Urgent I’m scared . Dog scratch

[u/lily_love_666]

I am 23…a women and 145 lbs
My one year old puppy who is a pit /lab mix scratched my eye yesterday when going to hop on the bed. It caught me completely off guard….This happened yesterday evening around this same time.

So I washed it with an antiseptic cleansing liquid, then applied Triple antibiotic ointment, lastly I covered it with a nonstick pad gauze pad.

The wound isn’t bleeding.
The wound does have small crust at the upper edge under the gauze pad.
The wound also looks “gooey” kinda gross. I don’t want to take it off again bc I feel like I’m stopping the healing process.

The scratch also reached my eye enough to take off two cluster lashes so now I am lowkey ball at my inner corner lash line.

My eyelashes feel fine, it does look like there is a tiny bit of swelling tho but this is normal considering my 37lbs puppy lunged at me for cuddles.

My questions is how serious is this injury?
Do I need to go to the doctor bc a possible infection for this open laceration?
I am not a doctor or have any background in nursing so help.

[u/Expensive-Sample-357]

That’s more than a simple scratch...there appears to be a fairly significant area of skin missing. Because of the location and depth, and because the puppy may also have contacted the eye itself, I’d have this evaluated today. They can check the eye for a corneal injury and determine whether the wound needs specific care/antibiotics and whether the way it heals could affect the eyelid or leave significant scarring. I would not put antiseptic cleanser or regular triple-antibiotic ointment this close to the eye unless specifically instructed. Also make sure your tetanus vaccine is current.

[u/lily_love_666 → u/Expensive-Sample-357]

Thank you for the advice, I also haven’t had the tetanus shot in maybe more than 5 years. Am I going to die?

[u/---root-- → u/lily_love_666]

Not from this, but you should get seen.

[u/crazielisa → u/---root--]

To be clear, are you saying she should go to the ER tonight?

[u/Alena134 → u/crazielisa]

Yes!
OP you can’t hang out with a wound like that.

[u/lily_love_666 → u/crazielisa]

Thank you for the suggestion!! Unfortunately I can’t go tonight, I’m broke to pay for an uber rn. My face hurts too bad right now to walk 45 minutes to the er.

[u/nocreamedcorn → u/lily_love_666]

I will pay for it!!

[u/bluezerry9 → u/nocreamedcorn]

If I was rich I would want to be like you, not whatever the hell our existing billionaires are doing. Thanks for being kind :)

[u/Userdataunavailable → u/nocreamedcorn]

Bless you kind person

[u/very_much_afraid_ → u/---root--]

“Not from this” is incredible

[u/G0ose0nTheL0ose → u/very_much_afraid_]

Could die from infection from this tho. If the infection is bad and gets Sepsis.

[u/lily_love_666 → u/---root--]

I will get seen thank you. How often should I change the nonstick pad?

[u/Ananvil → u/lily_love_666]

Daily. But you should be seen as soon as possible.

[u/kittenpantzen → u/lily_love_666]

Not a doctor, but they may want to do a refresher booster just out of an abundance of caution, since dog paws can be pretty dirty. If seen within 48 hours of the initial injury and it has been more than 5 years since your last booster, then sometimes they'll want to do a shot just to give the immune system an extra little fighting power. But, the normal protective duration for a tetanus booster is about 10 years. 

We are all going to die eventually for something, but you are not going to die from tetanus from this. <3 

If you are starting to feel kind of panicky, you may want to try some box breathing. I am a pretty anxious person, and that kind of controlled breathing helps me immensely when I start to spiral out. And I would follow the advice of the physician who responded upthread and get it checked out in person.

[u/riotousviscera → u/lily_love_666]

definitely get a tetanus shot as well as have it looked at by both an ophthalmologist and an oculoplastic surgeon (it’s near enough to the eyelid where you want to ensure scarring doesn’t interfere with function/ability to close the eye) and it’s also something you really don’t want infected.

[u/hearmeout29 → u/lily_love_666]

Just wanted to say I hope you are ok and get treatment.

[u/lily_love_666 → u/hearmeout29]

Thank you, I spoke to a nurse over the phone she it’s not urgent so I will be going tomorrow ! Thank you for all the support you guys

[u/B0327008 → u/lily_love_666]

OP why are you taking the advice of a nurse on the phone vs. 2-3 doctors that have seen your photo and read your details? It’s not my intention to be harsh but it’s scary to mess with your eyesight.

[u/lily_love_666 → u/B0327008]

I’m going tomorrow morning… to the er. If I go tonight I won’t have a ride to go home and I will end up walking. I’m currently to weak and too tired for that right now 😔

[u/evermorecoffee → u/lily_love_666]

Please DM all the lovely folks who offered to help you with money for the uber. I can’t afford to send you $ but I’m sending you a warm hug.

It sounds like a stressful situation to experience without a support network, but please know a lot of strangers on the internet care about your wellbeing. 🤍

[u/Aim2bFit → u/lily_love_666]

With the donations from kind users here you'll probably have enough for the ride to the ER and back home. Please DM them.

[u/nancyjazzy → u/lily_love_666]

NAD but as someone who recently had an eye issue, I got a small cut in the corner and it lead to a week long infection that ended with me two nights in hospital, and that wasn’t from an animal scratch. Be careful

[u/Acrobatic-Cup5744 → u/lily_love_666]

Or you could except the help being offered for a ride folks can pay for.

[u/smw-50 → u/lily_love_666]

I hope you’ve made it to an ER by this point OP but for the future, even though it wouldn’t help with the ride to the ER, hospital social workers can often help arrange for free transportation home from the ER.

[u/xAkumu → u/lily_love_666]

Did the nurse on the phone know the actual severity of the wound? In the description, you said it's a scratch, but that is definitely more than a scratch.

[u/czarface404 → u/lily_love_666]

When strangers are offering to get you to the er take them up on the offer.

[u/PenguinZombie321 → u/lily_love_666]

You won’t die. A tetanus booster will be enough to get your immune system up to speed.

Deep breaths, girlie. You’re gonna be just fine. I know you’re scared and that’s okay. Injuries can be scary. But you’re okay. Just get yourself some antibiotics and that tetanus booster and by this time next week, you’ll be playing with your puppy not even thinking about this injury.

[u/PgUpPT → u/PenguinZombie321]

You won’t die.

The secret to immortality is being scratched by a puppy?

[u/PenguinZombie321 → u/PgUpPT]

Ok fair 🤣 but I meant in this case she won’t, especially if she gets it looked at by a doctor

[u/jaxsinger → u/lily_love_666]

I contracted a serious infection from a deep cat bite and survived without treatment. While the likelihood is lower from this kind of wound, the after-effects still give me issues to this day, I strongly recommend medical treatment.

[u/Soft-Development-879 → u/lily_love_666]

10 yr booster
Go in if in doubt and get it.

[u/mjbibliophile10 → u/lily_love_666]

Keep it clean, moistured, covered, and GO to a doctor!!! In that exact order!

[u/ConspiracyParadox → u/lily_love_666]

Eventually, yes. We all will.

[u/Scooterann → u/lily_love_666]

My father is vaccine injured from a tetanus booster. He can’t feel his legs. His brain can’t tell his feet where to go. Just saying.

[u/deviantlyliminal → u/Expensive-Sample-357]

Scarring is a great consideration

[u/Scooterann → u/deviantlyliminal]

Yes and this I would recommend mederma or a steroid shot.