Neutered area of male puppy, flaky skin and painful?

by Tiffani
(Georgia)

I recently adopted a puppy (shepherd mix, around 3 months old) around three days ago from the shelter. They neutered him and allowed me to pick him up the next day. He's very active, eats, drinks, and uses the restroom. The only time he seems lethargic is after we get through with a play session outside.

I noticed he was licking the neutered area and chewing around it. I flipped him over gently and he immediately reacted as if he were in pain. I touched about an inch out around the area which still seemed sore to the touch. There are also yellow-brownish skin flakes on the neutered area, and a patch next to the neutered area on the skin that has these tan flakes.

I can't bathe him yet as they advised me to wait 10 days, and we are only on number four. Could I gently wipe the area with a baby wipe? Baby aspirin? Any type of topical spray ointment?





Hi Tiffani
I'm not a veterinarian and this is a question that you would be better advised to ask your own vet.

Generally the incision area heals up quickly without any real discomfort, and if I were you I'd want to have my vet look at your pups incision to make sure that there's no infection there. If it's painful, red or swollen then it's possible that there is some infection and it's always better to be safe than sorry.

I'm not sure what the flaky skin could mean, but am a little concerned that they could be dried pus that is coming from the incision area. I could be totally wrong because it's impossible for me to tell without actually seeing your pup 'in person' as it were. But I'd definitely recommend checking it out.

As he seems happy, healthy and active otherwise, chances are it's something very minor, or nothing at all, but being cautious is the best course of action.

Hope this helps, best of luck with your new puppy.