Petco Text Logo
Petco Pet Logo

Dog has a bleeding head wound from play. Should I see a vet?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Staffordshire Bull Terrier | Female | spayed | 3 years and 9 months old | 50 lbs

The dogs were rough-housing a bit to hard and his tooth/claw [not sure which] broke skin on her head. It bled for maybe 5 minutes and now only bleeds when she starts rolling around. It doesn't seem to bug her, and she lets me clean it without any problems. Would stitches be a good recommendation or just clean it with saline and neosporin every time she goes outside?

This question includes photos that may contain sensitive content. Click to view.

View more to consider that the photos may include sensitive content.

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Image profile

Answered By Vanessa Yeager DVM MPH

Veterinarian

Published on August 6th, 2018

Hi and thanks for posting! Sometimes bite wounds can leave pockets in the skin making the wound worse than they appear initially. It would be a good idea for this to be evaluated by a veterinarian. Your veterinarian will asses the area for pockets in the skin and asses whether or not stitches are needed. It seems small enough for tissue glue to be used but the wound may need to be closed with a stitch or two. A lot of bacteria is intro introduced into the skin and surrounding tissue during a bite. Brisquette may need systemic antibiotics as well to help lessen the chance of developing an infection. I hope this helps and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Vote icon

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

image
Have A Vet Question?

Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.

Sponsored