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My dog keeps licking my cat's wound. How can I stop it and heal it?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | neutered

my friends cat has a wound on its neck and her dog keeps licking the wound and she don't know how to stop the dog from licking it but also wants a remedy to heal the wound as well

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on April 26th, 2017

Oh no, poor Cat! You may need to be a shirt on him to keep the dog from licking at the wound. Cats will fit into baby shirts, and you can find a cheap from an op shop. Usually an infant size 3-6 months will fit a cat. You can clean the wound with warm water and antiseptic soap, but I don't recommend putting any ointments on it. Although quite safe on superficial wounds, cats groom and ingest most of the topical ointment you apply and therefore should be used only under direct veterinary supervision and if there are no other appropriate options. Many human ointments contain multiple other ingredients which are not necessarily safe to be swallowed. Keep an eye on the wound, and if it becomes red, swollen, warm to the touch, or has pus, it's infected and cat will need to see the vet for antibiotics.

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