How do you soothe a dog that has been stung by a nettle?
I fell into nettles a lot when I was a kid.It happened whenever I was at my grandparents house.There is a farm and plenty of meadow to run on.I ended up in nettles every time I played with their dogs.I remember the burning sensation on my legs and the small bumps that appeared afterwards.I assumed that dogs could get affected by this as well.When Bailey chased a ball into a bush of nettles, I learned my lesson.
Bailey drives a crazy prey drive.I can honestly say that she has come a long way since we started working on self-control.She will chase that ball into a bottomless pit if she has to.It is my responsibility to make sure the ball does not fall.I didn't think much of it when I saw the ball in the bushes in our back yard, but she is no stranger to searching for balls in bushes.She jumped out when she went into them head-first.I could tell that she was in pain, but that crazy turkey had a ball in her mouth.Her instinct is crazy.
It took two or three calls for her to hear me after I called her.She dropped the ball and rubbed her nose with her paws as she ran towards me.I went to check the bushes after taking her in my arms.There are some animals in the yard.I thought it might have been a bee.It clicked in my head as soon as I saw it.
I took her inside and had to set her on the floor to do what any sensible dog mom would do in a crisis: search the internet for the symptoms of my dog's illness.
It wasn't too bad for me this time.Most of the people who have had this happen to their dogs said it was about soothing the pain that would last a couple of hours.
I washed Bailey's snout and ears with a cloth and got her to her crate where she felt safe.She stopped crying as soon as she got inside.You don't know what to do when you lock eyes with your furry friend, but you can tell they're hurting.I put coconut oil on her snout and ears and it didn't hurt.She spent the next 15 minutes trying to lick the coconut oil off her face.She was successful and it made the situation worse because she was scratching herself hard.I immediately thought of that when I realized that Chilly has had some skin irritation issues and I use 100% aloe gel to help him.She fell asleep after I put the gel on the affected areas and closed the crate.I think she was exhausted from the game in the yard as well as the pain and hysterical running.I kept a close eye on her and made sure she was still breathing when she woke up.
I wanted to share this experience because I had no idea that it could sting dogs and after reading some more information online, it seems that the problem is mostly with dogs with short hair and thin skin.
If this raises some awareness and you can make sure that your dog doesn't have the same painful experience, it's a good thing!It would mean a lot to me if you shared this article with other dog moms.
Have you ever had your dog stung?How did you help them deal with the pain?We can learn from each other.