Options For A "happy Tail" Problem

[greysmom]

Hi!

 

Our new grey Toni has a bad case of happy tail. We've had it wrapped and protected but it's highly likely that she's going to lose some portion of her tail when she goes to the vet for her spay surgery. There's about 2/8ths to 1/4 inch of tail bone protruding from the end of her tail, and about an inch of broken skin before there is good tail skin/flesh.

 

I've been thinking about what to do for her and remember vaguely from my FFA days a method for docking lamb's tails. With this method, a strong rubber band is applied to the tail, cutting off the blood supply. The end of the tail becomes necrotic and eventually falls off. Sounds gross I know, but it seemed fairly painless for the lambs (though I do remember talk of a local anesthesia like lidocaine) and there was no cutting or suturing, or continual wrapping/changing of bandages, and seemed to be over quickly. I don't remember the lambs becoming infected at all.

 

So why wouldn't this work for a case of happy tail? Not looking for flames here - just trying to save as much of her tail as possible, with the least amount of pain and trauma, in the shortest amount of time. Dude also had a happy tail when we got him and it seemed to take months for it to get any better.

 

Any other suggestions?

greysmom

 

 

[Guest p51crazyhorse]

Why not just wait for the spay??? I know this method of docking and if you think of wrapping a rubberband around your finger till it rots off, it cant be painless......... It is also the way that bulls and goats etc are castrated

 

Sorry, this is kinda a shocking question......... my jaw dropped to the floor when I read it......

[Guest p51crazyhorse]

I just remembered a suggestion I read somewhere long ago.... you can put one of those plastic hair curler tube things (com'on somebody help me here ) on the damaged part of the tail and tape it at the top. it will allow blood and air flow but will cushon the tail when it hits anything. I have also heard of using a hair scrunchie looped around the tail and one back leg to keep the tail from wagging, not too tight of course. hope this helps, but also, I happen to have a tailless boy ( due to happytail, went thru amputation two times because of reoccurance) and it is quite wonderful to not get popped in the butt with a whipping tail

[Guest GreysAndMoreGreys]

Not the best idea

Reason being this dog is going to be living in your home while the end of the tail rots off and dies. Can you say STINK?? On top of that trust me the dog will not leave the tail alone while you have this rubber band applied to her tail. She will make it 10x worse. On top of all of that, you will be searching around for a dead rotton piece of flesh.

Oh and one more thing about the lambs, I don't think they can reach around to lick the area where the tails are docked. (ya I was in FFA too)

 

Best bet have the tail done when the spay is done. Get it all done and over with at once.

 

As far as the protecting it before the spay, yes a hair curler or a card board section of a tampoon will work to protect from her banging it on a wall or other hard surface

 

Also don't worry yourself about how much of the tail she will lose if the vet does it. Actually the shorter the better. Because during healing time if she's a happy girl, if it's left as long as possible she will bang it on hard surfaces, causeing it just to break open again and not heal.

[Guest KennelMom]

I'm gonna go with what she said on this one ^^^ I also think this is done in young animals (like docking puppy tails) becaus the nerves are not fully developed when they are very young. An adult dog has feeling in their tail. I'm sure it would hurt. And rotting flesh = risk of infection.

 

Primo is losing part of his tail in his neuter next week b/c of happy tail. Just make sure your vet takes enough off so you (and, more importantly, Toni) won't have to deal with happy tail again. Harmony lost about 1/2 of her tail and, while took some getting used to (for the humans), in the end it became one her more adorable traits as she would wag the stub just as furiously as she always wagged the full tail.

[ahicks51]

I'd opine that going the pad-and-protect route (along with allowing roam of the house if she's kenneled- busting that tail on the bars will do it) might preclude the need for amputation. The do-it-yourself kit is certainly not advised.

 

We had a foster with a horrible case of happy tail, and his healed up remarkably well. Much of the hair grew back in.

[Guest speedoketo]

Banding anything on an animal until the body part falls off does hurt! It would be excruciatingly painful for your dog! Exposed bone is an immediate concern. A very very serious infection could set in. Happy tails are so often amputated because it is just so hard to keep that bandage on with them whacking it everywhere.

[jamngrey]

not even going to touch the "banding" part... I spent 1 1/2 year with Psi's happy tail. After a weekend in Utah and a hotel room that looked like a murder scene, I chose to have it amputated. They had to take off 7" . I followed Burpdogs instructions on healing it and it healed with no issue and we have never had an issue since.

[GeorgeofNE]

Hi!

 

Believe me--the cost of cutting off a few inches of the tail will be insignificant if you do it during the spay. My last dog had a MAJOR case of it, and I dealt with a nightmare of blood spray for SIXTEEN WEEKS (he wasn't a Grey, he had a very vigorous, excessively long tail, and a very happy disposition!). Then he needed surgery for something else anyway, and amputating a couple of inches of tail when the dog is already out anyway only adds seriously like 10 minutes (vets do this a LOT I guess!) and the vet will most likely do what mine did which is to pull a little extra skin down and sort of give a double layer tip!

 

I understand what you're asking, but as others have said--there's a big difference between a farmer with a newborn lamb OUTSIDE and you with a pet that's already going in for surgery!

 

Seriously--the cost will be so minimal if it's combined--you'll be glad you did NOT try the self-help approach.

 

PM me if you want some tips on keeping it wrapped. George also had happy tail, and I thought he was going to lose part of it, but by the time he went for his dental, my vet refused to amputate 'cause it was nearly healed! She was so impressed with my technique she asked me to show her (practice makes perfect!).

 

 

[Guest greyvettech]

I would agree not to take that route- It is very painful, indeed. Anyways, We have seen a lot of happy tail dogs in the clinic I work for...We usually use a 12 cc syringe case(you have to cut one end of it off so that the tail can get air) put this around the end of the tail and use a little vet tape and vetwrap and it allows the tail to heal meanwhile, protecting the tail, if the hound slaps it up against something -but of course- you have to apply an e-collar or the hound will just pull it off. It really does work if you can keep your hound off the bandage...If not, I would say surgery sounds like the best way to go! Good Luck!

Edited February 5, 2009 by greyvettech

[Guest Willerton]

In addition to being gross, the method you describe will be painful for your dog. My dog had surgery on his tail to stitch up a wound. The tissue around the stitches turned necrotic. He was in so much pain he would not sleep or lie down. Don't do it. Nerve pain is terrible pain.

[Guest spider9174]

Here are the instructions I give people that have a pup with happy tail...This is how I have treated it, too:

 

check out this link: http://www.grassmere-animal-hospital.com/b..._happy_tail.htm

 

good information with pictures.

 

This is how I would do it...

 

Well...you'll need the following:

 

1) head to the dollar store and get foam curlers (or walmart, sally's beautysupply, etc); you can also head to Lowes for foam pipe insulation instead.

2) get some vet wrap--you can get it at pet co, but if you need bulk, get some from www.kvvet.com or amazon. pet co will break the bank wrap after wrap.

3) bandage scissors (blunt tip with flat guide)

4) gentle surgical paper tape

5) Neosporin or some type of antibacterial ointment; styptic powder; liquid skin

6) betadine or hydrogen peroxide. Both of these will dissolve scabs and can be harsh on tissue, so only use it for debreeing the area. Once a scab has formed, do not use it. You will spend a lot of time trying to get a good scab so watching it dissolve in hydrogen peroxide will be devastating and add a few weeks to the healing process. With betadine, it is important to know that you will need to dillute it by 1 part in 10 parts water. 100% betadine from the bottle is TOO HARSH on tissue and can burn it.

7) 4x4 guaze pads

8) A willing helper to occupy said hound.

9) A BOAT LOAD of patience

 

You have to be diligent about wrapping it every day/every other day until you start to see healing. If you let it go, it can get infected and you will have problems. You may need to wrap it for 6 weeks.

 

The wrapping:

 

1) Get two curlers and cut them like a hot dog bun. If the wound is bigger than the two curlers, you may need more. Or you may just want to go the route of the pipe insulation and cut into longer piece.

2) Get the neosporin out and apply to wound and a little to a gauze pad. Cut some surgical tape in 4-6 inch strips.

3) Take the gauze pad and roll it around the wound/tip of tail--try to keep the end of the tail open to air. Secure the gauze with paper tape.

4) Take the curlers or pipe insulation and roll it around the tail. Secure the foam with paper tape. Next secure the foam to the tail with surgical tape wrapping it up the tail. You'll need to go 6-8 inches up the tail. Once you get to a stopping point, wrap a few tufts of hair into the bandage to help secure it and keep it from slipping down the tail.

5) Cover the surgical tape with vet wrap. The vet wrap will provide strength to the paper tape. The paper tape won't stick to the tail.

6) Day two--if you look at the gauze at the tip of the tail and see that it look reddish or like the wound was weeping, you'll need to rebandage it. You will need to rebandage each day until it stops weeping.

7) Once it stops weeping, you will not have to rebandage, you will be able to get away with squirting some neosporin in the gauze. You can leave it up to 3 days this way, or that would be my personal recommendation.

8) It's important the the wound gets air. That helps the healing process.

 

Unwrapping: Use the blunt nose flat edge scissors to cut off the vet wrap. Then unwrap the surgical tape slowly--remember you wrapped in some hair, so if you pull, you will pull out some hair too. Careful when you get down to the gauze. There may be a scab or it may be crusty the first few times you unwrap it. Go slow. You should be able to use the foam over again.

 

If you have a pup that is playing with his tail, a muzzle with a poop cup is a good thing. It will keep him from chewing the bandage. You can get them at the Greyhounds of Eastern Michigan store. http://www.gemgreyhounds.org/gem_store/online_store.htm

 

Signs to look for:

1) smell--does it smell sulfur-ish? if so, it's infected. It may also be green or oozing green.

2) what does it look like? does it have an angry red color? I remember when I had Stanley in foster, I took him to the kennel for an adoption day and he sat and wacked his tail on the concrete every time someone walked by. Well, the next day I unwrapped it and learned he had just undone what I spent 3 weeks working on...and to top it off, it was an angry bruised red color. I thought for sure he was going to loose his tail at that point, but we pushed on! It took about 5 days for the bruising to go away, but it did. We just had a set back...darnit. After a few days, some of the tissue on the perimeter of the scab looked white and eventually sluffed off.

3) Good signs are a nice healthy pink.

4) Black necrotic tissue...bad sign because the tissue is dieing.

 

Comment about...styptic powder can be used, but you may want to wait until there is a good scab and there is little weeping. It really won't work on a large wound. Once you're read to leave the bandage off, styptic powder may be a way to go to keep it dry. Liquid skin--you can use it, but a caveat--most liquid skin products have alcohol in it. It will sting and you don't want you pup jumping like a crazy pup. It may cause you to have a hard time wrapping it.

 

This process can take a long time. Be patient and diligent.

 

 

I think that covers the good, the bad, and the ugly of it...

 

MANY HUGS for a happy, but healed, tail!

Natasha

Edited February 5, 2009 by spider9174

[NeylasMom]

My current foster was returned with a happy tail problem and her owners had pretty much inadvertently done what you described by accidentally keeping the bandage too tight. The result was a piece of totally dead black tail about an inch or two long hanging on by a thread and above that another inch or two of tail that was completely chewed down to the (exposed) tendon and seriously infected because my foster could not leave it alone. She was absolutely in pain and was reactive when another dog sniffed her behind for two long because of it. We took her in to the vet right away and he said she needed to have her tail amputated immediately. It took a little bit of time to heal, and I kept her muzzled when I wasn't home to make sure she wouldn't work on the bandage, but it healed up just fine. That was several months ago and she wags her 1/3 of a tail like nothing ever happened.

 

I would suggest, if bone is exposed that you get it amputated sooner rather than later.

[greysmom]

Thanks everyone. I know GTer's would be my reality check for a middle of the night brain cramp!

 

I've changed her tail bandage several times now, and I think she's not going to lose any of her tail. Yesterday, the skin was pink and fragile-looking, but it was all closed over except for a spot right on the end. She doesn't mess with the wrapping ever, so I'm thinking it's not causing her too much pain or itching. I've used several different wrapping techniques, but the foam curler one works great.

 

Her surgery is scheduled for next Friday (2/13) so we'll see what the vet says when he looks at it.

 

greysmom

[Guest sheila]

just trying to save as much of her tail as possible, with the least amount of pain and trauma, in the shortest amount of time.

 

If this is what you are going for, the answer is to have the tail docked while under surgery. Banding a tail until it dies and falls off will not meet the above stated goals.

 

Think about it like this: You have badly broken your baby toe and it will not heal correctly. The Dr gives you an option of removing it surgically, or banding it until it dies and falls off. Which one are you going to choose?

[Neighsayer]

Banding is done on very young farm animals. My friend's lamb was banded at around 3 weeks(much later than usual) and the tail got very infected and infested with maggots. My male goats were neutered this way at 2 days old. We had to wait for a testicle to descend on another goat. After a week the vet said it was too late to band.

 

Good luck with your happy tail. You received some good advice above to get you through til the surgery.

[Guest BooandCalisMom]

One of my dogs has chronic happy tail. We use the method described above by spider (foam curler, etc). He's opened his tail a few times pretty badly and each time were able to wrap and avoid infection. I'd do that until it can be amputated in order to save the dog from some pain or additional infection or opening the tail up again.