Oh My, Ralphie has to have surgery...on his Wee wee!

[kalina82]

i really would seek a 2nd opinion with a board certified surgeon and let the surgeon do the surgery. its not a common surgery and should be performed by a surgeon who see's it more often then regular vets. Plus the surgeon will most likely work at a 24/7 hospital and have the latest and best technology. the surgeon and vet techs will better be able to handle any surprises that come along. I've seen this surgery done. I was the vet tech assisting. If done properly the dog usually goes home in a few days with the owners understanding that he will urinate blood for up to 2 weeks. There are strict cleaning instructions for the surgery site as well. I understand you trust your vet but this type of surgery is complex and things can go wrong.

[lillymae]

It sounds like it is as I mentioned , a behavioral issue. I would only do surgery after I had exhausted all other avenues. I think your vet should have told you that. Mine did, and I'm glad he did because the training worked. Now you can't just lub and leave it at that, you have to pull the skin up over it after you lub. The problem is when you put any kind of ointment on a dog their first instinct is to lick it off. So you have to use the cone collar or the( beep) on the shock collar. I bought mine from Foster & Smith, under $100 . It was well worth it and far less expensive then surgery. Now I have a question, not being smart so don't take this wrong. Just want you to see things from a different perspective. If he was lifting his leg on all of your furniture, would you have his wingy cut off? I'm guessing not. Why? because it's a behavioral problem.

[Julie1760]

I know PetSafe make a training collar with a remote and a beep setting on it. You can get them at PetCo or PetSmart stores.

I would try that and the cone thing first. Or even a wrap on him if he usually licks at night. It might just help.

Good Luck

[flipflopsusie]

I'm so sorry for your little Ralphie. I hope everything turns out well for him.

[kalina82]

Originally Posted by lillymae

It sounds like it is as I mentioned , a behavioral issue. I would only do surgery after I had exhausted all other avenues. I think your vet should have told you that. Mine did, and I'm glad he did because the training worked. Now you can't just lub and leave it at that, you have to pull the skin up over it after you lub. The problem is when you put any kind of ointment on a dog their first instinct is to lick it off. So you have to use the cone collar or the( beep) on the shock collar. I bought mine from Foster & Smith, under $100 . It was well worth it and far less expensive then surgery. Now I have a question, not being smart so don't take this wrong. Just want you to see things from a different perspective. If he was lifting his leg on all of your furniture, would you have his wingy cut off? I'm guessing not. Why? because it's a behavioral problem.

yes it is a behavioral problem. If she can get him to stop then that would be great. it will require a lot of work on her part. hopefully there is no damage already done to the tip of the penis. he may just be going crazy over it now because he's licked it so much recently that it is bothering him more so he's just going to continue to lick it. vicious cycle.

A cone would prevent him from getting to it. So would a belly band, unless he can figure out how to get around that.

[ralphier]

Originally Posted by kalina82

i really would seek a 2nd opinion with a board certified surgeon and let the surgeon do the surgery. its not a common surgery and should be performed by a surgeon who see's it more often then regular vets. Plus the surgeon will most likely work at a 24/7 hospital and have the latest and best technology. the surgeon and vet techs will better be able to handle any surprises that come along. I've seen this surgery done. I was the vet tech assisting. If done properly the dog usually goes home in a few days with the owners understanding that he will urinate blood for up to 2 weeks. There are strict cleaning instructions for the surgery site as well. I understand you trust your vet but this type of surgery is complex and things can go wrong.

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?

[ralphier]

Originally Posted by lillymae

It sounds like it is as I mentioned , a behavioral issue. I would only do surgery after I had exhausted all other avenues. I think your vet should have told you that. Mine did, and I'm glad he did because the training worked. Now you can't just lub and leave it at that, you have to pull the skin up over it after you lub. The problem is when you put any kind of ointment on a dog their first instinct is to lick it off. So you have to use the cone collar or the( beep) on the shock collar. I bought mine from Foster & Smith, under $100 . It was well worth it and far less expensive then surgery. Now I have a question, not being smart so don't take this wrong. Just want you to see things from a different perspective. If he was lifting his leg on all of your furniture, would you have his wingy cut off? I'm guessing not. Why? because it's a behavioral problem.

Yes, I would have to agree with you that it is definitely a behavioral issue. He has no problems with it when he urinates or anything else like that. Only when he is licking it, and it comes out of the sheath. I think the beep collar might work best for him. Thanks for the advice on this, I am feeling pretty lost right about now .

[ralphier]

Originally Posted by kalina82

yes it is a behavioral problem. If she can get him to stop then that would be great. it will require a lot of work on her part. hopefully there is no damage already done to the tip of the penis. he may just be going crazy over it now because he's licked it so much recently that it is bothering him more so he's just going to continue to lick it. vicious cycle.

A cone would prevent him from getting to it. So would a belly band, unless he can figure out how to get around that.

I have a feeling that you are spot on with the whole "vicious cycle". Now it seems that he is trying to lick it, not sexually but because maybe it is bothering him. I work from home so I definitely have the time to dedicate to stopping the behavior. But, I also feel like what if it does get bad before I can do anything about it and he ends up having to have his enitire penis removed. Ughhhh, I really do not know what to do. I have never loved anything this much, and it is such a helpless feeling.

[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 #.

[ralphier]

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 #.

Thank you, thank you! I am glad to have someone that knows what this is like. I like the idea of a belly band too, but this is one stubborn boy. I don't think I would be able to keep a belly band on him properly.

He was just starting his little night time lick routine and I kept telling him to stop. He was looking at me like I was literally crazy. Like, "um why would I want to stop this Mom?". Stinker. He did finally stop though and reached up for me to put him on my lap. Now he is curled up on me sleeping. So maybe by some miracle I can stop this eventually. It is not going to be easy, this little boy LOVES his wee wee...alot .

And Ralphie always had this habit, but it got worse after he was neutered too, strangely enough.

Thanks again for your help, I am sure I will be bugging you and Kalina to no end before this is over

[Dame]

Originally Posted by ralphier

Thank you, thank you! I am glad to have someone that knows what this is like. I like the idea of a belly band too, but this is one stubborn boy. I don't think I would be able to keep a belly band on him properly.

He was just starting his little night time lick routine and I kept telling him to stop. He was looking at me like I was literally crazy. Like, "um why would I want to stop this Mom?". Stinker. He did finally stop though and reached up for me to put him on my lap. Now he is curled up on me sleeping. So maybe by some miracle I can stop this eventually. It is not going to be easy, this little boy LOVES his wee wee...alot .

And Ralphie always had this habit, but it got worse after he was neutered too, strangely enough.

Thanks again for your help, I am sure I will be bugging you and Kalina to no end before this is over

If you can't do a belly band, what about using the onesie technique? I am not sure if you use potty pads, but if not that might be something to think about? You can just take it off for potty time and its a lot harder to wiggle out of then a belly band! Depending on how determined he is he might just lick through it - but it might be worth a shot.

[lillymae]

Yeah isn't nice to know we have dogs with OCD. I did notice if I'd throw the ball for him for awhile he didn't do it so much. So I think it's a way they get rid of neurotic energy or something. My main concern is that you lub and pull the skin up properly. I do trim the hair it gets rolled up inside and would make it harder to get it back in and the skin up around it. Just not too short. And make sure you get all the hair out of it. Theres a trick to it, you have to actually pull the skin gently back just a tiny bit and lub it too then kinda pull it open and up. Crap this is starting to sound a bit like doggy porn or something. HaHaHaHa!

[ralphier]

Originally Posted by Dame

If you can't do a belly band, what about using the onesie technique? I am not sure if you use potty pads, but if not that might be something to think about? You can just take it off for potty time and its a lot harder to wiggle out of then a belly band! Depending on how determined he is he might just lick through it - but it might be worth a shot.

Well, with Ralphie the word determined is an understatement. Not just with this issue but with anything. I did use the onesies for his neuter so I still have a lot left. And, I do use the wee wee pads so that kind of makes it more difficult because potty time isn't a planned thing, he just goes to the pad whenever. Definitely worth a try though.

[ralphier]

Originally Posted by lillymae

Yeah isn't nice to know we have dogs with OCD. I did notice if I'd throw the ball for him for awhile he didn't do it so much. So I think it's a way they get rid of neurotic energy or something. My main concern is that you lub and pull the skin up properly. I do trim the hair it gets rolled up inside and would make it harder to get it back in and the skin up around it. Just not too short. And make sure you get all the hair out of it. Theres a trick to it, you have to actually pull the skin gently back just a tiny bit and lub it too then kinda pull it open and up. Crap this is starting to sound a bit like doggy porn or something. HaHaHaHa!

Ha ha...doggy porn...*cue cheesy 70's music*.

I do think the hair is def an issue. It gets really stuck and then I just have no idea what to do. Thanks for the instructions, all kidding aside they were very helpful

[kalina82]

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 #.

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.