? is he wearing a "Cone of shame"?
Nope, he's been pretty good about all of it though since the last surgery his leg trembles for an hour or so after wound change. The vet that saw him today thinks it's either nerve regeneration or the remaining stitch across the width of the wound is hitting a nerve. He's got a lot of pain meds (no opiates) but he's also got a long road ahead.
Damn dude, looks horrible. I hope you get it fixed up soon. Wish I could help other then best wishes.
Best of luck with this. We faired much better on a removal that looks to be in a similar place on our GSD. We saw several specialist and had about 5 aspirations with no conclusive result. Some odd cells, nothing specific. It would swell then drain and stay down for weeks or months, then swell again. No one wanted to attempt the removal. We changed Vets and she finally said we have to try to remove. It was the size of a quarter and about 1/2-5/8" thick. The incision ended up about 3" long with unknown number of sutures. He chewed 2-3 out. She warned us it would not be a pretty sewing job because there wasn't enough skin to pull back together. This is right rear lower inside about 3" above his foot. The second photo is about 10 days after removal.
Of all things, it was an infected hair follicle(s)!
Attachments
Apologies for high jacking the thread but I need to ask: Do you have a link for this manuka honey, and how do you add the silver? This is the first I've heard of it, and I have a need for it.
My wolfdog pup had an incision that kept opening. They gave her mild doses of tramadol to deep her quiet while it healed.
29.99 @ Costco. When you see products sold as "Medical honey", that is usually it. Google "Silver/honey wound gel" and that also produces results.
Regarding the silver, the easiest/convenientest method I'm aware of, is a burn ointment called "Flamazine" up here in Canada.
the technical name for it is "Silver-Sulpha-Diazine creme" and it is truly fabulous for burn ointment. It is ALSO a fabulous antibiotic. They don't recommend that though, for two reasons. 1, it is expensive so they don't like to prescribe it. and B) because they don't want germs to become intolerant of it.
As with all antibiotics, it works..... for now.
Silvadene is actually different from the OC honey-silver gel I was referring to that is based on colloidal silver; silvadene is good for burns but is an Rx. As we have all recently learned that many accessible products that really do work, in fact "do more harm that good" per FDA), including colloidal silver derivations are labeled by FDA as "extremely dangerous". It is true that large amounts of internally absorbed silver can cause argyria, with a blue-gray color to the skin and depositions in vital organs; a regular and relatively high amount of colloidal silver needs to be consumed to achieve argyria.
Last edited:
Silver was used to treat syphilis before we had antibiotics!
have heard of manuka honey elsewhere. will have to find it. only worked burn very short time before silvadene. sulfamylon was the deal then. i never heard of argyria after extended burn treatment but not my area of work and i know heavy metals are a problem,so am not informed on such. dog's leg looking good considering the history. seems you should avoid the 1st vet you used. vets are doctors and some are great,some suck.
Last edited:
We’ve been playing fetch for the last hour, there patiently waiting for me to toss the ball again.
beautiful rottie. perfect weight,not a porker like popular now. looks in good condition. my fav breed. had 3 > 25 years ago
Just a follow-up and I'll stop when you guys have had enough. We're at day 3 with Manuka honey and immobilizing. The attached picture shows the wound this morning and you can clearly see the lacerations from the mattress sutures. Unfortunately, the edges will not stay approximated and there's no adherence. I really hesitate to ask for some fine (4-0) sutures to close these due to the amount of trauma we already have. Thoughts?
Otherwise, it looks a lot healthier but still a long way to go. There is one mystery knot of the heavy suture line on the inside of his paw that I can't figure out where the suture goes. Hoping to have that removed on Wed. Just FYI, we were able to buy the Manuka honey at the local Save Mart grocery store for $19.99. We opted for the honey without the silver only because of some (very few) reports where the silver version had complications with deep tissue wounds. I think with this level of wound, the wound fluid has to go somewhere besides just sitting in the wound until the next change. It's harder to tell with honey how much of the fluid is infected wound fluid and how much is just honey (both are yellow). with the large pocket under the pad, I don't want drainage into the hole that may cause a reaction we can't see. He's on a broad spectrum antibiotic and a specific for a K9 type of MRSA infection from the first hospital.
Thanks again for the support and information.
His lordship suspicious of his treats now because he can smell the pills in them.
Otherwise, it looks a lot healthier but still a long way to go. There is one mystery knot of the heavy suture line on the inside of his paw that I can't figure out where the suture goes. Hoping to have that removed on Wed. Just FYI, we were able to buy the Manuka honey at the local Save Mart grocery store for $19.99. We opted for the honey without the silver only because of some (very few) reports where the silver version had complications with deep tissue wounds. I think with this level of wound, the wound fluid has to go somewhere besides just sitting in the wound until the next change. It's harder to tell with honey how much of the fluid is infected wound fluid and how much is just honey (both are yellow). with the large pocket under the pad, I don't want drainage into the hole that may cause a reaction we can't see. He's on a broad spectrum antibiotic and a specific for a K9 type of MRSA infection from the first hospital.
Thanks again for the support and information.
His lordship suspicious of his treats now because he can smell the pills in them.
Last edited:
Beautiful dog and a great pose. My dog never eats "pill pockets" etc. ; she needs the Kraft fake cheese in the individual slices. Lately , she has been suss on those, and I have to use her favorite candy crushed around each pill.
4.0 isn't really fine suture - I think of 6.0/7.0 as being fine but why do you want fine suture? I'm thinking 2.0 non-absorbable is needed to actually hold together for a while, but again this is such a broad area, and under pressure with walking, that is a huge surface area that you can't just "suture" it closed. The problem with long term sutures is infection, but thats a problem with open wounds too. Honestly I have no clue in the vet arena here - I just can't see closing it easily. Mosin46 mentioned skin grafting (with bolster dressings), I'm thinking adjacent tissue transfer after balloon tissue expanders to stretch adjacent skin but that requires alot of time and money I'm sure with specialist surgical vets if it can even be done; the problem with adjacent tissue transfer is if it fails it can literally triple the wound size.
I can't urge patience enough here. Finding a vet you trust to monitor for infection/complications is super important, but I see this as something that will take a long, long time to heal. Months. Frankly, pushing it to "happen" sooner can hasten an amputation. Honesty bites sometimes and not trying to be cavalier - my girl is my fur-baby, but expectations must be realistic.
Edit: I did just google, and there are dog "plastic/reconstruction" surgeons that can do tissue expanders in this scenario. Can't fathom the cost.
Last edited:
Was at my Dad's last week. Here is his 2...
I wasn't clear: the two "new" incisions caused by the heavy mattress sutures at the top and bottom of the crater are what I'm questioning should they be sutured. Both are in the dermis on the perimeter of the larger hole. There's so much soft tissue damage from this last go around that I'm hesitant for any more suturing of any kind. Them trying to close the large hole is what caused the more extensive trauma and the "open wound" plan is the only viable option I see short of taking him someplace that will do collagen therapy. Even grafts seem ill advised at this point.
this is speculation based on a semi faulty 20 yo memory. but,it seems to me that this kind of wound in a human would be well served by vacuum pump therapy. not possible in a dog i bet. also, what we called wet to dry dressings with every 4 hr removal and changing might help a lot. also,unlikely with a dog as they could be very painful at times often requiring sedation. seems to me the big problem is finding a trustworthy and very knowledgeable vet. they exist but a general vet likely won't be much help. any vet care has gotten much $ higher. my cat's bills kill me at times. if in a human,i would be lawyer tempted. not a fan of vet school care. UF almost killed my rott 30 years ago. however,this might be a right move if a vet school is accessible.
If manuka doeesn't make good progress, ask the vet if Xeroform gauze or silver alginate dressing with a boot would be feasible over the wound to while you allow granulation of the wound edges. Agree, those edges they look they they would not support sutures very much.
Last edited:
Saw this after my last post - yes, a wound vac would be great if he could tolerate (and yes, it still is being used in wound therapy today!) We are on the same page, I was thinking hydrocolloid will last 24 hour; xeroform's price has come down. If cost wasn't an issue, vac. pump.and silver alginate.
To so something legal, you have to get one expert vet to trash the vet that did the first surgery. Don't know if vets do the to each other. Lets just pray he heals quick. Hope he gets adequate pain treatment.
Last edited:
Great looking Akita. I don't have the expertise you're looking for right now, but thoughts and prayers headed his way anyway.
I fell in love with Akitas about 35 years ago and never looked back. I'm on my fourth Akita now.
All have had their challenges. All were well worth the effort.
Please, no more sutures. Remove the ones still there. They are foreign bodies that at this point are material for infections to take hold (even if inert).
I'm going to start calling UC Davis in the morning (hopefully they'll answer the phones). They have a vet school but I don't know if they do small animals, it's mostly ag. And... I've been in communist controlled territory before.
My problem with the Manuka is that I don't know enough about it to say when it's time to say it's not working. There's very little, to no, new granulation (it doesn't look overly wet to me, but the margins are pink) and the Manuka prevents the wet to dry technique. Thankfully nothing is sticking in the hole but I also can't see that the margins are contracting; probably because we are still in the inflammation phase. We've identified one regional vet that has some extensive small animal surgery out east and has relocated here but he won't be back in the area until Thurs. Most of the local offices are closed until Wed, so we're just trying the least risky treatment until we can get somebody experienced and competent on it.
This is our sixth Akita (we have two now) and lost two the hard way so we're all in on this one. If the vac is an option, I'm for it.
Last edited:
You are on the right track - I can't imagine a vet school not doing small"/companion animals,even though they ay be "known" for something else. I know here in DFW there is a tertiary vet center that literally has every specialty - they are $$$$$ but they are here. And we have Texs A&M and Texas Tech.
Edit: See below!
I mentioned I did some research and there are literally (same title) animal "plastic and reconstructive" surgeons. (Many people have the misconception that plastic surgery is named after silicone implants/plastic parts, it's actually referring to the plasticity of skin). If they are doing tissue expanders to close wounds from paw orthoedic surgery, there has to be somebody doing good wound care as long as you can pay.I think tissue expanders still may be the way to go.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Try calling this person: And they do clinical trials which may make this financially feasible.
https://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu › hospital › small-animal › soft-tissue-surgery
Soft Tissue Surgery Service | School of Veterinary Medicine
Aug 4, 2023Small Animal Clinic Soft Tissue Surgery Service Contact Soft Tissue Surgery Service Telephone (530) 752-1393 Location UC Davis Health Science District VMTH 1 Garrod Drive Davis, California Discover the latest surgery clinical trials at UC Davis Soft Tissue Surgery ServiceSoft Tissue Surgery Service
Breadcrumb- Home
- Veterinary Hospital
- Small Animal Clinic
- Soft Tissue Surgery Service
Contact
Soft Tissue Surgery ServiceTelephone
(530) 752-1393
Location
UC Davis Health Science District
VMTH
1 Garrod Drive
Davis, California
Discover the latest surgery clinical trials at UC Davis
Soft Tissue Surgery Service
Welcome to the Soft Tissue Surgery Service at the UC Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. Our board-certified faculty surgeons lead a team that also includes resident veterinarians, highly-skilled technicians and fourth-year students of the School of Veterinary Medicine. Working together with post-operative support staff and board-certified veterinary anesthetists, this team provides cutting-edge surgical procedures. Utilizing the most current surgical technology, our surgeons are leading the way in new veterinary surgeries, and forging new paths to optimal pet health.The mission of the Soft Tissue Surgery Service includes:
- Teach veterinary students and train residents about surgical disease and treatments
- Provide the best surgical and medical care to animals with surgical conditions using evidenced based medicine
- Advance surgical practice by doing scientific research and clinical trials in our specialty
Clinical Activities and Procedures
The Soft Tissue Surgery Service offers specialized veterinary procedures: cardiothoracic, gastrointestinal, respiratory, urogenital, reconstructive surgery, and a multitude of interventional radiology techniques.Advanced diagnostics provided:
- Computed tomography (CT scan)
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
- Ultrasonography -Nuclear scintigraphy
- Fluoroscopy
IR is a specialty in veterinary medicine, being pioneered at UC Davis, that utilizes imaging modalities (eg., fluoroscopy, ultrasound, computed tomography) to perform minimally invasive procedures for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes.
View the IR Website
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Important for OP ofthis thread: OI could not open up any other links or access their website and webpage until I logged off of the hide and disabled my VPN.
Last edited:
hyperbaric? never worked it but did hear some good wound care outcomes. haven't really kept up with latest stuff and have forgotten 80% of what i knew. you will likely have to get into some new (to me) vet services.
That thought crossed my mind too but would probably involve sedation to get them into a chamber which isn't a good idea ona. regular basis, esp. if an older dog - edit: That clinic at UC Davis does do hyperbaric!
TAMU use to be very reasonable and relatively easy to get an appointment (1991-1992). Our Vet in Corpus made 1 phone call and had my first GSD in to the head of surgery in 1 day. Cost to remove part of his lower jaw was about $300. That was an overnight stay at the hospital with 3rd or 4th year Vet students assigned for constant care. They called me every 2 hours with updates. I tried to get our current GSD an appointment at TAMU for a MRI in 2021 and it was referral only, if they would accept you, and was a 4 month wait. Cost was "estimated" to be $3000. Cost wasn't the issue, the wait wasn't going to work.
@34SF, you may try calling around to find a local Vet that went to UC Davis and try for a direct referral. They may have an old professor or colleague that can help get you a faster appointment. That was how we got to the TAMU head of surgery so fast. Anything to bypass the bureaucracy.
It was a bit of a sad end of the year for us. We had to put down our lab Lucy. She was the sweetest, most loving dog we have owned. She was amazing with our kids. Had to put her down because of cancer. She was 13 years old on the day we put her down. She will be missed. 
So sorry for your loss
These posts make me so sad. Why can't they last longer God?
Because this life is temporary and they taught us what they needed to. They were the bestest of good boys and girls and did what they were created for. They fulfilled the measure of their creation and are on the other side waiting for us to come Home.
These are probably the most brutally honest words I've seen on loss. Thank you.
Similar threads
