I came home late this evening after a meeting and found my female in the corner with her hand kind of tucker under her arm and what appears to be blood. What is safe to use to clean her hand and wound if any?
How much is it bleeding? Can you see a cut? You can pick up some Betadine and add enough to bath water to make it look like weak tea. After that, blot it dry and apply a triple antibiotic like Neosporin. If it isn't deep, keep a close eye on it watching for redness, swelling or a discharge. If she is having trouble walking, she should be examined by a vet and also if you notice any signs of infection as mentioned above. Make sure that you are using a solid substrate to help keep the wound clean. Is she housed alone?
What's the difference between Betadine and regular iodine? Is it bad to use iodine?
I covered it with some A&D ointment last night as it was too late to go out for anything. This morning I gave her a regular bath for about 20m then a slightly shorter bath in some water with iodine. After that I checked her hand and found that the wound was the missing tip of a finger. Over the past couple years she's lost a couple tips, I thought that this was due to either being in the cage with a male occasionally or from skin drying there before I noticed...Now I'm starting to think she may be biting them :shock:
Last year I caught her nipping at her hands a couple days in a row, after doing some research I found that this was potentially due to malnutrition. I gave her more vitamin powder and she stopped. I didn't notice any wounds from it, so thought nothing of it after I didn't see her do it again. I have a male and a female of the same age(~5.5 yrs) and they are on the same diet which includes vitamin and calcium powders.