Hi, my 4 year old adopted whippet was neutered on 4/22/20. I followed all post-op instructions and he was healing fine and resumed his normal activities at the two week point (May 6th), and was bathed on May 7th. They used dissolvable stitches, which I could still see on the area weeks after the surgery. Everything looked like normal healing, no redness/drainage/swelling, and he wasn’t bothering the area. Today (over a month since the surgery) I noticed him licking the area and upon inspection I noticed some redness and swelling at the incision site, and there is some minor serous drainage from the site. No change in behavior, no change in appetite or energy level. It doesn’t seem to be painful for him, but I’m worried since the incision area should be completely healed by now. Could this be a seroma or does it look like a bad infection (or something worse) that will require veterinary attention?
The first pic was taken today 5/30/20. The other pic was taken 4/26/20. Thank you in advance.
Hello,
I would call the veterinarian who did the surgery as soon as you can. In the interim I would apply a warm compress twice a day, put an ecollar on and apply an over the counter antibiotic ointment. This is not to give you a treatment plan it is to get you through the next few hours until your vet office opens up. Please call first thing Monday morning. If your pet changes any kind of behavior or activity or shows any signs of the area opening please go immediately to an ER. The incision site looks like it’s opening but the question is why is it happening? It could be a suture reaction, closure failure due to the pet self traumatization, or dehiscence and infection. It is not possible to diagnose this over the Internet or via a photo. It must be looked at by your vet. I hope this helps. Thanks for neutering and for visiting our site. Good luck.
Thank you very much. I sent pics to my vet this morning, they think it’s a “suture reaction,” like you suggested. He will take another course of antibiotics, keep e-collar on, and I will take him back if it gets worse or doesn’t clear up. It’s looking better each day/less redness. Thank you!
Sounds good. Thank you for the follow up.