*wince* I'm a retired chef and these days quite sensible about safety and love my protective gear because I've got the scars that taught me. However I'm currently drying out a wound on my wrist that I think is going to look a lot like yours. All because of some teenage goats, an exuberant pup and an overhanging piece of corrugated iron I never quite found the time to deal with - so to everyone reading these stop procrastinating about those little repairs :P
Grandad's advise was never put anything in front of a blade that you don't intend to cut. I can't claim to have always followed it but it has stopped me doing a few stupid things over the years.
I am just amazed A&E didn’t stitch a wound like that. Next time get a colleague to do the job. Animals are so much better than humans at healing by (can’t remember the word) growing new skin around the wound until it closes. I had many successes at healing sheep wounds from dog worrying, but it involved daily care in the shed, spraying the open wound with saline and dressing;to keep away flies. I doubt if most farmers would have the time, but at least I avoided a carcass collection fee.