Dogs are naturally curious animals. If they see another critter that catches their attention, they often want to investigate and play with the creature. However, not all species are friendly. A porcupine might seem like an innocent forest animal who only wants to mind its own business, but a dog often cannot resist harassing the prickly animal.
As the dog chases the porcupine, he might not be able to resist taking a bite out of the funny looking quills. However, porcupine quills are danger and will quickly stick in your dog’s delicate skin causing instant pain.
Your pup will start to cry and rub its snout in an attempt to remove the quills which often makes them embed even deeper in the skin. If you cannot seek at once medical care four your four-legged friend, then you might be faced with removing the porcupine quills from your dog yourself.
Danger of Porcupine Quills
One of the main dangers of porcupine quills is that they can break off and start to migrate through the animal’s skin and blood circulatory system where they can embed in vital organs causing infection or death.
Even if the quills do not migrate from their current location, your pup is still in danger of developing a serious infection without prompt removal and aftercare.
Remove Porcupine Quills from Your Dog’s Skin
If you cannot immediately take your dog to the veterinarian to have the quills removed, then you’ll need to undertake the task yourself to the best of your ability.
Always remove porcupine quills within 24 hours or the skin can become inflamed and make the task even harder to achieve.
Steps to remove porcupine quills:
Step One
Always use a pair of hand pliers to remove the quills. Your fingers will not effectively remove the quills because of their slick surface. You’ll be unable to get a firm grip on the quill without your fingers sliding. Also, the end of the quill is very pointy and can easily become lodged in your skin if the dog should suddenly move.
Step Two
Restrain your dog to the best of your ability and try to keep the pooch calm
Step Three
Grab the porcupine quill firmly with the tip of the pliers and pull straight out. Try to remove the quill as quickly as possible. Never pull the quill at an angle or you will hurt the dog excessively and be unable to get the quill out.
Step Four
After removing the quill, treat the area with hydrogen peroxide or antibiotic ointment.
Step Five
Removing porcupine quills from your dog’s skin is never easy. It can cause the animal a significant amount of discomfort. Following the removal, you’ll need to seek veterinary care to avoid infection from occurring.
If you suspect that a quill broke off below your pet’s skin, then your veterinarian might need to perform imaging to find the missing quill and effectively remove it from the dog’s skin before it moves or causes a severe infection.