Besides an E-collar?

Does bitter apple spray really work?

My Beagle decided that she was going to run to the window to bark at the mailman yesterday. Upon jumping down from the window, she got one paw stuck in the curtain and the other paw fell wrong.

She partially snapped her nail way past the quick. Blood everywhere! The house looked like a crime scene, with puddles of blood leading to the kitchen.

An emergency vet visit was quickly in the works, because I could not stop the bleeding.

And now she is all bandaged up (they cut the nail really short to keep it from getting irritated - it was not completely broken off).

However, she keeps chewing on the bandage. And I have no desire to take her to the vet daily, at a charge, to get it re-wrapped.

Right now she has a newborn baby sock on it, to discourage her from eating the bandage.

But she keeps trying to take the sock off so she can chew on the bandage. (And wrapping the top of the bandage in tape does not work - I have not yet tried duct tape, but don't really want to use such a heavy tape unless I absolutely need to).

Any other suggestions?? She would go ballistic with an E-collar.

I am not looking forward to staying home all weekend (she can get the bandage removed on Monday) to make sure she does not pull the bandage off.

Thanks, in advance!!

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"Yesterday my life was duller, now everything's technicolor!"

Ugh, that's awful! No help on the e-collar -- we have one cat who will NOT wear them, or the biting, just lots of sympathy. Do try peroxide on your carpets, and any cloth that got bloody, it helps a lot. We had a broken tail a few years ago, and one blood puddle was so deep it kept coming back, even after we cleaned it. The victim's fine now, though.

Just a suggestion but the ecollar may help to calm her down. Worth a shot anyway...

Bitter apple spray is used for correction. If your dog is barking, ripping bandage etc. give a one word command such as "stop". If the behavior does not cease, use the bitter apple (hand over the dogs eyes, lift their lips and a quick spray into the mouth) to enforce the command. It is effective for problematic behaviors. Never spray the liquid on a bandage, wood etc. because it can actually end up tasting sweet and encouraging the problematic behavior. They do make a bitter apple cream that you can put on items you do not want you dog to chew. It's my understanding that the cream or whatever it is does not end up sweet like the spray. I would ask at your pet store and see if they carry it.

I have a bitter apple spray in my cupboard right now that is for spraying on things that you do not want chewed. I got it for electrical cords to protect our puppy. I've never heard of spraying it in an animal's mouth. Maybe there are different types. I think this would be worth a shot, OP.

I've heard of a couple of newer types of ecollars that are out that are supposedly not as horrible for the animal as the plastic cones. I think one of them is inflatable and just more comfortable overall. Check Petsmart or Petco. Good luck!

My Vet just recommended the bitter apple spray for my cat(whim I just brought home with cast on her foot) but it doesn't work!!! I have had to use it on furniture and blinds because my other cat was chewing everything(it doesn't stop her at all). The only other suggestion he had was the E collar also. Good Luck

I went on a mission yesterday to find bitter apple spray and finally found it at the hardware/feed store combo near our house.

I asked about it, and they said that they could sell it to me, but it wouldn't help. Because it is an injury, the apple spray won't do a thing to help her stop taking nibbles at the bandaid now and then - like a person with a cast, it itches under there.

They said to put a dab of tabasco sauce on the top of the sock. The hotness will discourage her from chewing on the area (she has a pretty sock over her bandaid - I should take a picture of it - she looks too cute!!).

Glad I didn't spend $10 on the spray.

Monday she gets the bandaid off, so if we can make it through the weekend, we will be fine.

Thanks!!

edited to add : Here she is with her sock. Her sock says "princess" - can you tell I only have a boy as a real child, LOL!!??

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8...WLNw2YtQe3nwo/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8...WLNw2YtQe3nwo/

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"Yesterday my life was duller, now everything's technicolor!"

I feel your pain. Last year, my Basset Hound had surgery to remove 13 subaceous gland cysts. Staples were put in all incisions. Got home one evening and he had pulled the staples out of the only incision he could reach. Of course I had to take him back to the vet, they had to put him back to sleep, clean out the incision, stitch him back up and put him on antibiotics to get rid of any infection he may have caused. My vet, would not put a collar on him because he said with Basset's being so close to the ground that the collar inhibited them even walking - he gave us a tube of something called YUCK. He said, "he may go for it one time, but I'd guarantee he won't try it twice" and he was right! I put that around the wound once a day and he left it alone.

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Mom to 3 - one with 2 legs and 2with 4!