J M A N
05-18-2004, 07:59 PM
Antibiotics, which ones, how often, etc, etc.
Well, first we need to talk a little about bacteria, there are two types of bacteria that cause the most problems in wounds and they are Gram Positive and Gram Negative bacteria, without getting to technical in this area I will make a long story short, with the type of wounds that these dogs encounter you need to use a broad spectrum antibiotic.
This simply means that you need an antibiotic that kills both Gram Positive and Gram Negative bacteria. There are numerous products on the market that work very well and I will name the ones that I have had the best success with.
Baytril 60mg would be my first choice followed by Keflex/Cephalexin 500mg, Amoxicillin 400mgs and last would be the injectable Penicillin type.
I generally use a double dose for the first initially dose, example: Keflex 500mg two tablets for the first dose, (1000mg) then one tablet every 12 hours for 10 days. Choose one of these antibiotics for minor to severe wounds and keep to the schedule for 10 days; however, if you have an extreme infection, use the Combination described below. Note: if you are treating a dog who weighs less than 35lbs, cut the antibiotic dose in half. Also, if you notice extreme diarrhea cut back on your dose, diarrhea is a sign of antibiotic poisoning.
Combinations, if you ever encounter an abscess or mouth wound that seems out of control, a good combination as an example to use is Baytril 60mgs along with Keflex 500mgs given together at 8am, followed by Keflex 500mgs at 2pm, followed by Baytril 60mg and Keflex 500mgs at 8pm.
Follow this program for the worst case infections along with the recommended cleaning and flushing of the various wounds, this is the best combination of antibiotics that you can use, but as I said ONLY use this type combination recommendation for the worst case scenario. Note: (if you are using Dexamethazone after the accident, try to limit it's use to three days, example: 3cc's first day, 2cc's second day and 1cc third day, if you use Dex for a long period of time it will slow down the healing process.)
Well, there you have it, a simple and effective basic routine that has been around for many years. The catch here is that it takes work on your part to be successful in good wound care. To often neglect of wounds ends up leading to unnecessary loss of tissue, or an abscess that is chronic in nature because the wound was never really dealt with correctly and lastly possible loss of life.
If you take the time to deal with these wounds for 10 days it will pay off in many years of health in your animal, have you ever noticed that swellings/ abscesses occur when the wound seems to have been healed, but when you start working the dog for a show, his immune system becomes stressed and he develops an abscess where an old wound once was. If the wound was correctly managed the first time this would NOT have occurred. Now you have a dog in keep that you will need to administer some type of antibiotic when this could have all been avoided. This is just one example of poor wound care management coming back to haunt you at a later date. Good luck with the dogs and remember that wound care does not have to be complicated, just put in some effort and keep it simple.
Reprinted........
Well, first we need to talk a little about bacteria, there are two types of bacteria that cause the most problems in wounds and they are Gram Positive and Gram Negative bacteria, without getting to technical in this area I will make a long story short, with the type of wounds that these dogs encounter you need to use a broad spectrum antibiotic.
This simply means that you need an antibiotic that kills both Gram Positive and Gram Negative bacteria. There are numerous products on the market that work very well and I will name the ones that I have had the best success with.
Baytril 60mg would be my first choice followed by Keflex/Cephalexin 500mg, Amoxicillin 400mgs and last would be the injectable Penicillin type.
I generally use a double dose for the first initially dose, example: Keflex 500mg two tablets for the first dose, (1000mg) then one tablet every 12 hours for 10 days. Choose one of these antibiotics for minor to severe wounds and keep to the schedule for 10 days; however, if you have an extreme infection, use the Combination described below. Note: if you are treating a dog who weighs less than 35lbs, cut the antibiotic dose in half. Also, if you notice extreme diarrhea cut back on your dose, diarrhea is a sign of antibiotic poisoning.
Combinations, if you ever encounter an abscess or mouth wound that seems out of control, a good combination as an example to use is Baytril 60mgs along with Keflex 500mgs given together at 8am, followed by Keflex 500mgs at 2pm, followed by Baytril 60mg and Keflex 500mgs at 8pm.
Follow this program for the worst case infections along with the recommended cleaning and flushing of the various wounds, this is the best combination of antibiotics that you can use, but as I said ONLY use this type combination recommendation for the worst case scenario. Note: (if you are using Dexamethazone after the accident, try to limit it's use to three days, example: 3cc's first day, 2cc's second day and 1cc third day, if you use Dex for a long period of time it will slow down the healing process.)
Well, there you have it, a simple and effective basic routine that has been around for many years. The catch here is that it takes work on your part to be successful in good wound care. To often neglect of wounds ends up leading to unnecessary loss of tissue, or an abscess that is chronic in nature because the wound was never really dealt with correctly and lastly possible loss of life.
If you take the time to deal with these wounds for 10 days it will pay off in many years of health in your animal, have you ever noticed that swellings/ abscesses occur when the wound seems to have been healed, but when you start working the dog for a show, his immune system becomes stressed and he develops an abscess where an old wound once was. If the wound was correctly managed the first time this would NOT have occurred. Now you have a dog in keep that you will need to administer some type of antibiotic when this could have all been avoided. This is just one example of poor wound care management coming back to haunt you at a later date. Good luck with the dogs and remember that wound care does not have to be complicated, just put in some effort and keep it simple.
Reprinted........