Dog Bites Biker
While riding alone on Tuesday, out in the county far from cell service, I was chased and then bitten by a dog.NOW WHAT! Well, I think you try to get as much info about the dog as you can. I saw that the dog had a collar and where it had come from so I knocked on the door, and as I’ve heard happen before, the owner virtually blamed me for riding my bike near his house! Never the less, I asked about rabies shots, told him I was going to report the incident to animal control, and got his name and address. Key items. (I always have a working pen and paper in my fanny pack and in a situation like this, more than a little stressful, I wrote it down.)
Now I had to think about this wound. Dogs mouths, like those of the human, are filled with bacteria, which once the skin has been violated, have a pathway into the rider. Bites to the hand can be especially troublesome. Dogs have strong jaws and dull teeth which can crush a good deal of human tissue. And, those athletes with preexisting diabetes, steroid dependency, AIDS or those with circulation problems can be particularly at risk.
So once I had cell service, I called my doctor and was advised to immediately wash the wound-removing dog saliva-with the contents of my water bottle, then ride to their office for definitive wound care. It took 50 minutes to ride there but I was triple washed, given a tetanus shot since mine was 8 years old (no swimming for a couple days-these babies give you a sore shoulder!)and we called animal control.
In that I’m generally healthy and have not had my spleen removed, no antibiotics were necessary. Things seem to be healing nicely, the dogs rabies shots indeed turned out to be up to date and I’m back in training. If you follow these simple measures you will do well too. I think I’ll ride a different route on Sunday!