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My dog won't stop scratching his neuter incision. What can I do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Miniature Poodle | Male | neutered | 4 months and 20 days old | 15 lbs

Hello! Jack was neutered on May 3rd and he also had a small hernia repair where his umbilical cord was. He’s wearing a cone, but is sill able to get his back feet up to scratch the hernia incision. Earlier today he tore a stitch, so back to the vet we went for a couple of staples. The vet recommended socks for his back feet, but he pulls on them and chews his feet. Any recommendations on keeping his incision safe until healed? He’s getting a mild sedative every 8-10 hours to keep him calm...

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on May 6th, 2018

Jack is so cute, but it sounds like he is being quite naughty lately! I would tape the socks to his legs to keep him from pulling them off. Make sure the tape is tight enough to keep the socks up, but not so tight that it cuts off blood supply. You can look at getting him dog boots from the pet store to keep his claws covered. Finally, you can put a loose t-shirt over him to keep the incision safe. This combined with the socks should help. Best of luck!

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Related Questions

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Can you put Triple antibiotic ointment or benadryl itch cream on a dog that is scratching because of an incision made a few days ago when he was being neutered. He is wearing a cone but needs it off to eat and water for a while
No, I would not put these on Raider's incision, as he will likely try to lick them off. Many human ointments contain multiple other ingredients which are not necessarily safe to be swallowed. Dogs can eat and drink with a cone on, they do adapt, but if you take it off, monitor him very closely to keep him away from the incision. If he's scratching at it, you can get put a t-shirt on him to keep it protected or you can buy a medical pet shirt. Monitor the incision daily, and if you see any redness, swelling, warmth to the touch, or pus, it's infected and he will need to see a vet for treatment.
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My dog just got neutered, and he has his e-collar. I was wondering if I could take off his e-collar and instead put him some clothing to cover the incision and also under the clothing, I could put him a diaper. Or are they any clothing recommendation
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Mini australian shep pup (8 mos) neutered almost 2 days ago is able to reach his neuter site despite the cone. Constantly licking and biting the site. Crying and whining too. No meds sent home from vet. Site is red, raw but not oozing...yet. Now it i
Hello. If you have a Petco or other animal supply store near you, take your pet in to see if they can fit him with a more suitable collar. He probably needs a longer one. Once you are sure he can no longer lick or bite the area, you can apply a very thin layer of antibiotic ointment (neosporin) to the area 2-3 times a day...but only if he cannot lick it.
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Ab 1 1/2 mo ago, I had jack neutered because he seemed to have a prob relieving himself fully. And one teste was abit larger then other. I believed if he had prostate prob this may help. Previously he was a great companion almost to the point of spea
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My dog was neutered 2 months ago on May 1st, we adopted him on May 20th. We took him to the vet 4 days after we got him on the 24th due to sores on his neck and the incision site from neutering would not heal. They suggested using neosporin and bitte
Thanks for using Boop by Petco! At least based on these pictures, this looks almost healed. It just has a small area that appears to be close to healing but not quite. While neosporin is ok, I think the main thing to make it completely heal is making sure that he is unable to get to it and chew or lick at it. Please make sure to use an e-collar to try to prevent this. If you are able to keep him from getting to his incision, I think you should be able to get it to heal. You can continue to use the neosporin as that may speed up the healing process. However, make sure to not pick at any scabs as that will usually delay healing. Good luck and have a good night!
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My dog has a rash around the eyes and underneath his mouth that he scratches repeatedly he even rubs it on the side walk... He recently had surgery (got neutered) but that was about 2 weeks ago. I can't afford the bet what can I do?
The first step would be to place an e-collar (cone) on him to prevent further scratching or rubbing. The image shows a collar which is good. Use a warm washcloth to keep the eyes clear. They look inflamed, and possibly infected though. Ideally, he should be rechecked by your veterinarian. If he still has sutures from his neuter, when he returns for suture removal, have the vet check the eyes. He may need medication. There's nothing you can give him at home. Discuss payment plans or alternative financing such as CareCredit (www.carecredit.com) with your veterinarian. You can also ask about low cost or no cost clinics in your area. Financial assistance may possibly be secured through local charities or Red Rover (www.redrover.org).
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What are things to look out for when your 3 month old puppy messed with his neutering stitches?
I would check to see if he pulled any of them out, or if the incision looks red, swollen, or if there is pus coming from it. Should you see any of this, Colt will need to see a vet right away. I would keep an Ecollar on him to keep him from licking at his incision further. You can get one from a pet store or you can make one yourself: http://dogsaholic.com/care/homemade-dog-cone.html
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Yesterday my puppy had a procedure his vet took out inner sutures after neuter that caused irritation for a month, they only cut his skin and put outer suture to close the skin, but at night he kicked the wound open and today the vet closed the skin
That looks fine for the stage it's at. Rather than cover the wound with a bandage, I would put an e-collar or an inflatable collar on him that will keep him from licking at it, unless he's getting to it with his hind claws. In that case you can put baby socks on his hind feet to keep his claws from getting into the staples. If you do keep it covered, change the bandage daily or twice daily if the wound oozes a bit.
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Oliver just got neutered today, and I was wondering if him using his back leg to try to scratch his ear with a rapid kicking motion (he has a cone on) is too much movement. Our vet said that he shouldnt be active, but I didnt think to ask if scratchi
Thanks for using Boop by Petco! That most likely would be fine. If you do see him doing it try to tell him not to do it just to be extra cautious though this is likely just fine and should not result in incision issues. Good luck and have a good night!
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Hi there. Our dog was neutered 11 days ago and 2 days ago we removed his cone. This morning we noticed he may have removed part of the scab from the scrotum area. He appears to be guarding the area as well. Would you return to cone or will this heal?
Thank you for your question about Lucky. Yes, Lucky needs to wear the cone at all times until the incision is completely healed. If he leaves it alone, there is a high likelihood that it will heal on its own. It takes roughly 10-14 days to heal an incision and he damaged it around around day 10 so that is going to delay things a bit. Check the incision daily for redness, swelling or discharge. If you see this, he needs to go to the veterinarian for a likely infection from licking. Keep the incision clean and dry. Don’t worry about putting anything on it. It will likely form a new scab and will continue the healing process. I do recommend to have him checked by his veterinarian in about 1 week. I hope you found this helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.
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