General Question Tail amputation... my vet is now saying it’s a must! What were your experiences?

[Meeko]

I have an English Bulldog who is about to turn two and it looks like tail amputation is the best/only option for her. She was born with a very tight inverted cork screw tail, because of this our vet told us to be extra diligent in cleaning and care to hopefully prevent any issues in the future. Although as she grew it became impossible to clean and care for properly as it doesn’t move at all and is so tight and inverted you can’t get under or in it to clean it properly. We tried our best with doing flushes, and cleaning what we could with medicated wipes and using a steroid cream and powder to hopefully prevent any issues.

The last few months she has been very uncomfortable and increasingly agitated due to her tail issue. After seeing our vet and having her examined he said despite everything we have done and as much as he generally tried to avoid it that tail amputation is a necessity in her case. He said it was one of the worst cases of an inverted cork screw tail he had seen and we were lucky she hadn’t had any issues with it sooner.

My vet is great but said due to the circumstances he was not comfortable doing the surgery himself and has recommended a specialist out of Colorado (we live in Wyoming). Our vet consulted with the specialist this morning and sent him all the info on our sweet girl and they called to let us know the surgery would probably be about $2500-$3000. It was a bit higher than we had expected but we are planning to get the surgery scheduled for as soon as possible (we also have 4 kids and another EB so we need to schedule an overnight sitter since we have to go out of state).

Has anyone else done a tail amputation? What was your experience like? Did you use a specialist? How was the recovery? Was the cost in a similar range?

Thanks so much for any info you can give me!

 

[g8erjackie]

Both of my bullies have tail pockets but I’m lucky that I’m able to keep them clean and not infected. I know there are some members here that have gone through this and can help. Fingers crossed for you and your pup!


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[Manydogs]

[MENTION=18114]Meeko[/MENTION] I have never had this problem-but someone who has will be by to help. You have a good vet, as he admitted that he would not do it. Some would-just for the money. I know that is a lot of $ for us, but it sounds fairly reasonable for what is involved. Sending many prayers for your baby, that all goes well,and she feels much better when all heals up!

 

[1Chumly]

Monty had ongoing tail problems which we eventually sorted out. He too had an inverted, tight screw tail and deep pocket. It was a mess. He had the tip of his tail removed and the pocket 'reconstructed'. That all went very well with no more tail cleaning problems. Unfortunately later he had a deep infection that showed near his anal gland. We would treat it and it would come back, 3 times! Finally, after another surgery the vet followed the course of the infection which was up, over and around the other side of his tail area, he found out it was caused by ingrowing hair! Since then, everything is great.

Monty's surgery was with who is considered by many THE bulldog vet in Houston so I would say yes, he is a specialist. It cost close to $700. I also have to point out that Brittmoore Animal Hospital is one of the most reasonable vets I have come across. Our local vets are always more expensive. I just wish Brittmoore was closer to me to make it feasable to use them exclusively as I use a local vet for shots, heartworm meds, etc.

It sounds like amputation is the way to go for your girl and Kudos to your vet for being honest with you and referring you. I think that price is high but we did not have a full amputation so I can't really compare. I know a couple of others have had it done so I am sure they will be along with their experience. Good luck.

 

[Meeko]

Monty had ongoing tail problems which we eventually sorted out. He too had an inverted, tight screw tail and deep pocket. It was a mess. He had the tip of his tail removed and the pocket 'reconstructed'. That all went very well with no more tail cleaning problems. Unfortunately later he had a deep infection that showed near his anal gland. We would treat it and it would come back, 3 times! Finally, after another surgery the vet followed the course of the infection which was up, over and around the other side of his tail area, he found out it was caused by ingrowing hair! Since then, everything is great.

Monty's surgery was with who is considered by many THE bulldog vet in Houston so I would say yes, he is a specialist. It cost close to $700. I also have to point out that Brittmoore Animal Hospital is one of the most reasonable vets I have come across. Our local vets are always more expensive. I just wish Brittmoore was closer to me to make it feasable to use them exclusively as I use a local vet for shots, heartworm meds, etc.

It sounds like amputation is the way to go for your girl and Kudos to your vet for being honest with you and referring you. I think that price is high but we did not have a full amputation so I can't really compare. I know a couple of others have had it done so I am sure they will be along with their experience. Good luck.

Thanks for the well wishes. My vet really is great and tried everything to avoid it coming to a tail amputation. He also thought about a partial tail amputation to see if it would help alleviate some of the issues but decided it just wasn’t possible for a partial amputation. He warned us with a full amputation and that fact he felt we should see a specialist the cost would be greater. I appreciated him saying he wasn’t comfortable doing the surgery as the tail would need to be removed from the spine and it’s a major surgery. Even though the cost is slightly higher than expected it is doable for us. I am going to go with my vets recommendation since I trust him and feel if any of our other local vets were willing to do the surgery it may not be in the best interest of our pup.

 

[helsonwheels]

I have an English Bulldog who is about to turn two and it looks like tail amputation is the best/only option for her. She was born with a very tight inverted cork screw tail, because of this our vet told us to be extra diligent in cleaning and care to hopefully prevent any issues in the future. Although as she grew it became impossible to clean and care for properly as it doesn’t move at all and is so tight and inverted you can’t get under or in it to clean it properly. We tried our best with doing flushes, and cleaning what we could with medicated wipes and using a steroid cream and powder to hopefully prevent any issues.

The last few months she has been very uncomfortable and increasingly agitated due to her tail issue. After seeing our vet and having her examined he said despite everything we have done and as much as he generally tried to avoid it that tail amputation is a necessity in her case. He said it was one of the worst cases of an inverted cork screw tail he had seen and we were lucky she hadn’t had any issues with it sooner.

My vet is great but said due to the circumstances he was not comfortable doing the surgery himself and has recommended a specialist out of Colorado (we live in Wyoming). Our vet consulted with the specialist this morning and sent him all the info on our sweet girl and they called to let us know the surgery would probably be about $2500-$3000. It was a bit higher than we had expected but we are planning to get the surgery scheduled for as soon as possible (we also have 4 kids and another EB so we need to schedule an overnight sitter since we have to go out of state).

Has anyone else done a tail amputation? What was your experience like? Did you use a specialist? How was the recovery? Was the cost in a similar range?

Thanks so much for any info you can give me!

You just described my Nyala my brindle. Exact same issue and you barely get a finger to clean it properly. It got infected numerous times till I saw my vet and she’s the one that said “not” to worry you can go deeper. She gave me this liquid antibiotic to put inside and made it very clear “not” to use it to often as I will always need it. Habit. So I decided to use an essential oil mixture and I’ve been cleaning her tail over a year now. It works!!! It was amputation or my mix. A year later n she’s great. Even my vet asked for the recipe of the mixture. I clean Nyala ‘s tail every 3 days n even program it on my phone as a reminder. I get very busy so..... I wear surgical gloves, 4 fragrance free baby wipes, my mix and soak one corner of the wipe wrapped around my finger and trust me you really need to go deep. It will “not” hurt them as it’s already an open space that’s just needs to be open up with the finger. The oil will help do that slowly but surely. This will sound kinky but cause it’s a tight tail pocket women ‘s hands are best not to hurt the dog. Mind you the whole explanation is kinky loll...anyhoooo... here’s the recipe and again it WORKS! And I make a big batch as I use it on regular basis. Also great for yeasty paws n especially the ear maintenance!!! Gtg my recipe as I forget with all the oils I work with...

2oz of fractionated coconut oil (the clear one at your health food store!)
15 drops of the following n make sure it’s pure like doterra oils
15 of lavender, geranium, frankincense, basil. And
10 drops of arborvitae and if you can’t fine it get thuja as it’s in the same family (cedar tree)
5-8drops of tea tree oil (not more!)

Some will use witch Hazel but I don’t cause that stings like hell on an open wound why I use tea tree. Tea tree is very powerful NEVER use it on its own even for humans! Needs to be mixed. You may want to look up all this oils so you understand what n how they are used for.

So there’s your recipe. Like “my” vet said, don’t worry you’re not going to hurt heart go deeper as she showed me. Nyala never said a word. Today I just say....Nyala let’s clean your tail n she runs in the bathroom in position. She’s use to it.

 

[Meeko]

Thank you for the advice I may try this in a flush bottle until surgery. Long term I don’t think it be as effective for me as it’s not even possible to get a pinky under her tail and I have tiny hands! It’s a major struggle to get it out far enough to slide a wipe flat under her tail so we can kind of floss clean the area up to the crease. We use q tips to get into her tail pocket the best we can but it’s so deep and her tail is so tight it’s not completely accessible. My vet even tried and he was pulling on her tail so hard I thought it was going to break. I felt so bad for her. He said it’s one of the worst cases he has seen.

 

[2BullyMama]

Thanks for the well wishes. My vet really is great and tried everything to avoid it coming to a tail amputation. He also thought about a partial tail amputation to see if it would help alleviate some of the issues but decided it just wasn’t possible for a partial amputation. He warned us with a full amputation and that fact he felt we should see a specialist the cost would be greater. I appreciated him saying he wasn’t comfortable doing the surgery as the tail would need to be removed from the spine and it’s a major surgery. Even though the cost is slightly higher than expected it is doable for us. I am going to go with my vets recommendation since I trust him and feel if any of our other local vets were willing to do the surgery it may not be in the best interest of our pup.

You have a great vet... knowing their limits and getting you where you need to be.

Lambeau had the same but 10 moths was when his was removed. Tail was growing back into him. When we first got Lambeau our vet said it was tight and to be diligent with cleaning -- we were but it was digging into the skin so it had to go

Please keep us posted


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[Meeko]

You have a great vet... knowing their limits and getting you where you need to be.

Lambeau had the same but 10 moths was when his was removed. Tail was growing back into him. When we first got Lambeau our vet said it was tight and to be diligent with cleaning -- we were but it was digging into the skin so it had to go

Please keep us posted


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That is where we are at now. Her tail is just pushing into her so far it has to be done. Once we have a better idea of when the surgery will be I will be sure to keep everyone posted and share our experience for anyone else who may be in a similar position in the future. The surgery sounds a little scary but I want her to be healthy and comfortable.