Tail damage

[Keeperjosh]

Morning all,

Hoping some of you may of had similar problems and have some handy tips.

I’m having issues with my cocker spaniels tail. It’s not docked overly short, it’s still at least 6-8 inches long. He works everyday day, mainly dogging in. He started gnawing the middle of his tail, and as a result it ended up bald.

Over a period of time, I presume from running through cover and wagging it against the inside of the Polaris the end is now thinned out and bordering bald also. The skin is hard and almost crusty. Problem is it now gets very red/sore/bloody whenever he goes out.

He’s a typical spaniel, and there’s no slowing him down in cover. Anybody any ideas?

Josh

 

[Lloyd90]

Sounds like the dog has picked up an injury / cut on the tail, and is then being worked again before that injury can proper heal, resulting in what you have now.

The hard / crusty skin I assume is scabbing?

If you leave the dog rested for longer does it heal up fully?


There’s a reason keepers like a short dock down (see some right down to a nub) with dogs often out multiple times a week.

 

[willie_gunn]

Hopefully one of the resident vets will be along soon with some advice, but for our older lab (who has always been an inveterate wagger, with the resulting blood being sprayed to a 5' height around the walls of the house) we took to covering the end of the tail with some finger bandage, secured with vet wrap. He would invariably chew it off overnight, but it did at least prevent the worst excesses. Aged 5 his tail is now mostly healed, though typically once or twice a year it will puncture for a day or two.

An alternative (or addition) to the bandage might be a finger cot, which is basically like a single finger cut off latex gloves. I use them for my watch repairing hobby, so have a ready supply. They are more restrictive in terms of sizing than the bandage, but whilst one wouldn't fit the lab it might work for a cocker's tail. If it did, I would then be inclined to cover it over with the finger bandage and vet wrap.

I did also procure some Liquid Skin to try as an alternative remedy, but have never needed to use it.

 

[Buchan]

Picture please. I wonder if this is "tail gland" disease

 

[levigsp]

Are 100% the hard skin is not one of the manges

 

[jall55]

Had it on my litlle cocker - ended up docking to the nub

 

[Keeperjosh]

The original bald patch, and resultant gnawing started before he begun his working career, as a patch in the centre of his tail. Vets blamed it on blocked anal glands continuously, causing him irritation and thus the gnawing.

Up until now the dry skin hasn’t been scabbed, only in small places and very recently when I noticed it bleeding slightly. With the tail having no protection from any fur it’s unsurprising that it has eventually become raw in places.

Picture attached

 

[finbar]

Back in ma lurcher days any tail damage snapped or bent tails wud be treated with an bike inner tube over tail soft bandage on tail inner tube over top then duct tape It worked
Now thing called vet wrap use in on horses hocks wud probs do the same . All ma terriers & spaniels docked used to do them ma self but ban came in 2006 got to pay vet now they ask me where a want them cut …

 

[Buchan]

Thanks. I think this is a combination of things, the hairloss and thickening on the top of the tail is probably related to the supracaudal gland, "tail-gland disease" or "stud tail" as it's mostly entire males. It's an overdevelopment of the gland and not usually a problem but looks crap. It can be a sign of other problems like low thyroid and as yours is chewing at it, I'd get it checked. Some folk reccomend castration. The second picture looks more like irritation at the tip of the tail.
Make sure your flea treatmetn is up to date and I'd see no harm in a bath. If he's producign a bit too much grease in his coat, where ther eare skin fold, there will be yeast grwoth and that can make them itch

 

[Keeperjosh]

Thanks for the advice all. Other than that he’s in tip top shape, no coat issues etc. it’s obviously time to move vets, I’ve learnt more from one post on here than I have from 3 visits to said vets. It’s just finding a good one that’s the problem

 

[Buchan]

FURther consensus from colleagues is this si just an effect of having testicles and shouldn't be an issue. If it is an issue, it wants checking - keep an eye for lethargy or general thinkking coat that might be thyroid issues

 

[Keeperjosh]

FURther consensus from colleagues is this si just an effect of having testicles and shouldn't be an issue. If it is an issue, it wants checking - keep an eye for lethargy or general thinkking coat that might be thyroid issues

Many thanks for the advice

 

[Cj1990]

Had it on my litlle cocker - ended up docking to the nub

Most vets in my area won’t do docking. I find it absolutely bizarre that they refuse to do it

 

[VSS]

Most vets in my area won’t do docking. I find it absolutely bizarre that they refuse to do it

It's perfectly understandable that a vet would refuse to carry out what is (in most cases) a totally unnecessary, purely cosmetic, mutilation of an animal. The number of dogs that are docked because they actually need to be docked is probably a tiny percentage of the number of requests that vets get to carry out the procedure.

 

[potshotpat]

But it's ok for Pigs and Lambs to be docked on welfare grounds.

 

[VSS]

But it's ok for Pigs and Lambs to be docked on welfare grounds.

Yep, and it's OK for dogs to be docked on welfare grounds too.
It's not OK (it's illegal) for lambs to be docked short for show ring fashion, and it's not OK for dogs to be docked for purely cosmetic reasons.

 

[Tim.243]

Yep, and it's OK for dogs to be docked on welfare grounds too.
It's not OK (it's illegal) for lambs to be docked short for show ring fashion, and it's not OK for dogs to be docked for purely cosmetic reasons.

Or keep a herd of deer behind a fence with their cousins running free.....

To the op my cockers are docked on the 3rd joint if I remember as the vet counted the joints as I held the puppies.
There were 5 liver and 3 yellow tails laid out in a neat row in the tray....

 

[finbar]

Obviously vss has never seen a springer or cocker that has been un docked after good days beating working there lil hearts out covered in blood sitting in back of pick up licking there damaged tails Few lads a used to beat wit never thought it wud be a problem vet said it a rare thing to happen they had un docked springers they all wish they had of bought docked dogs … one lad paid few hundred pounds to get his dog docked due to the damaged the vet had no problem then £££

 

[VSS]

Obviously vss has never seen a springer or cocker that has been un docked after good days beating working there lil hearts out covered in blood sitting in back of pick up licking there damaged tails Few lads a used to beat wit never thought it wud be a problem vet said it a rare thing to happen they had un docked springers they all wish they had of bought docked dogs … one lad paid few hundred pounds to get his dog docked due to the damaged the vet had no problem then £££

Read my posts, please.
Nowhere have I suggested that working dogs should not be docked for welfare reasons.
However, the majority of dogs are not working dogs, and vets are well within their rights to refuse to carry out docking when it is requested purely for cosmetic reasons, or if they believe that's why it's being requested.

 

[Tim.243]

Obviously vss has never seen a springer or cocker that has been un docked after good days beating working there lil hearts out covered in blood sitting in back of pick up licking there damaged tails Few lads a used to beat wit never thought it wud be a problem vet said it a rare thing to happen they had un docked springers they all wish they had of bought docked dogs … one lad paid few hundred pounds to get his dog docked due to the damaged the vet had no problem then £££

All 14 of Chip & Tobys pups were docked with most going as non working pets with people knowing the lines they came from. The choice of non docked spaniels with good lines is very limited also where they come from ( P camp) passed on to someone who fronts them is greater.
One of Tobys pups (a bitch) is nearly all white with liver ears and patches over the eyes, a local big shoot snapped her up as he always wanted a white cocker so in time he will breed from her and the circle will start again.
@VSS