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Ondine Burst Abcess

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lu_lu

lu_lu

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I noticed Ondine looked a little bald under her chin, a quick trip to the vets for a check up and she came back all clear, the vet decided to treat for mites just in case that was the cause (we have had mice in the pig shed so i was a little worried they might have caught something), 3 weeks later and there has been no difference, Thursday when feeding the veg i noticed it looked like Ondine had red under her chin, on further inspection she has a hole under her chin which was weeping a mix of blood and fluid, it was a national holiday here on Thursday so nowhere was open and we don't have emergency vets where we are (when we asked at the vets about it, the reply was most French people don't use the vet, if the animal is ill it is common to leave it to die as its cheaper!). We flushed the hole with sterile saline, then flushed it through with iodine, gave the area a squeeze until the hard puss stopped coming out, then flushed the area again with saline, dried the area off then sprayed with terramycin, we've done this twice daily so far. She has thankfully lost no weigh and there is no noticable change in behavior.

I'm wondering (1) does she need oral antibiotics? I have no confidence now in the vets here but the vet will prescribe oral antibiotics if i need it. (2) Once the infection has completely cleared does the area need suturing? and if so should Ondine be awake/asleep when this is being done (3) Is there any more i could be doing?

thankyou in advise for any advise
 
I don't have much experience on abcesses but if I recall the wound does need to be kept open. Zithromax (Azithromycin) is supposed to be the best antibiotic for abcesses. Would your vet consider speaking to a UK vet for information? If so Simon Maddock in Northampton prescribes Zithromax.
 
Thanks for replying, I will ask but unless the vet speaks fluent French then I can't see it happening, the vet at the moment isn't our usual one and even though the text books they use are written in English, her spoken English isn't too good and our French isn't strong enough to be able to translate, We are due to move back in 5 weeks and it can't come quick enough but i don't think it would be wise to hang on that long without doing anything more.
 
I am currently finding out the nationality of a vet I know who prescribes it.
 
Sorry I can't offer much advise but I think the most important thing to do at the minute is to keep the hole open and clean.

What saline are you using at the minute? You can make your own by mixing 1 pint of cooled boiled water (I use mine from the kettle) with 1 teaspoon of salt. Use a soft cotton bud to gently clean the hole and surrounding area.
 
You are doing all the right things. The best thing to do is to leave it open to heal from the bottom. Abscesses can heal up without oral antibiotics, but Zithromax is probably better than Baytril if the infection has taken hold. Hope you get this sorted. x
 
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