Hi, everyone, I have a situation in my story where a character gets injured but he is taken care of at home (without any medical professionals). Is it probable for him to survive a dog attack with just nerve damage and no medical care? He suffers bites deep enough for him to lose proper function of his hands. But if the wounds are deep enough for that, then shouldn't he be suffering other complications? I have a feeling that his wounds are bound to get infected, but I am not sure how to get around that since there is no doctor handy.
Typically a dog bite of this magnitude would cause infection issues. Once bitten by a small dog on my hand, arm swelled up to the elbow, required antibiotics in a shot form then 10 more days by mouth. Same with a cat scratch several years before that. Is it possible there are some stray antibiotics at home or herbal antibiotics available nearby? Maybe honey or garlic???
Infection should be preventable with something as simple as Neosporin, how badly injured was the person? Dogs don't have very sharp teeth so their bites tend not to get very deep. It's the power of the bite that's dangerous, not the depth that the teeth penetrate. A German Shepard's bite will crush the bones in your hand, rather than slicing through it like a shark.
Dog bites, even small can be very dangerous with regards to infection and if not treated, I have heard of people getting so sick they are hospitalized. So perhaps if your character has some home remedies you can try and use those. I suppose if you can keep the character using the natural remedies and keeping the wounds as clean as possible, he might be able to stave off infection.
Maybe you could work some knowledge of plants/home remedies into your work. Honey and sugar can be used for drawing out infections. Leaves can be used as bandages, etc. Maybe your character had read some type of survival book in the past.
I wouldn't worry about it too much. That's one of those plot holes that will appear more improbable the more you try to justify it. Unless it's a major scene with a blow by blow of the injury and recovery. Or a plot pivot. Then you might have more problems, but characters in stories have survived much worse.
As someone who has spent her life getting attacked & mauled by dogs, let me say: Sure, they can be treated at home. Only once did I end up at the hospital because of the attack, but that was because I ended up requiring stitches. The rest I just had a whole lot of punctures and cuts & bruises. Never personally got any sort of infection, and didn't take antibiotics after—but my family goes through surgeries & skips the pain medication, opting for Tylenolor Advil. We've got bottles of ibuprofen & painkillers still full in some Godforsaken bottom drawer in our kitchen. My dad was raised by Christian Scientists (no medicine) and my mom was raised by a badass military father. So we just consequently became the family who doesn't take medicine unless it's absolutely necessary Now I've never lost function in my hand or limbs from a bite—never experienced nerve damage so I can't speak to that. I'd definitely rush to the emergency room if I ever did experience it & not screw with it Edit: I was attacked by an Irish Wolfhound, Chows, Dalmatian, German Shepherds, Chocolate Lab, Huskies, Belgian Malinois, and probably other breeds I can't readily recall (not all at once, but at least one incident had two dogs simultaneously).
