If you have a dog, you will surely be interested in this article on our site where we will deal with a topic of first aid, cure burns in dogs.
Do you know that dogs can get burned and not only with fire? Do you know what types of burns they can suffer? Or how to cure them? And, above all, how to prevent them?
We hope that you never need to act as we will explain below due to a burn on your pet, but in case you do, we want to be of help.
What is a burn?
Burns are lesions produced on the skin of an animal due to the action of some type of agent that may have produced them, such as heat, radiation, chemicals, electricity, or even cold. These lesions are created by the total dehydration of the skin layers which are shed. It is a very painful injury and the consequences of a burn not treated properly can go through infection until the death of the animal. Therefore, if our dog gets burned in any way, it is very important to stay calm and act effectively, preventing the burn from spreading and increasing its severity.
We can classify burns into different types according to their cause:
- Scalds: When they are injuries caused by hot or boiling liquids.
- Corrosion: If they are caused by corrosive chemical products.
- Electric burns: If they are caused by electricity.
- Radionecrosis or radiation burns: If caused by ionizing radiation, such as X-rays or gamma rays from the sun.
- Freezes: If they are caused by excessive cold.
- Burns from fire or contact with hot material: When in contact with hot metal surfaces or directly with flames or fire.
In addition, burn injuries are differentiated and graded according to the amount of surface area of the body burned and their depth. The burn degrees are:
- First degree: First degree burns are the mildest, most superficial and usually heal well in a week or so. They are easy to treat and their symptoms are reddening of the skin, a swollen and burning sensation and a lack of fur in the affected area. They are the only burns that we can really treat at home without great concern, the rest of the degrees require urgent veterinary attention.
- Second degree: These burns are deeper and more painful than first degree burns. In addition to the symptoms that occur in first degree burns, in second degree we find blisters with liquid. They usually take about three weeks to heal and are relatively easy to heal.
- Third degree: Third degree burns are among the deepest, most painful, most difficult to heal and even fatal depending on the amount of surface affected and the area. In this case the skin is completely burned and the burn reaches the layer of body fat. The skin looks dry, scorched and hardened as it has been completely dehydrated. There may be reddened skin around it which will be very painful as the nerve endings are still active, but the center of the burn will be blackened and in fact not painful as the nerve endings have been destroyed. Treatment and healing are long and difficult.
- Fourth degree: This degree is the deepest, as the burn reaches the muscle, even bone and internal organs. Charring and necrosis of the skin, body fat layer, musculature, and bone occur. Obviously, as it is worse than a third-degree burn, it is more complicated to treat, being able to cause unconsciousness due to the pain and even death, depending on the amount of surface and area affected. Treatment and scarring are costly and deformities may remain.
In the case of any burn, but especially in the case of the most serious, there is risk of shock and infectionThe shock caused by burns occurs because an injury of this type causes the loss of blood circulation, the transcutaneous loss of energy in the form of heat and significant loss of water, in addition to the entry of infection and all this produces what is called burn syndrome or shock that occurs with serious alterations in metabolic balance and cardiovascular, pulmonary, hepatic and renal functions. When an animal enters this state its chances are very slim.
In addition, the most common degrees of burns in dogs and cats are the first and second, but in the case of dogs, if the body has a surface area of 30% with second degree burns degree or with 50% with third or fourth degree burns, there is very little hope that he can overcome this unfortunate experience going through a lot of pain, so at this point, euthanasia of the animal is often contemplated, thus avoiding days of suffering that will end in the same way.
Puppies are among the most prone to burns, as they are very active and curious. Many times we find them entangling anywhere, nibbling on electrical cables and cans of cleaning products that may contain corrosive agents that cause a burn.
Causes of burns in dogs
As we have seen before, there are several ways for a dog to burn. Below we are going to comment on the main causes, what happens and some symptoms: · Boiling liquids: Sometimes while we are cooking our dog likes to keep us company while waiting for something delicious to drop into his mouth. If you eat something that has come straight from the pan, you will most likely scald your mouth, but with plenty of water, it will most likely pass in a short time. In addition, we can bump into him or he can get up on the kitchen fire area attracted by the smell of food and thus a spill of water, oil, broth, milk or other boiling liquids is produced on our companion, being the oil the most serious case among these.
Prolonged sun exposure
Produces sunburn, also called radiation burn. Many dogs love the heat and spend hours in the sun lying down, running around, playing, dozing or doing any activity. As in people, too much sun can cause burns, long-term skin damage and even skin cancer in dogs. Special care must be taken with fair-skinned dogs such as Bull Terriers, Dalmatians and Samoyeds. We must also bear in mind that the denser and longer the coat, the more protected they will be from the sun. So those with white or pink skin and short hair are more prone to sunburn. Because they are areas with less hair, the most affected areas are the snout, the tips of the ears and the belly. Dogs of breeds that have poorly pigmented, pink muzzles and noses, such as Border Collies, are also more prone to these muzzle burns. In fact, those that are perhaps more prone to skin problems and sunburns are dogs that have a naked or semi-naked body, that is, they have no or hardly any fur, such as the Peruvian Hairless Dog or the Chinese Crested. Finally, dogs with recent scars and therefore no hair in this area of new, weak skin, are also very prone to sunburn.
Embers of a bonfire
Sometimes we go camping and when the fire goes out there are still hot embers with which our dog can accidentally burn his paws. Surely it is a minor first-degree burn since the dog's reaction will be to move its legs quickly. We must remove the animal from the area and immediately refresh the legs with plenty of cold water and wait for it to calm down. Surely your skin will be red and shiny.
Fire from fireplace or campfire
When in winter we light the fireplace or make a fire outside to warm up, our pets also like to get closer to the color with us. So much so that sometimes they don't realize if they are too close to the area where sparks can fall. Besides, if it is a puppy, it may be curious enough and unaware of the danger to get too close to the fire directly and end up getting burned.
Electric Wire Nibbling
In this case the electrocution and the burn are produced through the mouth. Depending on the amount of electricity discharged into the animal, the burn will be more or less serious, the most worrying being the loss of a large part of the snout due to third-degree burns or internal burns that are difficult to detect. In addition, breathing difficulties, lightheadedness and even unconsciousness will occur.
Cleaning products with corrosive and caustic chemicals
Sometimes we may spill a chemical product at home that we use for cleaning or other household tasks. If our pet comes into contact with these liquids or powders and is burned, the severity of the burn will depend entirely on the amount of substance that falls on the animal or is ingested, the type of substance and the time that this substance remains in contact with your organism. We must think that puppies are very curious and if their teeth are coming in they nibble on everything, including cans of cleaning products.
Asph alt or dirt too hot
Sometimes we walk our dog in the hottest hours of the sun without thinking that the ground is burning. We are not very aware of it since we wear shoes, but our pets go directly with the pads, which can burn against asph alt, stone or earth that is too hot. We will see that our dog seeks shade, does not want to step on sunny areas, does not want to move from the shade and will refuse to walk, will complain and will walk very quickly desperate to get out of that area with too much direct sunlight from the street. His pads will have turned red and shiny, as well as very hot.
Freezing
When we keep him outside for too long in winter or when we go hiking in the snow, our furry companion is at risk of freezing parts of him. These parts most prone to freezing are the most extreme parts of the body such as the ears, the nose, the tail, the legs and, above all, the pads, since they are constantly in direct contact with the snow. We will see that the dog complains when walking, its pads have become very red and their skin is shiny and extremely cold.
How to act before a burn in our dog, treat it and cure it
Of course prevention is always more effective and preferable than regretting and having to treat. But knowing how to act in the event of a burn in our pet is essential to provide the first aid it needs and avoid possible undesirable consequences such as infection, shock and even death.
Below we will discuss some steps to follow to treat all kinds of burns in our dogs:
- Lower the temperature of the skin: We will bathe the affected area or the entire dog with abundant cold water. In case of freezer burn, for example on the pads and paws, we must do the reverse and raise the temperature. First we will remove the dog from the cold area and take it to a hot area. We will wrap their legs with cloths soaked in hot water, which we will remove and wet again each time they cool down or dry. We must make the temperature change gradually to avoid shocks.
- Remove residue: With the same cold water bath, if we observe that there are remains of the product that has caused the burn in our dog, we must remove them gently. We will also do it with remains of charred skin that is not attached. In principle, with plenty of water, these residues will go away on their own, but if we see that they persist, we can gently rub the surface with our fingers to help eliminate them.
- Contact the vet: If this can be done between two people, better since, while one bathes the dog, the other can call to the emergency vet. He will help us to calm down and will not organize according to the origin of the burn, the area and the severity, what to do or not before taking him to his veterinary consultation or before he arrives at our house.
- Healing, antibiotic or moisturizing cream: If the veterinarian does not tell us otherwise, we can, after a good cleaning of the area, administer a thin layer of moisturizing, antibiotic or healing cream so that the burn begins to calm down and heal, as well as being protected from the air and possible contamination. It is very important that we do not apply any commercial moisturizing cream with alcohol and aromas, since they could worsen our dog's burn.
- Aloe Vera: If we don't have healing cream on hand, we may have aloe vera either in some preparation or natural good in our garden. We will break a branch and extract the gel and with our fingers we will gently apply it on the burn of our faithful companion.
- Cover with sterile gauze: Again if the veterinarian does not indicate otherwise, it is prudent to cover the burned area with sterile gauze moist and without pressing it. In this way we will avoid possible environmental contamination of the wound, such as those caused by insects that like to roam around wounds.
- At the vet: Once the vet has arrived or we have been able to visit him, he must make an exhaustive review of the animal in general and its burn. This way he will be able to offer us the most appropriate treatment according to the type of burn that we have to treat. Surely, part of the treatment is the administration of analgesics due to the pain caused by burns. Depending on the severity of the burn, intravenous fluids will be administered to rehydrate the dog. We must put an Elizabethan collar on the dog to prevent it from licking or scratching the burn wounds.
- Serious burns: If at first glance we can already detect that the burn is serious, we will only apply the cold water bath preferably without moving to the local animal. Then we will call the veterinarian, since with creams and gauze we will not achieve anything. In this case it is very important to be quick and let the vet do everything possible and help us.
Important to keep in mind when treating a burn in a dog:
- Electrocutions: We must turn off the electrical current quickly and move the animal away from the cable without touching it, since it can pass electricity to us. We will use rubber insulating gloves, a stick or a wooden chair, but never anything metallic.
- Freezing: We must move it quickly to a warm place and cover it with a blanket in addition to covering the frozen parts with a cloth soaked in water hot (not boiling), to regulate body temperature. Then we will go to the vet to check it out.
- Corrosive cleaning products: In this case we must Wash the animal immediately with plenty of water to remove the product from above it and in In case of ingestion, we will never cause vomiting because being corrosive agents will harm our dog more. What we must do is give him milk and if he does not drink it himself, administer it with a syringe, while we contact our trusted veterinarian.
- Ice: It is not recommended to use ice to lower the temperature of the burn. But if it is used, we will never apply it directly to the skin to lower the temperature since we will produce a second burn due to extreme cold instead of helping. If we use ice, we must cover it well with a somewhat thick cloth that little by little lets the cold pass through.
Tips on how to prevent burns
Let's discuss what we can do to prevent any of these burns described above. All the indications must be applied to any dog of any breed and age, but we must be more persevering in puppies because they are still unaware of the dangers, they are highly curious and they are weaker than an adult.
- We must always remove them from the kitchen when we have the fire going and liquids boiling.
- We will avoid giving them or taking food directly from the fire, so that they do not scald their mouths and tongues.
- We will try to have the cables collected behind the furniture or hidden in some other way so that they are difficult or impossible for our pets to access.
- We will store the cleaning products in cabinets on higher shelves and not at ground level.
- When we go outside, on an excursion or for a walk, we must stop and take breaks to provide fresh water and shade for our dog.
- Guaranteed water and shade, we must also have them in our garden or land where the dog can spend time. We will never let our pet spend hours in the garden or on the land without ensuring possible fresh shelter and access to water.
- We should also try not to walk too much in the sun and look for shady paths.
- We will avoid asph alt or earth that is excessively hot and that can burn the pads of our dogs. It is completely inadvisable to take long walks at noon.
- Do not let them get too close to fires and their remains when camping or in the fireplace at home.
- We will apply special sun cream for dogs sold in pet stores and veterinary clinics, in case the physical conditions of our dog (pink nose, white or pink skin, no hair, etc.) require this measure and we have discussed it with the veterinarian.
- For walks we can try to put a t-shirt and/or a visor or cap on our faithful friend. There are those who will not tolerate being dressed, while others have no problem, or they get used to it quickly, and in this way we make sure that the sun does not shine directly on some of their weakest areas.
- In the snow we will watch the pads or, if our dog allows it, we will use special protectors for the paws (boots, bandages, creams and Vaselines).
