As the weather becomes more pleasant people are loving the fact that they can get out for decent long dog walks again…but with long dog walks come the inevitable injuries.

Cuts and grazes are just everyday occurrences in dogs all over the countryside. In this part of the country, we have lots of flint stones in the soil and cut pads are a regular occurrence, combine this with the ever-present threat of barbed wire and you have our two main causes of wounds.

Cuts we see in practice vary hugely in depth and severity; some simple, clean and fresh cuts can be closed with the use of veterinary staples in a dog that is not even sedated.

Sadly, often the cuts that we see are not as simple as this; barbed wire cuts can be a real pain as the tearing effect of barbed wire can produce cuts with loose skin flaps.

Skin flaps are one reason that we need to sedate a dog to suture a wound – because the blood supply to skin flaps is often compromised, we must cut back the skin to viable tissue before suturing.

Understandably cutting back skin is not something that we can do in a conscious dog. Another reason we might need to sedate a dog to repair a wound is if the wound is more than a few hours old and we miss the window for “first intention” healing – again these wounds will need “debriding” which means cutting back to healthy flesh – not something we can do in a conscious dog.

So do not be surprised if your vet recommends sedation to repair a wound – it is better to do a good job first time round than risk wound breakdown.

Alice Moore is a vet at Castle Veterinary Clinic, Dorchester and Weymouth. Tel 01305 267083