My dog got bit by another dog, should I take him to the vet?

Question

My dog escaped into my neighbor's yard and got bit on his ear by his dog and it broke skin. I don't see a puncture spot but there is blood, should I just let it heal on it's own or take him to the vet? Also, should I tell my neighbor what his dog did or just leave it alone since it was my fault for not watching my own dog?

Answer 1

take him to the vet. if you know your neighbor well then talk to them, and even if you dont know them maybe you should tell them if they have kids or there are a lot of dogs in your area, but make it clear that you are just letting them know and you arent going to sue or anything like that.

Answer 2

First I would contact animal control and your city or town hall for information and reporting the incident. If need be I would contact an attorney, consultations are free. Get evidence together, such as notarized letters from others at the park that saw what happened, your vet bill/s and of course pictures. An attorney would be best to advise you as to what you should do. Although it is a dog park, each owner should have their dog under their control all times. ADD:: With your additional details, Not being at a dog park when this happened, more than likely you would either both be held responsible at 50% each or you would be found to be 100% at fault. The reason being is that even though the dogs were on leashes, An owner can not control their dog completely while being on a 40' leash. What would be stated is that you should have kept your dog away from other dogs not knowing how they were when being approached by other dogs. If it is not a dog park then all dogs should be kept on a 6' lead with the owner being able to control their dog every moment. The other dog was not playing with yours yet the other must have felt threatened in some way to have lashed out at yours. If the other owner had their dog on a leash and under control when yours ran by chasing another dog, it was you that did not have full control of your dog and are lucky to have been offered 1/2 the expenses. Ultimately it was your responsibility to make sure that your dog as well anyone or anything around you was safe and not bothered. Not all dogs or people like when owners have their dogs on very long leashes, this is how accidents happen.

Answer 3

If your neighbor's dog hasn't had their rabies vaccinations, or if it is really chewed up and has big holes in it yes, if the puncture wounds are small, I would say no as long as the other dog is current on his vaccinations. When I had a mini weiner dog he got in to a fight with a cat that managed to get into our yard and he had a some small puncture wounds on one of his ears, my mother took a clean peice of cloth and wrapped his ear up tying the cloth on with another peice of cloth and he was just fine, the cat had one very bloody eye, escaped and more than likely went off to die from their injuries, I would just put some hydrogen poroxide on the punctures.
I would call your neighbor and see how their dog is, since your dog is the one that was doing the trespassing, and apologize if their dog had any injuries.

Answer 4

If it were my dog I would take him to the vet. Dog bites could cause an infection and your dog may have to be put on antibiotics. Once a dog of mine got bitten by another dog, but he needed stitches and was put on antibiotics as well. Also check and see if your neighbors dog has had his rabie shots. Good luck.

Answer 5

Okay I would recommend that you go to vet to make sure there are no other wounds. I would also get your dog's rabies vaccine boostered. I would get proof from your vet that you dog was previously vaccinated and reboostered. Then go and ask the dog's owner to see their dog's rabies vaccine certificate and that it is up to date. Your dog did get out and her dog bit your dog so I think it's even on the "to blame" field. But now you just want to show your neighbor that you are concerned about her dog's health and your dog's health and I'm sure it will go well. Good luck

Answer 6

You might want to go to your neighbor, tell them what happened and that you're sorry your dog got out, but ask them if their dog has had it's rabies shot. Make sure yours is up to date as well. You might want to get it checked by the vet, and if not, wait a couple of days and see what it does. It might be best to go now though and make sure it doesn't get infected...

Answer 7

If it's only a very minor bite, you can wash it really well with warm water and a bit of soap, then put a good antibiotic cream on it like Neosporin. You'll need to put the cream on twice a day until it's healed.

However, if it looks like it's getting infected, or it's a major gash, he will need to go to the vet.

Answer 8

Absolutely take your dog to a vet, if for nothing else to get a shot of antibiotics! Our Shih-Tzu was bitten by our toy poodle, unbeknownst to us. She never limped and there was no indication of any injury, until I noticed alot of bloody watery discharge on her leg. The bite site had abscessed, and ruptured, so she had to have emergency surgery. $450.00 later, she was better. Don't mess around with treating the wound yourself...it can become infected so easily!!!!! Good luck!

Answer 9

You need to take your dog to the Vet so he can be examined and treated. You also need to talk to your neighbor to find out the status of his dog's vaccinations.

Answer 10

its not your fault the dog got in your neighbors yard. he probably smelled something nice. the other dog got upset because it was his territory and so he bit your dog. if it looks bad bring your dog to the vet, especially cause you said it brok skin? bring him for a check-up.