It sometimes amazes me how adamant dogs can be about getting to things they shouldn't. As Dr. Johnson pointed out in an earlier blog, he had a dog who would pretty much eat anything in sight, including razor blades. Well, my problem these last couple of weeks has been trying to keep a dog from chewing on a part of herself.
It all started with a young puppy who had hit its tail on something and split it open. The owners tried to manage it at home, but to no avail. They brought her in and by the time I saw it, there was a small piece of bone sticking out. At this point the best possible treatment was to amputate a portion of the tail. It was a big dog and had a long tail, so we decided only about 3-4 cm had to come off. It was a quick and simple procedure and the pup went home the following day.
I saw her back around 5 days post surgery for bandage removal and everything was healing great. I sent her on her way for the weekend with instructions to have the sutures removed 1 week later. Monday morning, the phone rings and the puppy had gotten to the stitches and chewed down the tail again. I saw her later that morning and again some bone was exposed. We had a long conversation with the owners and we elected to amputate the tail higher up and then watch her very closely to prevent her from chewing at the tail. Everything was going well with this surgery later in the week, but then again on Monday morning we get the phone call, "She got at the tail again and busted the sutures."
Well, we didn't have much tail left to take at this point, but it was pretty much our only option (especially since the tail tip looked like it might be infected). We performed the surgery earlier in the week and left about 2-3 cm of tail. We saw the tail today and things are healing well. So far, so good.
You sometimes wonder what is going on in these dog's head. Does it feel better chewing at the tail? Are they just bored? I am hoping that the puppy has learned its lesson and will leave the tail alone. I am slightly dreading Monday morning...
It all started with a young puppy who had hit its tail on something and split it open. The owners tried to manage it at home, but to no avail. They brought her in and by the time I saw it, there was a small piece of bone sticking out. At this point the best possible treatment was to amputate a portion of the tail. It was a big dog and had a long tail, so we decided only about 3-4 cm had to come off. It was a quick and simple procedure and the pup went home the following day.
I saw her back around 5 days post surgery for bandage removal and everything was healing great. I sent her on her way for the weekend with instructions to have the sutures removed 1 week later. Monday morning, the phone rings and the puppy had gotten to the stitches and chewed down the tail again. I saw her later that morning and again some bone was exposed. We had a long conversation with the owners and we elected to amputate the tail higher up and then watch her very closely to prevent her from chewing at the tail. Everything was going well with this surgery later in the week, but then again on Monday morning we get the phone call, "She got at the tail again and busted the sutures."
Well, we didn't have much tail left to take at this point, but it was pretty much our only option (especially since the tail tip looked like it might be infected). We performed the surgery earlier in the week and left about 2-3 cm of tail. We saw the tail today and things are healing well. So far, so good.
You sometimes wonder what is going on in these dog's head. Does it feel better chewing at the tail? Are they just bored? I am hoping that the puppy has learned its lesson and will leave the tail alone. I am slightly dreading Monday morning...
Hope your Monday went well Tony!
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