So, I was riding my bike yesterday, and stopped about 2 miles from home to talk to some acquaintences--the daughter is a good friend of my daughter. As I was leaving, I began to pedal my bike out the driveway, and their pitbull dog came out of nowhere and bit me in the ankle!. OUCH!

Reported it to the police, went to the ER, got some stitches, and pretty much spent my entire night throbbing in pain. I did take some pain medication, but not much relief AND I got sick on them anyway. So, I am just going to tough it out with Ibuprofen.

I have a difficult time walking, even used crutches for much of the day. I can bear weight but because of the swelling I don't have any flexibility in my ankle at all.

So, for now, my biking is on hold...

so sorry to hear this. Hope you get better soon.

Sorry to hear, keep us informed!

thanks guys!

Going to see the doctor today. I am afraid that I am developing infection now. Scares me cuz I am a nurse and have seen this happen from the "other side". I pray that this starts to get better soon.

I was registered for a bike ride this weekend, and now looks like I may have to cancel my plans, but I am going to wait and see.

I thought I was doing pretty well, but I confirmed my fear of infection today. Abscessed, so went in to clinic, wound opened, drained, packed. OUCH!

Sorry to hear that! I often wonder whyt people keep such agressive breeds like pitbuls or rotweillers... I hope though the dog would not be put to sleep, it would be probably heartbreaking for that family and end of friendship for your daughter! Not sure what the law is in the US but here in England, as far as I know, if you report to police the dog is pretty automatically put to sleep...

Painful!!!!

In our area, depends on the severity of the bite and number of times. 3 strikes is it, and this was strike 3 for this dog. I feel Sorry for the children who may be losing their pet, but at least a child didn't get mauled.

Still painful but doc was satisfied with progress today. Keep praying!

This was the THiRd time the dog bit someone? Yikes. Sad for the children, yes, and really wish the dog had been better trained.

My opinion, I think the dog owners need to be trained! Two strikes against it, they should've had the dog on a leash and under control.

Most cities have leash laws.
Or require "under control", if not leash laws.
But clearly, many, many people do not take dog ownership responsibility, seriously.
Until ...

Since We don't have dogs, I am not familiar with our dog leash laws here. I may do some research to find out, though.

My daughter saw her friend this past weekend. She is upset about it, actually thinks she was to blame since she was unable to grab the dog on time. Not her fault at all. If it had been leashed, it would not have gotten to me. I keep telling her that it isn't her fault. Dogs like that can be unpredictable. Her parents are the "responsible" ones.

There is no specific leash law in the city, but there is a special law pertaining to "regulated" animals. Pitbulls and Rottweilers are both considered regulated dogs (they have both of these dogs). If the dogs are outside, they have to be muzzled and on a leash no longer than 4 feet in length, and under physical control of a responsible person.

None of this happened last Monday. Those people have both a pitbull AND a rottweiler. I got bit by the pitbull. Both dogs were outside roaming the yard unleashed and unmuzzled. I guess this could have happened to anyone, including their own family. I wonder what they would have done if it had happened to their daughter instead of me?

BTW, I know this really has no relation to the Zone, but it does have an impact on my ability to stay in the Zone because now I am more dependent on my husband's food prep--which he generally takes the easy way out and is not as stringent on avoiding the starches and processed foods. I have a gaping hole in my leg, have a lot of swelling and can't even put on a shoe, and need to keep my leg elevated. I think I need to start working with him by setting up a food prep station at the kitchen table so that I can help him out with the meal prep. LOL

Fortunately, my wife is on-board with our zoning our meals.
If I stand too long, I have to sit with my now active Piriformis Syndrome.
Fortunately we have a small island in the middle of our kitchen on which we do most of our food prep.
And four bar height stools, on which I can sit.

Saw doc again today, seems to be healing up and improving. Still a lot of tightness and swelling, but not as much redness. The wounds are improving, but still have a ways to go. Doc does not want me riding my bike yet, which is NOT making me very happy!

But, I can tolerating being on my feet a little more, so that should improve the quality of the meals.

LOL!

But it does sound as if it hurts a fair amount.

Sarah

Er, but you sound like you're doing well ...

Sarah

Yeah, doing well, just not fast enough! I am not one to sit still, so hanging around in the lazy boy chair with my feet up in the air is not my idea of having fun! It is driving me crazy not being able to ride my bike, or swim in the pool, etc.

There is still some pain, it is getting less.

[quote]
Posted By cranberrycat on 26 Jun 2012 09:17 PM
So, I was riding my bike yesterday, and stopped about 2 miles from home to talk to some acquaintences--the daughter is a good friend of my daughter. As I was leaving, I began to pedal my bike out the driveway, and their pitbull dog came out of nowhere and bit me in the ankle!. OUCH! [/quote]


My goodness! Hope the hospital gave you shots for all the nasty diseases that dogbites can give you...
Do you plan to sue the owners of the dog, or not? Or are they good friends?
In England almost only yobs have pitbulls and it's a bit of a problem that they are sometimes bred to fight, and attack people.
Hope you get better soon!

The dog was up to date on its vaccinations. I have been on hefty antibiotics to fight off the infection, having started on one antibiotic, also receiving 2 shots of another antibiotic in my behind, and then an increase in the amount of antibiotic. Needless to say, I am also taking probiotics to help prevent any problems that may occur from taking these hefty doses of antibiotic. And, my fish oil! Due to the levels of inflammation, I am increasing my dose.

I am considering a lawsuit, but it is a touchy situation. I was not good friends with them, but our daughters are really good friends in school, and I don't want to do something to harm their friendship. I am considering discussing with an attorney. I should be compensated for my medical expenses and for lost wages. Outside of that, I am not really considering "pain and suffering". I just want what is due to me, and that is all.

Yes, definitely a touchy situation! And I do understand why you'd want to be compensated for your medical expenses and lost wages. I don't know if there's another way to be compensated than a lawsuit, but anyway ...

Sarah

The insurance should play itself out on its own. My health coverage will "deny" the claim and then send it to the liability carrier (their insurance, if they have any). If they don't have it, then my insurance will end up covering my health care expenses (they may go after them privately, I don't know). I should not be stuck with the bill.

My lost wages is another story, and again it comes down to whether or not they have liability coverage.

I got myself some medi-honey!

A few months back (maybe longer, I don't remember), we were discussing honey and its benefits, and it was mentioned the healing power of honey.

So, I saw a wound care specialist today, and she gave me some medi-honey to try on my wound. The wound is clean, but there is some slough forming, and the edges are curling inward. We would rather have it heal from the bottom up. The medi-honey is placed inside the wound, it helps to debride (clean it out), and will hopefully help it to heal in the right direction.

Just an update on the amazing progress made overnight!

The swelling that I had in my ankle and foot has miraculously disappeared overnight. There is very little residual swelling left over at this point. I still have a considerable amount of discomfort in the ankle and difficulty with the range of motion, but with less swelling, I think that this should start to improve, as well.

I don't know if it was just "time" for things to improve, or if the sudden change had anything to do with the addition of the medihoney? So, I was reading on the medihoney website, and the following statement is made:
"The dressings, with their high sugar content, also display a high level of osmotic activity. This results in an outflow of lymph from the wound, assisting in debridement and edema reduction."

There was also a lot of exudate in the wound bed, and I haven't changed the dressing yet, so it should be interesting to see the difference in the appearance of the wound bed. Wish I had taken a "before" picture!

Anyway, I am really feeling uplifted by the progress made overnight, after 10 days of really seeing very slow improvement.

I would not doubt the effects of the medihoney.