Wound care for non-abscess wound (possible lick granuloma) a

[Chocbee]

Our almost five year old female has a large sore on the top of her foot. The vet suspects a lick granuloma although they have not seen this in gp before. They have prescribed an ointment. Because the wound is possible caused by excess licking we have opted to dress and bandage it. We apply the ointment and dress it daily. My question is whether we should also be cleaning the wound with saline when changing the dressing. Apart from the wound she appears very well with a hearty appetitive, glossy coat and happy demeanour. However after a week of wound care as described above, the wound doesn’t seem to be getting any smaller. There is no sign of infection (no pus or odour) but the dressing is bloody when removed. The wound is approx 1 cm wide. Maybe a little less. I appreciate any suggestions or advice thank you.

 

[Swissgreys]

Welcome to the Forum and sorry your piggy is having this problem.

It really sounds like you have taken all the right steps, she has been seen by a vet and is being treated.

Does she live alone?
How big is her cage?
What is her diet like?
What ointment were you prescribed?

Just trying to think of other things that might help us get a clearr picture.
If you could post a photo of her foot that would also help as other members might have seen/dealt with something similar.

I had a dog with a lick granuloma once and i have to be honest and say it did take a long time to clear up - I think once the skin is damaged it just heals more slowly than a regular wound.

 

[PigglePuggle]

We had a granuloma as an odd reaction to surgical sutures where all the skin tissue broke down leaving a big open wound but obviously without the licking complication
We were bathing/flushing twice daily with saline the applying manuka honey, with the vet doing a hibiscrub flush and debride every 2-3 days. The manuka honey worked miracles for healing an open wound but probably this isnt appropriate for a wound that is being licked, unless maybe you could talk to the vet about covering it and maybe applying something bad tasting to the dressing?
Sorry if this doesnt help in this case but the manuka honey really did heal up a granuloma wound that was too big to even try and stitch and the vet was thinking PTS so I thought it was worth mentioning. Hope your piggy is ok x

 

[Chocbee]

Thanks for your replies. Here is some extra information:

Caramel lives with her sister.
Their inside cage is approx 2 metres square and lined with fleece on a corflute floor. The fleece and absorbent layer under are washed daily. As it is summer here (NZ), they also spend daytime in an outside cage which is wooden with a grassy area and an shelter lined with newspaper, shredded paper and hay. They eat pellets, fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh grass and hay. The ointment prescribed is Fucithalmic. Here are some photos.
I think it might be starting to form a scab. I’m thinking about the medihoney suggestion as the wound is covered and we are getting better at ensuring it doesn’t come off. Right now I’m not cleaning it but wonder if I should be flushing it with saline.

 

[piggieminder]

Bless her that looks so sore. I hope it heals up very soon. What a sweet looking little piggy she is.