Monday, November 1, 2010

Poor Little Thing...

Last Friday, Corrie was out sunning in the yard by herself as she loves to do. THEN something caused all the other dogs to want to be outside at once - they saw a deer or something had their interest. Scrappy is ALWAYS the first out of the door. Corrie met her and attacked her. Corrie is stocky and outweighs Scrappy by at least 20 lbs. I was yelling at the top of my lungs and had a small shovel that I was trying to use to separate them. It seemed like it took forever but it was probably only a minute or two. Never the less, the damage was done and Scrappy was bleeding. She had one very small puncture wound on her chest so I gave her a bath to make double sure that there were no lacerations. Corrie was fine except for a nip on top of her nose and, needless to say, has been under extra-close supervision. She simply can't be allowed to be in the yard alone because she claims it as hers and will fight for it. We can not allow this behavior!!

I was sure that Scrappy was sore so I started her on an anti-inflammatory and was sure she'd just need a few days to recover since she never bled after I brought her inside. On Saturday she started licking her wound occasionally and then we noticed she was obsessing. At least that's what I thought she was doing. By Sunday she had licked a raw spot all around the wound so I got Charlie's cone from when he was neutered and cut it down to fit her. Problem solved, right? NOT! This foul odor was coming from her. I didn't know where but it was definitely her.


So we decided that on Monday morning she would be the first to the vet since it's about time for their annual check ups anyway. He shaved the area and oh my, it was disgusting. That smell was coming from her wound!!! They put her on antibiotics and an anti-inflammatory and has to wear that cone until she heals. We decided to leave her with the vet for a couple of days so that they could keep a close watch on the wound and take care of her. Poor little thing...

Now she's home and in good spirits. We are thankful that God made warning signs like foul odors because if it hadn't been for that the infection would have gone much longer undetected. So, for a while, we will hand feed her and baby her until she's back to her scrappy self. We are still so very blessed and thankful in the holler. Blessings to you all.

8 comments:

♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥ said...

So very sorry to hear about this. But you did the very best for little Scrappie. We hate those cones but it sure will help let that wound heal. Paws crossed for a good recovery.

Woos ~ Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara

Lena said...

Oh, Scrappy - I'm happy to hear that you are ok, but what a scare. I'm glad you were able to separate them, and it always amazes me how the innocent things we do (like leaving Corrie outside by herself) has such a big impact on pack and behaviour, things that we as humans don't think about. Have a wonderful weekend and I hope Scrappy recovers soon!

Cindy said...

Wow, what a shame! I know from experience it is very hard to find a wound inflicted by another dog. They have so much fur . . .
Has Corrie attacked another one of the pack before, and is it just a matter of having the others go out first to avoid this situation? I hope it can be resolved. So thankful Scrappy is on the mend! Those cones are awful, but necessary. Hope it comes off soon. Guess this is the wrong kind of excitement in the holler:)

sprinkles said...

I love that name -- Scrappy! Seems so fitting for a little dog.

I hope she gets to feeling better soon. Poor thing.

Sierra Rose said...

Oh no! So sorry Scrappy! I've had a few shavings and spots that we've been watching recently. Us furpals just go for it sometimes or get in tangles that we don't think about the consequences. Youza. Healing thoughts.

Hugs and snaggle-tooth kisses,
Sierra Rose

Deborah said...

AWWW, poor Scrappy... The trick to breaking up the dog fight is to grab the back legs on one of the dogs. That will break it up. Please visit my Kindness blog. I'm having a give-a-way!
xxoo
Deborah

YD, sometimes with ♥June and ♥Angel Samantha said...

Oh no Scappy! I hope she is getting better. What a scary moment for you!

Paula said...

Poor little Scrappy! I hope she is much better now... those infections are nasty. One of our sheep has an infection in her hoof right now that I'm having to doctor daily and it smells horrendous, but you are so right, it lets us know when there is a problem since they can't tell us someting is wrong!