My poodle attacked.

[suzi-q]

My 12 year old poodle was attacked on Friday by a German Shepherd.  There were three puncture wounds.  2 were superficial and the one underneath punctured and lacerated her abdomen.  The doctor gave her a local anesthesia to fix the abdominal wall.  This "surgery" was on Saturday.  The Vet on Friday didn't notice that the puncture hit the abdomen so I brought her to the emergency room on Saturday.  My dog is 12 years old and has advanced heart disease.  She currently takes 3 medications for her heart.  My question is that my dog hasn't been eating since the incident on Friday.  She does drink water and urinates, but that is it.  Could her lack of appetite be due to the trauma that she has been through?  I take her back to the vet tomorrow,  but I was wondering what your input would be.  Thank you.

[Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A]

Pain in the abdomen secondary to the wounds could be enough to put her off her food.  I am also concerned about a secondary infection and fever from the wounds.  If the abdominal wounds were deep enough to infect the inside of her abdomen than peritonitis could set in.  Just make sure she is on a good antibiotic.  The fact that she is drinking and urinating normally is a good sign and means that her urinary bladder was not damaged.  Dogs can go for several days or more without harming themselves (unlike cats).  Dogs in the wild pattern of eating is feast than fast.  I am glad you are taking her back to the vet's tomorrow.  Let us know how it goes.

[suzi-q]

Thank you for your response.  Yes, my dog is on an antibiotic called simplicef.  The vet took her temp. today and it was normal.  He told me not to give her the antibiotic today just to see if that is causing her to not eat, but to begin it again tomorrow.  He didn't run any tests because he said everything seems fine for now.  He said that the bruise that she has from the hernia that she encountered would also put her off food.  I have to call him back and let him know if she eats, if not (which she isn't) he is going to prescribe something else to hopefully improve her appetite.  She will, however, lick butter...so I gave her a little of that.  I just keep praying!