My dog's tail stitches reopened. Will the wound heal on its own?

Question

My dog injured his tail and had to have a part of the bone removed, when the stitches came out my vet advised that the stitches had been tight and the wound had reopened slightly but it should heal fine, I am concerned about the wound site and concerned it will not heal on its own. Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Large (61lb +) | Male | neutered | 7 years and 2 months old | 90 lbs

Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH · Accepted Answer

I'm sorry that Jerry is going through this! There is not a lot of extra tissue on the tail, so whenever there is an injury it can be difficult to close the area without extra tension on the sutures. it is common that we have small areas of a tail wound that are either left open to heal on their own or open a little if the stiches are too tight. The area should heal on its own, but it is very important that Jerry cannot chew or lick at the area. I have found that I also sometimes have to bandage the area to prevent it from getting injured because the tail does take longer to heal than other areas. So, I certainly undertand your concern and you will need to take extra precautions to make sure that it does heal, but tail injuries do heal when they look like the pictures you attached. If the area becomes red, wet or has any odor to it, please have your veterinarian examine it. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and answered your question. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

My dog's tail stitches reopened. Will the wound heal on its own?

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