Thank you Joanne,
That is a shame that he won't let you assess the damage, as this puts you at a severe disadvantage for knowing how to proceed with Fudges care. Still his behavior does give us cause for concern. If he is drooling, it tells us that the mouth is irritated/uncomfortable. Furthermore, his lack of letting anyone touch the side of his head tells us that the discomfort is significant enough that he is in pain (and they tend to be reluctant to allow handling in painful areas for fear that manipulation would induce further pain).
Therefore, with obvious signs of discomfort (even if he wasn't going to skip dinner for it) and a unknown wound in his mouth, I have to warn you that it would be best to have him seen by his vet at this stage. The vet can examine his mouth and advise you if the damage to his mouth will require intervention (Since punctures will heal with time, but flapping open wounds may require stitching. Furthermore, any possible tooth damage like fractures would be painful and require intervention as well.). As well, they can dispense dog safe pain relief (ie metacam, rimadyl, previcox, onsior, bupenorphine, etc) that he is clearly telling us that he needs. As well, since the mouth is absolutely full of bacteria, we'd want to have him covered with an antibiotic to ensure proper helping.
Finally, I do want to warn you not to be tempted to give any human pain relievers to your lad. The reason is because our common anti-inflammatories (ie Tylenol, paracetamol, ibuprofen) can be dangerous to animals and can cause ulceration (and sometimes perforation) of the stomach. It isn't strictly dose dependent, so even one small dose can cause these signs. Dogs and cats just don't metabolize these medications the same way we do, and not only does it cause these problems but they don't even provide great pain relief even if we did take the risk. Even aspirin, which tends to carry the lowest risk of adverse effects has such poor pain relief that we don't use it in veterinary medicine for pain control at all in dogs. As well, it would be contraindicated in a wound situation since it can thin the blood (and could cause the wound to bleed again). So, these would not be options at all and I'd implore you not to put him
at risk with these (since we'd not want to cause him more harm when trying to help him).
Overall, the position of the wound and his refusal to let you examine the area will greatly limit any home care here. Therefore, if he is this sore with his mouth, the best course of action is to have his vet examine the area to ensure there is nothing gaping that needs stitching and to get him some proper doggie pain relief to settle his pain and make him more comfortable post injury.
If you need any additional information, do not hesitate to ask!
All the best,
Dr. B.
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