After an Animal Bite and Stitches: How to Care for Your Child
Animal bites usually break the skin. Sometimes a bite wound needs stitches to close the wound or to decrease the size of any scar left after the bite heals. The health care provider carefully examined the wound and cleaned it to help prevent infection. You can continue to prevent infection by taking good care of the wound while it heals.
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The health care provider told you when to return to get the stitches out. Be sure to schedule that appointment as directed.
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Don't let the wound get soaked in water in the bathtub or shower. After 24 hours, you can wash the wound gently with soap and water twice a day.
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Cover the area with a bandage or clean gauze.
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Check the wound at least once a day for redness, swelling, pus, warmth and tenderness.
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Remind your child not to pick at the stitches.
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If the health care provider prescribed an antibiotic, give your child all of the doses as directed even if the wound looks better. This is the best way to kill the harmful germs.
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For pain, a medicine may help. Use these medicines exactly as directed:
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acetaminophen (such as Tylenol® or a store brand)OR
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ibuprofen (such as Advil®, Motrin® or a store brand). Don't give to babies under 6 months old.
Are antibiotics needed after all animal bites? No, only some bites need antibiotics. Cat bites need antibiotics, but dog bites usually don't.
Antibiotics often are needed for bites that:
Is my child at risk of getting rabies? It is very unlikely that your child will get rabies. Pets usually don't have rabies. So unless the bite was from a certain type of wild animal (like a bat, raccoon, skunk or fox), your child is safe.
Health care providers decide if a child needs shots to prevent rabies. Sometimes, they will call a specialist or the local health department to help make the decision.