Open wound

[HammerzTow]

Hi, I have a nine year old neutered male short hair orange tabby. About 3 weeks ago he was bitten by a rattle snake. I immediately took him to an emergency vet who dealt with the wound wonderfully. I followed the recommendations for keeping him inside and quiet and isolated from the other cats. His wound was healing nicely, all drainage has stopped. But it will not heal over. There is is raw open hole in his skin. Muscle, sinew, all visible. There is no bad smell, no oozing other than a little blood when he gets licking in overzealously. My vet just said put a cone of shame on him. I tried telling him there was no way that would work. Not on this cat. He had a bad experience with something around his neck when he was a kitten and will litterally hang himself or get hung up on something and hurt himself before allowing a collar to be placed on him. And I don't think there is any way I could phyisically force him into one either if I was of a mind to try, he's a big boy.

I live out in the country. The closest vet, my vet, is a large animal vet. And he is over an hour away. I can't run to the vet everytime one of my animals gets hurt or sick. I do a lot of medical treatment on my animals. I've never run into this and am not sure where to go from here.

Anybody out there who has any advice, I would be so appreciative.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Well, I'm guessing it's not healing because he's messing with it. Not knowing where on his body this bite is, is there any way you can bandage it up to keep him from licking at it? If it's on his side, maybe you could put a baby onesy on him? people do

I do know some people have had good luck using Colloidal Silver on large wounds, and I've also seen articles about the use of Manuka Honey, but for that you would definitely want to cover it up or have a sticky mess on your hands (and every where else) I use Manuka Honey around here on humans and it works great for small cuts and abasions.

I'm so glad to hear that snake bite didn't kill him, especially since it sounds like you had a long drive to get him any help He's very lucky.

 

[HammerzTow]

Thanks for replying so quickly. I've been reading other posts about open, none healing wounds and the prevalence of using colloidal silver is good to see. I hadn't thought about using that on him, but I believe I'm going to order some and use it.

The wound is on his right front leg, above the elbow near the chest on the inside. It is approximately 1 & 1/4 inches long by 1/2 inch wide. It has not gotten larger since bringing him home from the vet. He gets carried away cleaning it and I'm sure that is what is keeping it from closing.

Like I said he is a big guy, well over 20 pounds. He lets me do pretty much anything to him that needs to be done. But a collar, nope. It ain't happening. I'm hoping since it has made it this far without becoming infected that it will stay uninfected until I can get some colloidal silver to apply.

Thanks for the advice. I'll keep you posted.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Now that the drainage has stopped, perhaps he needs a few stitches in it to help finish with the healing process? From what you described, it would seem the wound should now be closed. Can you at least call the vet, maybe send some pics of the wound for them to see (if they will accept them), and ask if stitching it up would help any?

I know you have to deal with a way to 'cover' it but there are all kinds of 'jury-rigged' concoctions that might work - something in the way of a 'harness' made from stretchy socks that covers his shoulders and both front legs to help keep it on? Kind of like a fitted shawl? You could even buy a onsie and cut so that it fits in that manner. It doesn't have to be tight around his neck, just secure enough around the back of his neck and front legs to prevent him from being able to lick the wound. Just throwing out some suggestions that may enable to you to come up with some ideas from that.

If the stitches would help, you could also consider using chamomile tea to help with any itchiness/irritation. Buy standard grocery store chamomile tea bags which are almost always German (you don't want English, or any flavorings/additives) and brew a bag in water, let it cool and then dab the area using cotton balls or a soft cloth multiple times a day. The tea has both soothing and healing properties, and also serves as an anti-bacterial/fungal agent. It is also safe for him to lick/ingest. I would not recommend this on an open wound such as you have described, though - only if stitches were done to close the wound first.