Changing the Bandages on a Leonberger and Why Rollo Could Be a Nurse

October 2019 was a tough month for us and especially for our Leonberger Bronco. He had a toe amputation due to a cancer growth on his toe, mysteries sores on his paw that wouldn’t heal for a long time, a tornado destroyed our neighborhood and damaged our house (cost $50,000.00), and then Bronco had a heart failure. All in one month.

Bronco, our Leonberger lying on the basketball court / runway by our broken fence. He has a bandage and a plastic bag around his back right foot.
Bronco lying in front of our fence, which was damaged by the tornado. His paw is in a bandage and there’s a plastic bag around it. I can add that we only put the plastic bag on while he was outside. If you keep it on longer than 15 minutes you may have problems with condensation.

Our veterinarian’s office had been destroyed by the tornado, so we took Bronco to the veterinary surgical center (where he had his toe amputated) for bandage changes (amputated toe and mysterious sores). After a few visits, the technicians suggested that we do it at home to save time and money. More important, it would be easier on Bronco. So, they gave us instructions, and we started doing it at home.

Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt of Bronco running with a cast. He is looking very excited.
Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt of Bronco running with a cast.

But changing Bronco’s bandages wasn’t as easy as just rolling out some gauze and tape. First, we had to clean the sores with chlorhexidine, an antiseptic solution. Then we had to apply a healing ointment, such as manuka honey or QuickDerm. This involved spreading it on an Adaptic pad (breathable and nonstick), then wrapping the pad with a Telfa pad (or gauze pad). After that came the soft bandage, then the outer bandage, then something sticky to hold it all together. The latter was necessary because bandages easily slip off dog hair.

Two dogs on a brown blanket. Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd on the left. Le Bronco our Leonberger on the right.
Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd on the left. Le Bronco our Leonberger on the right. The outer bandage is purple in this picture but we also used green.

I did most of the bandage changes, but my wife Claudia and the children helped, and even Rollo, our mini-Australian Shepherd helped. He was very curious: he stood by and watched everything I did as if he were checking to see that I didn’t forget anything. He loved Bronco’s bandage changes and seemed to think that they were very interesting. He followed every move I made with my hands and it seemed like he wanted to help. It was never a problem—except for the time he drank the chlorhexidine.

Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd is standing next to Bronco our Leonberger. He is looking at Bronco and the bandage equipment.
Rollo carefully inspecting the bandage change.
Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd is standing next to Bronco our Leonberger, and he is looking at the bandage equipment.
Rollo making sure I don’t forget anything.
Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd is standing next to Bronco our Leonberger. He is sniffing the Hypafix tape.
Rollo thinks the Hypafix tape, chlorhexidine and manuka honey is very interesting.

Therefore, I think that Rollo was a little bit like a dog nurse.

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Author: thomasstigwikman

My name is Thomas Wikman. I am a software/robotics engineer with a background in physics. I am currently retired. I took early retirement. I am a dog lover, and especially a Leonberger lover, a home brewer, craft beer enthusiast, I’m learning French, and I am an avid reader. I live in Dallas, Texas, but I am originally from Sweden. I am married to Claudia, and we have three children. I have two blogs. The first feature the crazy adventures of our Leonberger Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle as well as information on Leonbergers. The second blog, superfactful, feature information and facts I think are very interesting. With this blog I would like to create a list of facts that are accepted as true among the experts of the field and yet disputed amongst the public or highly surprising. These facts are special and in lieu of a better word I call them super-facts.

43 thoughts on “Changing the Bandages on a Leonberger and Why Rollo Could Be a Nurse”

  1. This was such a tough month. Sending the best of wishes for a blessed ending to this year.

    Such a big ouchy for Bronco, and more than one. Taking it all in stride. We have a lot to learn from our dogs. Shame, Rollo really was worried.

    That drawing is so entertaining. Because a doggo really would run with a cast on and manage to have a ball 🙂

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    1. Thank you, Patricia, it certainly was a tough month for Bronco, but he recovered fairly well from it. He was very old for a Leonberger. They don’t live that long, typically 8-10 years, and he was 12. It used to be that they lived only 6-8 years but the Leonberger Health Foundation International has made some remarkable progress. They gave Bronco an award for his longevity called the Grey Muzzle Award and we donated his DNA for research. We would lose Bronco the summer of 2020 but he gave us many stories and adventures. You are right, I think Rollo was worried about what was going on with Bronco. His big old friend not being in good shape.

      That drawing really represents another time he had the same kind of toenail cancer (squamous cell carcinoma)  and he escaped wearing a full leg cast. He was chasing people and dogs in the neighborhood as his cast went bonk, bonk, bonk on the sidewalk. He was not supposed to bump it.

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  4. What a wonderful, entertaining story!! You know how much I love your dog stories. 💗 Living in hurricane country, I definitely send you my sympathies. I’m sorry you sustained so much damage. Ouch!!! The eye of the Hurricane Hugo passed 30 miles from our house the year it devastated South Carolina. I’ll never forget the sound of its approach. As deafening as a roaring freight train accompanied by exploding power transformers and flying trees. Tornadoes are no fun either. Been through those as well. My heart goes out to you, dear friend!! Rollo is such a dear. I’ve worked in feral cat rescue for over 40 years and have doctored countless feral cat colony wounds and diseases, and the work is always easier when the buddies of the injured animal are curious rather than troublesome. Although I hope the anesthetic Rollo drank didn’t have an adverse effect on him. Poor guy!!

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    1. Thank you chihuahuagirl3. I have to say we were lucky though. The tornado (EF3) passed by our house about 50-100 yards away (it was about 20-30 yards wide) and it smashed our chimney, we needed a new roof, new fence, new garage door, new wiring in the attic, a new grill. However, our house stood. The neighbors who had a direct hit had no house left at all. Their houses were rubble. What would we have done if our house had been flattened? I am sorry Hurricane Hugo devastated South Carolina. I believe I remember this. What year was that? About Rollo drinking chlorohexidine, he was fine. Luckily chlorohexidine is not poisonous, not very at least.

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      1. You were really blessed!!! Hugo came through in September 1989. It was around 2:00am when it got to us in Columbia. It was a Category 5 and so big it covered the entire state of South Carolina. No way to escape it. Killed over 65 people. It made landfall in Charleston and devastated the city. I remember they were boiling water for months. Took years to rebuild the damage. What would you have done if your house had been flattened? Something to think about. That’s the way you have to think if you live in Florida. You always have to be prepared for the worst. And Floridians are like that. They just shrug as they step through the rubble and rebuild. It’s the price you pay for no freezing winter weather. lol!! So glad to hear Rollo was okay. Whew! We have some silly critters, don’t we? 🤣

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    2. Wow, yes I remember now. I was working for Ericsson in Sweden at the time, but I remember the news. That was a terrible hurricane. If our house had been flattened we would have had a big problem. We have insurance but where would we have put our dogs. No hotel is going to take a big Leonberger and you could not leave the neighborhood because of all the debris. Our in-laws house was unlivable after the tornado (for real). Perhaps friends would have helped. I don’t know.

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      1. I know!! It’s something to seriously consider when you live in the path of hurricanes or tornadoes. Owning cats or little dogs makes a lot of sense then. lol!!!

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    3. Yes it makes it easier in a disaster. Pets in a disaster is a big deal. It used to be that rescue teams refused to take pets, for example, during Katrina or the Australian wild fires. What people often did was refusing to be rescued. In Australia a guy jumped out of helicopter once he heard they wouldn’t take his dog. Because so many people died in Katrina by refusing help rather than leaving pets, they have changed the rules in the US.

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      1. It’s about time!!! And bless all the rescue groups who go in with boats after a disaster like a hurricane to find stranded pets, rescue them, and reunite them with their owners.

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  7. Rollo does indeed make a fine nurse. I’m glad you’re able to do the bandage changes at home. In my head I was wondering if you had Telfa, then you mentioned it. lol I’m so sorry Bronco had to have that done. Poor, sweet boy.

    I’m also sorry about the tornado and damage it did to your house and neighborhood. I hope no one was injured.

    I really love your posts, Thomas, and hearing about how the dogs are. 🙂

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    1. Thank you so much Kymber. Yes it was a lot easier on Bronco doing it at home and then when tornado hit we couldn’t go anywhere for four days. I am glad we could do it at home. My father in law was injured a little bit. He tried to hang onto a door frame as a flying broken table hit him in the back. He got a foot long sore. He was 89 years old at the time but did not want to go to the hospital.

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    2. Thank you Kymber. Yes he is fine. He is 93 years old now and just passed his driving license renewal. In Texas when you are older than 90 you have to renew your license in person, show that you are healthy enough, test your eyes, etc., every two years. We had a little celebration.

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      1. That’s wonderful. My grandmother was like that when she got older. I was so grateful for that. I loved her so much and miss her every day. She is someone I really cherished. Your father-in-law sounds like a great person, and I’m so relieved he is all right and even passed his license renewal. 🙂

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    1. Thank you Denise. Yes it was a tough month. We call it black october. Now it is just a strange memory. It was great that we could do the bandage changes at home. It was a lot less stressful on Bronco who had to endure frequent trips previously. Then after the tornado we could not go anywhere for four days so doing them at was pretty good, and like you said Rollo being there was not an irritant it was a blessing.

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  10. Hi Thomas, my mom slipped and fell on Monday. She fell into the doorframe and it skinned her arm (she is 85 so her skin is very thin). I have also being going through this long rigmarole to clean the wound and change the bandages. She has the added addition of suture plasters. I am glad you were able to do this for Bronco as it is less traumatic (same as for my mom if I do it at home.)

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    1. Roberta I am so sorry about your mom but I am glad you are able to clean her sore and change the bandages. It is much more comfortable and convenient than having to go to the hospital every time. I wish your mom a speedy recovery.

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