Roseville Dog Bite Lawyer

How to Treat a Dog Bite Injury

I’m Ed Smith, a Roseville Dog Bite Lawyer. We all know that dogs are one of the most popular household pets, and for a good reason: dogs are loyal, loving, and therapeutic companions. However, even the sweetest dog is capable of harming another dog or human, and dog bites happen for a variety of reasons. Dogs are everywhere – out in the street, in your neighbor’s backyard, and at local city parks. Here is what you should do after a dog bite injury.

Identify the Dog’s Owner

It is important to locate the owner of the dog who bit you for many reasons. Once you find the dog owner, you can exchange contact information and then follow up to make sure that the dog has had an up-to-date rabies vaccination. Just to be safe, you may want to consider contacting the dog’s veternarian to make sure you have all relevant and accurate information about the dog’s vaccines. It is also important to notify Animal Control as well as your local Police Department of the accident, in order to make sure the dog owner takes precautionary steps to prevent their dog from biting someone else.

Obtain Medical Attention

The most important step to take in treating a dog bite wound is to immediately seek medical care. Medical attention is especially important if you were bitten by a stray or wild animal, even if the injury appears to be minor. A health care provider will thoroughly clean the wound and provide antiobiotics if necessary. Medical treatment for a dog bite wound can include anti-rabies treatment, stitches, tetanus shots, or pharmaceutical medicine such as ibuprofen.

Watch for Infection Symptoms

Did you know that roughly 20 percent of all dog bites result in infection? That’s 1 in every 5 dogs. Here are some signs of infection from a dog bite injury:

Fever: A fever and/or excessive shiverring are systemic symptoms that may result in an infection. Infections are correlated with an increase in body temperature.
Redness and Swelling: Inflammation is an immune response to infection, and inflamed body parts generally have an intensely red pigmentation and swelling around the site of the wound. If a wound becomes swollen and bright red during any time after an injury has occured, you may need medical attention.
Pus discharge: Any wound that has persistent leakage may be signifying an infection. Pus is the body’s natural immune system response to infection, as it indicates that your body is attempting to fight off any harmful bacteria and germs.