Swelling at spay incision site

[szelynn]

Kali was spayed nearly 4 weeks ago, and had some mammary tumours, a large cyst and another lump on her leg removed. I just noticed some red swelling on one side of her spay incision...should I be worried? Could it be infected even after so long?? I noticed it yesterday and have been watching it to see if it got any worse, but it seems the same...

I hope I don't have to put her on more antibiotics, we had her on Clavamox and then on Cefalexin (because she ripped some staples out) and then she got an ear infection this week...we have been back and forth to vets many times this month

[Sabine]

I would definitely have the vet check the incision site. Could be that there's an underlying problem. One of my dogs had that problem once and had developed an infection underneath the scar.

[Purpledomino]

It's pretty sad when your profile picture is your pup with its cone on! It sounds like your poor dog has been through alot lately, but I agree that you should probably take her in to get checked out. Especially if the site is red and swollen. They may not charge for the vet visit if you mention it as a recheck for the spay incision......

[szelynn]

Oh but it's such a cute picture of her!

I'll call them tomorrow, I'm more worried about them giving her more antibiotics...I don't think her immune system can take more of a beating right now :sad:

[Purpledomino]

Originally Posted by szelynn

Oh but it's such a cute picture of her!

I'll call them tomorrow, I'm more worried about them giving her more antibiotics...I don't think her immune system can take more of a beating right now :sad:

You are right, she definately is a doll! Just be sure to mention your concern about the antibiotics when you see the vet. Good luck!

[minimomma]

Is the lump.. hot to the touch? Does it appear red? When you touch it does your dog wimper? Any signs of pain?

I know when we got our cats fixed.. we always had a little lump and this was natural. With our last kitty it took a good month to go away. We were told to keep an eye on it. If it was hot to the touch then to bring her in.

Just my 2 cents

[szelynn]

It's definitely red, as far as it being painful...her threshold for pain is so high I wouldn't even know if it DID hurt her.

When she ripped her staples out 2 weeks ago, we didn't even know she did it until we saw some blood on the floor and her incision open on her tummy...and when we decided to take her to emergency and got her leash out she started bouncing around all excited to be going out! All I could do was cringe and try to calm her down - she's just a big doofus

[rainbow]

LOL.....yep, a typical lab is a big doofus.

I would get the vet to take a look for sure. Hugs for Kali and good luck at the vet.

[bendyfoot]

It's not unusual to get a finger or hotdog-shaped lump along the length of the spay incision a few weeks after the surgery. It's just scar tissue, and it will slowly dissapear in the months that follow.

That said, most vets won't charge to re-check an incision, and if you're worried at all, it's a good idea to have it looked at if only to put your mind at ease. I would be worried if it was red, inflamed, or oozing anything.