Removing stitches advice

[khartley]

I recently adopted a dragon that had been discovered outside in mid April, thought to be dead, and thrown away in a garbage can. He was rescued and taken to the vet, who amputed his tail. The lady that saved him contacted me and I picked him up around the end of may. She said the stitches were to come out on August 14th (seems like a long time to me) , so when the day came, I waited til he was asleep, snipped the stitches and pulled them without him really even waking up. Fast forward to two days ago. His stubby tail has just shed, which revealed that I had missed 2 stitches. So I waited till night to do the same thing. These 2 are quite obviously in much deeper. Barely even touching the stitch makes him wiggle. His tail is not infected, it actually is healing really nicely. But it is possible there is infection around the stitch thread itself, making them sore. They are nylon threads. I'm looking for a bit of advice for removing these ones. My vet is out of town again, and these need to come out asap, they've already been in too long. I also would rather do it with him comfortable instead of having him get stressed at the vets office, because he really hates the vet.

Does anyone have any ideas of how to make it easier? Perhaps soaking the area in warm water with highly diluted hydrogen peroxide would loosen them up? Anyone know if topical numbing agents like orajel would be safe for an adult dragon?

 

[AHBD]

Hi there....I don't think it's advised to use any topical painkiller on beardies. And hydrogen peroxide is not good for any wounds, they know now that it destroys good tissue along with bad. Try some raw honey [ like from a health store or beekeeper ] It's a natural antimicrobial [ Google " raw honey as medicine ", loads of good clinical info ] and it promotes tissue granulation while keeping the wound sterile. It's one of the best things you can put on a wound. Then you can put a band aid or gauze on it for best results and check it every 2 days [ and apply a bit more if needed ] or leave it open + put extra on twice a day since some will be rubbed off by him moving around.

Of course you would need to be vigilant in making sure there are no loose crickets in the tank to be attracted to it.

 

[khartley]

I've heard that hydrogen peroxide isn't good to use on wounds. I was mostly just hoping to find something safe to soak the end of his tail to break the stitches loose from the surrounding tissue. I thought about coconut oil. Here's a picture of the tail. I just don't want to yank them out and make it hurt.

 

[AHBD]

The tail looks good. You can put honey on it beforehand, too since the sugar reduces inflammation. If you want, mix about 3 TBS raw honey in warm water to soak him before hand , but just applying it straight on should work well too.

 

[khartley]

I'll give it a go tonight! Thanks! Here's the face on the other end of the tail. He's a handsome boy.

 

[AHBD]

Aw, he sure is handsome ! And a big smile for his photo op.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Bless him! He has been through a lot, poor guy. He is a great looking dragon.
The honey should help out a lot in warding off & clearing up any infection. The end of the tail has healed up very well actually.
I am sure he is happy to have a home now.
Is he eating well too? I hope he is adjusting to his new surroundings.
Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie