sheep attacked by dog

[RoseAmy]

One of my rams was attacked by a dog. Tore his back leg up pretty bad. Trying to save him, don't know if it is possible. We clipped the leg and cleaned it up, put ointment on it and I have the whole leg bandaged up. Gave him a big dose of antibotics.

 

Used what I had on hand. But what would be the best thing to use as far as the wound and for antibotics and how much.

[Laura L]

Antibiotics and depending on how deep the wounds are, I wouldn't cover them. Do you have Blu Kote? It's a good spray, I've used it on myself when I was stabbed with the hoof trimmers. Keep him somewhere quiet.

 

Do you know who's dog did it?

 

Laura

[RoseAmy]

The wounds are pretty deep..I think the odds are against him making it..but I'm giving him a chance.

 

Yes it was the neighbors dog..he was the one who alerted me to the problem and helped me doctor the ram.

[Debbie Meier]

I keep a box of Cephapirin Sodium (treats mastisis in cows) or CelfaLac on hand. I infuse it directly into any slash or puncture wounds and leave the wound open to the air. I use this treatment on horses, dogs, sheep, what ever get's injured, it was originally suggested by a vet when I worked farm with high dollar dressage horses. The owner wanted us to probe wounds for depth and foreign bodies. Rather then probing and then treating he told us to probe with the tip of the tube and infuse the wound on the way out. That way you can get a jump on bacterial infection right at the wound site. Clean, dry stall and keep him quiet. After a couple of days you can use a caustic powder to dry the wounds, Wonder Dust works well. If he is able to get around, does not get infected and he does not go into shock there's a good chance that he will come through.

 

Good luck to you.

 

eta: antibiotics, we use DuraPen at 48 hour intervals, talk to your vet but mine had me double dose the first 2 doses. We used to do the same with the horses when we gave them shots 2x a day, double dosed for 48 hours and then single dose for 10 days.

 

Deb

[Cynthia P]

Blue kote on the wound; keep the ram somewhere dry and clean; keep the stress to a minimum , ie don't bring a dog with you when you doctor etc.

 

Not a vet but we have always dosed heavily with Pen for the first 48 hours;

 

might want some electrolytes in his water or some of the nutridrench for baby lambs to give him some extra vits & minerals; good hay and not too much grain (especially if he isn't used to it)

 

You'll be surprised what sheep can take and still live

 

cynthia

[RoseAmy]

Thanks all for the advice. The BIG thing I'm concerned about and the reason I wrapped his leg is he has one spot where you can see the liagment. Have him in a well bedded stall. So far he is up and about eating and drinking. I think infection is going to be our big worry.

 

Time will tell, I'll keep everyone posted.

[Debbie Meier]

I wrapped his leg is he has one spot where you can see the liagment.

 

You want to be careful that the wrap does put to much pressure on the ligament and tendons. The wrap can also impede healing and create proud flesh or actually set healing back when you go to unwrap it. It's amazing how well they can heal just by keeping them in a clean dry place.

[RMSBORDERCOLLIES]

Thanks all for the advice. The BIG thing I'm concerned about and the reason I wrapped his leg is he has one spot where you can see the liagment. Have him in a well bedded stall. So far he is up and about eating and drinking. I think infection is going to be our big worry.

 

Time will tell, I'll keep everyone posted.

 

 

Wonder Dust. Best dressing for an open serious wound I've ever used. Had a steer a few years ago that was attacked by a cougar and tore a 15 pound roast out of his left hind quarter. Sprayed the wonder dust on it and left it open to the air and it formed a nice crust very quickly and kept the flies off. I believe it is available in the States. It's a grey powder and I believe it's a sulpha powder. Bob

[urge to herd]

Wonder Dust. Best dressing for an open serious wound I've ever used. Had a steer a few years ago that was attacked by a cougar and tore a 15 pound roast out of his left hind quarter. Sprayed the wonder dust on it and left it open to the air and it formed a nice crust very quickly and kept the flies off. I believe it is available in the States. It's a grey powder and I believe it's a sulpha powder. Bob

 

I've used Wonder Dust on the dogs, (and even on myself one time) and it is awesome stuff. I get it at a local ranch/farm supply store in the horse section. And it's really not very expensive.

 

Ruth

[Smokjbc]

Warning: GRAPHIC

 

Nothing much to add except don't give up unless he's down and depressed. I had a ewe get attacked by dogs- two days in a row. We didn't know how the dogs got in, my landlady assumed I left a gate open (AS IF! NEVER MENTION WAS MADE OF WHICH GATE !!) the first day, but the second day I came out to find the only surviving ewe with a red Aussie attached to her throat. He had jumped over a stall door. Long story short, I packed her (a little too much) with wonder dust, she was drip, drip, dripping blood out of her chin and throat area, loaded her with anti-biotics & Banamine, and three days later, the entire mess rotted off and I ended up stripping away a piece of dead flesh about two inches wide all the way from under her jaw to where her neck met her chest. Her trachea was exposed and there was a hole in it . I went to the house to get a gun, and my sheep landlady came down to observe the damage and bluntly said, "Well, she's eating." I looked and sure enough, she was up and eating. So we put away the gun and by three more days, the wound was entirely closed. She had heavy scar tissue underneath and no longer has much of bah- coughs a bit when you work her (she's understandably a little sour to dogs) but has thrived and given me lambs every year since 2002, almost always the best ones of the year.

 

So, don't worry about the exposed ligament- I mean, of course worry about- but don't give up yet .

[Bill Fosher]

I would add penicillin G procaine (NOT the long-acting stuff) at the rate of 1 cc per 15 lbs twice a day for at least four days, and Banamine at the label dose for the next three days for pain relief. Don't extend beyond three days with the Banamine, as it can cause digestive problems.

 

The other thing you need to be careful about is to ensure that the wound can drain if at all possible. Unless there's a flap of flesh that the dressing is holding in place, it's probably doing more harm than good.

[The Good Shepherd]

Trying to learn

 

 

Exactly what does Wonder dust do? Does it stop bleeding and oozing? And I guess I can be used on a dog for minor stuff?

[urge to herd]

Wonder Dust is a mild caustic and drying agent - it 'cauterizes' the small, oozy capillairies and forms a thin crust that holds in lymph fluids. The crust also helps protect the raw tissue underneath from dirt and from excessive drying of tissue that is trying to heal.

 

I've used it on hotspots on my dogs with great success and on scrapes on my arms/hands, it really does speed healing. I had no idea it could be used on such large and severe wounds as Bob and Jamie described above.

 

The active ingredients are iodoform, alum, sulfur, and tannic acid, in a base powder of choarcoal, copper sulfate, and lime.

 

Ruth

[Covelo Dogs]

I had 27 sheep torn up by Pit Bulls, a few years ago. Only had three that I had to shoot. I used pen and banamine as needed. Let open wounds drain

but used Catron spray and blu kote. Did have to cut a lot of dead tissue off wounds, though. I kept them as quiet as possible and since they were drinking and eating I just gave them time to recover.

It took over six weeks to get all to point that they could go out with the main flock. I was amazed at how the recovered, all were in the second trimester and all but one had lambs.

Good luck,

Suki

[The Good Shepherd]

I had 27 sheep torn up by Pit Bulls, a few years ago. Only had three that I had to shoot. I used pen and banamine as needed. Let open wounds drain

but used Catron spray and blu kote. Did have to cut a lot of dead tissue off wounds, though. I kept them as quiet as possible and since they were drinking and eating I just gave them time to recover.

It took over six weeks to get all to point that they could go out with the main flock. I was amazed at how the recovered, all were in the second trimester and all but one had lambs.

Good luck,

Suki

 

 

WHOA

[The Good Shepherd]

Wonder Dust is a mild caustic and drying agent - it 'cauterizes' the small, oozy capillairies and forms a thin crust that holds in lymph fluids. The crust also helps protect the raw tissue underneath from dirt and from excessive drying of tissue that is trying to heal.

 

I've used it on hotspots on my dogs with great success and on scrapes on my arms/hands, it really does speed healing. I had no idea it could be used on such large and severe wounds as Bob and Jamie described above.

 

The active ingredients are iodoform, alum, sulfur, and tannic acid, in a base powder of choarcoal, copper sulfate, and lime.

 

Ruth

 

 

Is it basically the same as Gold Bond Powder? Gold Bond worked really well when Kati had a "hot spot"

[The Good Shepherd]

I am off to the feedstore during my lunch hour to find same "Wonder Dust". My 3 year old GSD Duke either got his ear hang up on something or he was really scratching! the top layer of skin is gone off his left ear - outside only - in the exact same shape as one of his nails. Put ointment on last night, but everytime he shakes his head it oozes blood and sprays it . And of course we are doing an Obedience trial in 6 weeks!!!!!!

[RoseAmy]

Pencillin G procaine is what I have him on so I will stick with that. Also gave him banimine last night and this morning. Have taken the wrap off and started the wonder dust. He's a bit subdued (I'm sure he hurts like hell) and not used to being penned up. But he's walking and eating and very alert when he hears something.

 

After hearing your stories I feel a bit more hopeful that he will make it. Will keep everyone posted.

[juliepoudrier]

Is it basically the same as Gold Bond Powder? Gold Bond worked really well when Kati had a "hot spot"

As far as I know Wonder Dust and Gold Bond are not the same. Wonder Dust is sold in feed stores for one, and the sulfa has antibiotic properties. We used to use it on our horses, chickens, ducks, goats, etc. Now I use blood stop powder and Blu-kote or Wound-kote (same thing) or screw worm spray (the blue kind that also contains antiseptic). Flies clearly aren't a problem this time of year, but during fly season you really need to be sure to use something like screw worm spray.

 

I had a ewe who tore a big hole in her flank and the inside of her back leg on a cattle panel this past early summer. I gave her penicillin for a few days and used Blu-kote but made sure to use the screw worm spray twice a day until she was well healed.

 

J.

[juliepoudrier]

I keep a box of Cephapirin Sodium (treats mastisis in cows) or CelfaLac on hand. I infuse it directly into any slash or puncture wounds and leave the wound open to the air.

Hey Deb,

I meant to respond to this earlier, but got sidetracked. My vet brought this to my attention when I wanted to buy some ToDAY from them about six months ago. I was using it to treat foot scald, for which it does a wonderful job--clears up lameness in one treatment. Even though it's unlikely that a sheep would absorb the cephapirin sodium from between its toes, my vet suggested I use a different antibiotic (same sort of packaging, but I can't remember which antibiotic it was) instead. Anyway, the FDA has issued a ruling prohibiting the use of cephapirin sodium in food-producing animals. Here's the full text of the note included on the page for ToDAY mastitis treatment in the Jeffers catalog:

 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a final rule on July 3, 2008 prohibiting the extra-label use of cephalosporins (including ceftiofur in swine) in food-producing animals. The agency is issuing this order based on evidence that extra-label use of these drugs in food-producing animals will likely cause an adverse event in humans and, as such, presents a risk to the public health. Public comment regarding the rule will be accepted until September 2, 2008 and the rule will go into effect on October 1, 2008.

 

This action would add cephalosporin antimicrobials to the list of drugs prohibited for extra-label use by the FDA. Given the recent approval of Baytril® for use in swine, it is important to remember that it too is among another class of drugs, fluoroquinolones, that are also prohibited for extra-label use in food animals.

 

Under the Animal Medicinal Drug Use Clarification Act (AMDUCA) drugs on this list may not be used under any circumstances in an extra-label manner even by a veterinarian.

 

So you might want to reconsider your use of ToDAY in wounds in your sheep unless you know you won't send them to slaughter. Furacin (nitrofurazone), which lots of folks use on horses, is another that is now prohibited for use in food animals.

 

J.

[Debbie Meier]

Julie,

 

Thanks for the heads up. I was reading somewhere else where it looks like more bans may be in the works when it comes to antibiotics and such.

 

Deb

[Bill Fosher]

He's a bit subdued (I'm sure he hurts like hell) and not used to being penned up.

 

It would ease his stress if you could put a buddy in the pen with him.

[RoseAmy]

Good idea Bill, I gave him a buddy.

 

He's not eating that great today but still alert I think maybe the banimine is getting to him.

 

I gave him some probotics but not sure how much or how often.

[juliepoudrier]

Julie,

 

Thanks for the heads up. I was reading somewhere else where it looks like more bans may be in the works when it comes to antibiotics and such.

 

Deb

I just remembered what the alternative antibiotic was: Hetacin K. It comes in tubes just like the ToDAY but is allowed by the FDA. I have used it, and it works well. The difference, of course, is that you can get ToDAY at feed stores, but I imagine you can get the Hetacin K only from your vet. IIRC, though, the price was pretty close to the same for a box of 12 tubes.

 

J.