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Originally Posted by lillymae  Oh don't feel bad, it is frustrating. I dealt with it for 5 yrs and there were days I wanted to cut it off myself HaHa. I was so grateful when I took him to the vet I use now. I was told diff things by diff vets. ( Oh some dogs just do that , it's nothing to worry about) and ( we need to cut the end off it's too long that's why it happened) are you kidding me , cut the tip off I don't think so. Then I took him to the vet I use now, Thank God! I also think the belly band is a good idea  for night time. The funny thing about my dog is that he didn't start that disgusting habit till I had neutered. So I knew the too long theory was BS.If you have any questions you can PM me for my #. |
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Originally Posted by ralphier Thank you so much for this advice. I am glad that you at least have heard of this type surgery. How do I find the best vet for this? I love my vet, but I certainly would not let him do the procedure if I can find someone else more qualified. How do I go about finding the best surgeon and facility for this? |
LOL sometimes that is the problem. There was a german shepard who's sheath wasn't long enough and the owners waited 2 years to do something about (poor dog). The surgeon had to take the whole thing off just because the situation went on way too long. Other situations, usually with bull dog puppies, involve just taking off the tip becuase its been licked for so long that its raw and just cannot go back into the sheath anymore. its so inflammed, irritated and raw that its on its way to dying. so the tip comes off and the rest remains. Even after surgery you need to do behavior modiications because they are so used to licking that they will feel the need to continue to do it. Plus now it hurts and the sutures are itchy. So pain meds are a huge help. Staying in the hospital for a few days helps too because the staff is usually there 24/7 and can keep a sharp eye on the dog. Also if they are too adament about licking it and cones/pain meds don't help, a mild sedative needs to be used. they can ruin the surgery if they lick it too much.
So either way you need to work on behavior modification to get him to stop licking. Hopefully if you can get him to stop now his penis will get a break and be able to go back in its sheath. However, know that even if you can get him to stop there may already be some damage done and surgery might still be needed.
As far as finding a surgeon, you usually need to ask your regular vet for a referral to a specialist. make sure the specialist is board certified. They have more training and have seen/done most types of surgeries. I've just done a search on the ACVS site (american college of veterinary surgeons) for FL and came up with this list.
ACVS - Diplomate Directory i don't know which is closest to you but all of these surgeons are board certified (diplomates) and are qualified to do the surgery. I'm sure your regular vet knows one of them and can refer you to one so you can talk to them about it.