What is the treatment for cellulitis in dogs?

Original Question: Our Bulldog was diagnosed with cellulitis but it does not seem to have gotten better and the swelling has spread down to her foot. Is there anything else that we can do for treatment? Medications: Rovera 100mg 1/2 tablet every 12 hours; AmoxiClav 375mg 1 tablet every 12 hours - Juan

Feb 6, 2019

Hi Juan,

Thanks for your question.

Cellulitis is inflammation of the tissues of the skin. There are a few different causes of cellulitis in dogs but the most common is a bacterial infection. It often occurs because of a traumatic penetration of the skin by a foreign body, such as a stick that inoculates the tissue underneath the skin with an infectious agent but there are many other causes as well.

I recommend you confirm the diagnosis with appropriate testing. Most veterinarians would agree that an X-ray is warranted to inspect the tissue for foreign material or any other type of lesions that could be causing the swelling (such as a broken bone, a mass pressing on surrounding vessels, or other defects). A sample of fluid could be collected and tested for different types of infectious agents that could be present.

You are currently administering an antibiotic for a suspected bacterial infection. Keep in mind that there are other infectious agents that could cause a lesion like this that are not a bacteria, such as a fungal infection. It is much more uncommon but since you mention that it is not improving, you may want to consider testing for this as a possibility. Keep in mind that certain bacteria can be resistant to specific antibiotics so performing a culture and sensitivity test would help identify this.