Hosepipe Hydrotherapy

From Episode 177 on the Surgery Feed. With Dr Jenny Groover.

Back in 2024 (remember 2024?!) when I spoke to the great Prof Karen Tobias she referenced a paper that showed that cleaning wounds with tap water can actually yield BETTER results compared to wound lavage with sterile fluids. Now, in this conversation about patients with $5000 wounds but a $500 budget, we get super practical with how to apply this knowledge. (Note that Dr Groover was very clear that these tips are not the IDEAL treatments, but rather a solid plan B for when your client can’t afford best-practice.)

• For those wounds that require multiple bandage changes and wound cleaning, ie, multiple sedations, 30-60 minutes of staff time with each change, and expensive new dressings, a viable alternative option is for the owners to manage the wound at home with:

  • Petroleum jelly on the wound to keep it moist. (Ie, a large tub of vaseline.)

  • Some sort of home-made dressing, like a t-shirt or a tube sock. (DON’T let owners attempt placing actual bandages at home!)

  • A daily wash with the garden hose!

• No, it’s not ideal. But in Dr Jenny’s experience it will often work, and it’s better than euthanasia

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