Need Help/Advice-Tail amputed one week later tail site is ozzing blood

butkusthebulldog

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Oct 7, 2018
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Butkus
Hello,

We have been on this website numerous times and finally took some time to register. It took us awhile to decide on the tail amputation, Butkus had an inverted corkscrew tail that had deep tail pockets and literally was infected every other month. We had just gotten tired of the vet costs along with more importantly, the antibiotics not getting rid of the problem. He had surgery last week Monday, I swear it was the most nerve-wracking day for me! Anyhow, finally the surgeon had called and said everything went well with the tail what did take a longer amount of time was the cyst removal on his paw. We had also had the cyst removed-figure get all what we needed done under one anesthetic than having multiple. So in any case the procedures went well, until recovery the Dr called and said Butkus was losing oxygen and they needed to do ER surgery on his palate! OMG I was pacing the whole house going crazy! Finally he was out of surgery and doing better, came home Tuesday late afternoon. He was so glad to be back home with us the kids just missed him so much it was amazing to see how my girls were being his nurses lol! Well the whole week goes by scheduled the revisit to get the stitches removed and that was it. But today, at the tail site it seemed to be draining a light red blood! Immediately I am freaking out and my husband starts to try and clean it up and apply some Neosporin. It continued to bleed, took him back to the ER vet and the on call kid surgeon was pretty annoying to be honest. He begins to tell me that it could be infected and he would need to be put under anesthetics again, have it cleaned out drained and sewn back up! Ok, first of all I love my dog very much but from a monetary standpoint I think they are out of their minds. The initial procedure with the ER surgery on his palate was 4500.00 now todays visit was 400.00-which the tail site is still draining! I'm like what exactly did I come here for if you couldn't even stop the bleeding?! He prescribed another antibiotic to go with his 6 other medications they sent us home with on Tuesday. I am just done with this whole situation and starting to think we made a bad choice in the amputation to begin with? ANY advise on the after-care of a tail amputation or if this has happen to any of you please feel free to chime in. Thanks!
 

helsonwheels

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Jan 10, 2016
13,064
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Alberta
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Canada
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Nyala, Jake (R.I.P. Duke)
[MENTION=18661]butkusthebulldog[/MENTION] you should of register earlier on the site as I would of given you an essential oil mixture I use on Nyala’s tail. She too has a bad tail pocket issue but I refused the tail amputation. I did want her to go under just yet since I do a lot of EO for around the house n for myself. I made a mix and been over 2 years without any amputation. She was a year old or young when they suggested amputation and she is 3yrs old now. NO issues whatsoever. I use to clean it every 2-3 days. Lately I can do every 5 days. Hopefully one day will be zero. I wear gloves and unseated baby wipes n clean it. But you know, I’m glad I stuck to my decision. I think your vet just wants to make money off of you. Shouldn’t need to put the dog under anesthetics again. You can also clean the area with the mix n same mix for once a month cleaning.

15 drops Lavender
15 drops Geranium
15 drops Frankincense
15 drops Basil
10 drops Arborvitae (or thuja)
5 drops of tea tree

4oz of Fractionated Coconut Oil to fill the bottle about 3/4 of the way full. Add your oils...Shake bottle well before using.
 

Hankster

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Aug 27, 2016
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hank
boy!!!!!!!!!!! tough position they put you in! But!!! , it's done and now i think i would seek a different vet. Not that clear leakage is good (i really dont know) but doesnt seem a whole 'put him under' situation ether. I think theres others here that have had it done and it seems familiar that that also happened to them. Hope they see this. So sorry your going through this.
 
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butkusthebulldog

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Oct 7, 2018
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Butkus
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I agree, he just jumped right to the procedure as the solution. I would think that there has to be some other options, because I am not going to put him under again-I refuse to. Thank you for your input I appreciate it!
 

helsonwheels

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Jan 10, 2016
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Alberta
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Canada
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Nyala, Jake (R.I.P. Duke)
[MENTION=2894]2BullyMama[/MENTION] who’s the one that did the amputation ? I can’t recall....
 

Manydogs

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May 2, 2013
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[MENTION=13737]1Chumly[/MENTION] Monty had a tail amputation, and they can help you with your questions when they log in. In the meantime, I would suggest that you call the Dr. who performed the surgery, first thing in the morning. Sorry, I have not had this experience. Hoping your boy will be okay. I believe there will be some drainage.
 

Hankster

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And btw,,,i highly endorse helsonwheels oil mixture to anyone who needs to clean that tail area ! Has been a lifesaver for us. Im not sure about using on a surgery area [MENTION=15310]helsonwheels[/MENTION] ?
 

helsonwheels

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Jan 10, 2016
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Nyala, Jake (R.I.P. Duke)
And btw,,,i highly endorse helsonwheels oil mixture to anyone who needs to clean that tail area ! Has been a lifesaver for us. Im not sure about using on a surgery area [MENTION=15310]helsonwheels[/MENTION] ?

I sure would use the mix but since it’s freshly cut, I would use it 2” AWAY from any stitches. Oils will still blend into the skin/body even if it’s away from the cut area. It will help with the inflammation and help to heal. And like mentioned, there will be some drainage after a surgery like that.
 

Nelson318

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Sep 19, 2018
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Mr. wrinkles
[MENTION=18661]butkusthebulldog[/MENTION] you should of register earlier on the site as I would of given you an essential oil mixture I use on Nyala’s tail. She too has a bad tail pocket issue but I refused the tail amputation. I did want her to go under just yet since I do a lot of EO for around the house n for myself. I made a mix and been over 2 years without any amputation. She was a year old or young when they suggested amputation and she is 3yrs old now. NO issues whatsoever. I use to clean it every 2-3 days. Lately I can do every 5 days. Hopefully one day will be zero. I wear gloves and unseated baby wipes n clean it. But you know, I’m glad I stuck to my decision. I think your vet just wants to make money off of you. Shouldn’t need to put the dog under anesthetics again. You can also clean the area with the mix n same mix for once a month cleaning.

15 drops Lavender
15 drops Geranium
15 drops Frankincense
15 drops Basil
10 drops Arborvitae (or thuja)
5 drops of tea tree

4oz of Fractionated Coconut Oil to fill the bottle about 3/4 of the way full. Add your oils...Shake bottle well before using.

Where can I buy the items you mentioned??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

2BullyMama

I'm not OCD....now who moved my bulldog?
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Chelios (Frenchie), Nitschke (2004-2011) Banks (2005-2014) and Lambeau (2014-2024)
We did tail amputation with Lambeau but we very fortunate for no issues at all.

Pam. [MENTION=13737]1Chumly[/MENTION] had issue with her boy after surgery


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butkusthebulldog

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Oct 7, 2018
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Butkus
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Well we woke up this morning and the bleeding/draining has subsided. I did have an appt scheduled with his primary vet to change the dressing on his paw, and she was not concerned about his tail. She said it looks good, and that he may have rubbed it and that caused the rupture. The antibiotic given she said will clear it out and to keep the area clean which we have done since he's been home. She also said she can handle the after care from this point and we wouldn't need to go back to the surgeon. I am completely ok with that as she is more sympathetic to Butkus. I understand it's a business and nothing is free in this world but 5000.00 is extreme I believe. To get the stitches removed back at the surgeon's office it would've been 125.00-our vet is charging 45.00. Just hoping and praying we don't have anymore setbacks!
 

helsonwheels

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Jan 10, 2016
13,064
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Alberta
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Canada
Bulldog(s) Names
Nyala, Jake (R.I.P. Duke)

helsonwheels

Well-known member
Jan 10, 2016
13,064
2,367
Alberta
Country
Canada
Bulldog(s) Names
Nyala, Jake (R.I.P. Duke)
Well we woke up this morning and the bleeding/draining has subsided. I did have an appt scheduled with his primary vet to change the dressing on his paw, and she was not concerned about his tail. She said it looks good, and that he may have rubbed it and that caused the rupture. The antibiotic given she said will clear it out and to keep the area clean which we have done since he's been home. She also said she can handle the after care from this point and we wouldn't need to go back to the surgeon. I am completely ok with that as she is more sympathetic to Butkus. I understand it's a business and nothing is free in this world but 5000.00 is extreme I believe. To get the stitches removed back at the surgeon's office it would've been 125.00-our vet is charging 45.00. Just hoping and praying we don't have anymore setbacks!

IMO should be FREE!!!
 

1Chumly

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Feb 19, 2015
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Houston, TX
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Buster 2013-2023 Monty 6/2010 - 1/2020 Chumly 2002-2014
So sorry I haven't been able to reply before. Glad to hear he is doing better but I have to say I am appalled that the surgeon was going to charge for removing the stitches! That should have been included. Talk about money grabbing. The draining is perfectly normal. Monty had tubes. I am a bit puzzled as to how the surgeon didn't know he had an elongated palate before he did surgery.

Although Monty's tail was just like your boys, his tail was not amputated. He had what is probably considered reconstructive surgery. The tip of his tail was amputated and his deep tail pocket was reconstructed so it was like a normal dog. That all went well. Unfortunately a few months later he got an infection really high up under the tail where it seems I couldn't clean properly and the vet had to got back and remove a bit more. It was very difficult as his tail was so tight againgst his bum. All was well again for a few months then he got another infection to the side of his tail. He drained his glands just in case that was somehow involved and put on antibiotics and everything cleared up. Three times in total it came back, the last with a vengeance and it was obviously a deep infection somewhere. Cultures were taken and more antibiotics. It turned out he also had MRSA. When it didn't really get better, it was decided that he needed anothery surgery to find the source. It turned out to be INGROWN HAIR of all things! It was up and over his tail to the other side of where the infection presented. The vet was kind of stunned! I trust my vet completely, he is the top bully vet here in Houston. In hindsight, should we have amputated totally? Maybe, but it would probably have gone the same way. There were no additional charges at all from the original surgery, only for the antibiotics and everything has been great since.

I hope everything continues to improve for him! Good luck.
 

2BullyMama

I'm not OCD....now who moved my bulldog?
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Jul 28, 2011
48,580
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Gilbertsville, PA
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Bulldog(s) Names
Chelios (Frenchie), Nitschke (2004-2011) Banks (2005-2014) and Lambeau (2014-2024)
Well we woke up this morning and the bleeding/draining has subsided. I did have an appt scheduled with his primary vet to change the dressing on his paw, and she was not concerned about his tail. She said it looks good, and that he may have rubbed it and that caused the rupture. The antibiotic given she said will clear it out and to keep the area clean which we have done since he's been home. She also said she can handle the after care from this point and we wouldn't need to go back to the surgeon. I am completely ok with that as she is more sympathetic to Butkus. I understand it's a business and nothing is free in this world but 5000.00 is extreme I believe. To get the stitches removed back at the surgeon's office it would've been 125.00-our vet is charging 45.00. Just hoping and praying we don't have anymore setbacks!

So good to hear it is getting better.... please keep us posted

but, I am floored they are charging for follow up visits and removal of stiches. I get the regular vet charging cause they did not do the procedure, but the surgeon's office is, to me, not acceptable. that should all be part of the initial charge.
 

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