We would all hope that our pets, and the animals in our environment all get along, but this doesn’t always happen and violence and injury can ensue.
One of the violent acts that you may see is a dog biting your turtle. This article looks into what you need to know if your turtle got bit by a dog
Table of Contents
My turtle got bit by a dog:
Dogs may seem quite sweet and friendly to you, their owner, but they are predators of some animals like turtles, and can bite them
Here is what to do if your turtle got bit by a dog:
Clean the area:
You’d need to clean the area to determine what the extent of the damage is. Use warm water or a saline solution to rinse the wound. Also, remove any debris or dirty that may have been left in the area
Stop the bleeding:
Once the wound is clean apply pressure to stop any bleeding in the area.
Lay a clean cloth on the animal’s injury and apply pressure to the wound. Avoid putting too much pressure on the wound as too much pressure will cause blood to stop circulating in the area
Examine the injury:
Examine the injury looking to see if the wound is minor, major, or if the wound is infected.
Minor injuries can be treated by you at home and major injuries or infections would need to be taken care of by the vet
A minor injury:
If your pet was bitten at the shell, and has not sustained any damage to the tissue inside the body, then your pet should be fine, the turtle’s shell is designed to protect the animal.
What will help is keeping the reptile somewhere somewhat cool for 48 hours after the incident happens. This will calm the turtle and will help it deal with the shock of the incident.
If the injury is superficial then you can use a dilute iodine solution on the wound, you can alternatively use nolvasan wash or a mix of hydrogen peroxide and water on the wound.
This is necessary because dog bites can bring a lot of bacteria into your turtle’s body.
Once the treatment is applied let the reptile dry dock for at least an hour after applying the ointment so it can absorb into the skin.
The animal should be fine soon enough, these animals are quite resilient
A major injury:
If your turtle’s injury is quite serious, or if there is an infection or fly strike in the area at the wound, then your pet would need to be taken to the vet.
Signs of infection at the wound would be puss at the wound or oozing at the wound. Your vet will likely give your pet an antibiotic injection and then send your pet home
After are:
Once the treatment has been given you can take the reptile home to recover. While in recovery make sure that your pet is eating as it should and is comfortable in its environment
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other turtle/tortoise related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: My Turtle Has A Cut On Its Leg, Can Turtles Live In A Fish Tank, My Turtle Ate My Fish, My Turtle Is Getting Too Big, My Turtles Nails Are Too Long, Do Turtle Tails Grow Back?, My Turtle Bites My Other Turtle, My Turtle Can’t Swim, My Turtle Doesn’t Swim
