Help Harley's Tail is one open sore!!!

[Jane Scott]

Oh dear, we are totally baffled on how to get his tail to heal. It started months ago; with 1 hot spot. Just when we get it all cleared up, well scabbed over and the scabs are almost gone, he goes at it again until it bleeds. We use polysporin or teatree oil, bandage it in gauze and then wrap it in vetwrap plus adhesive tape and he still will lick on either end or rips the bandage completely off. Any suggestions?
Thanks millions,
Jane

[GabrielDeafBlindPupFamily]

The No Bite Collar. It needs air to 'breathe', right? I've used cone collars (elizabethan or e-collars) and neither the dogs nor I like them. I haven't had to use one in years, but if I did, it would be the no bite collar.



The product page says it only protects the base of the tail, but I don't know Harley's particulars.

Here's the page:

http://handicappedpets.com/www/images/s ... ollar1.jpg

[Jane Scott]

Karen, thank for looking that collar up. Unfortunately, if it will only protect the base of the tail then were out of luck. It's only the base that isn't affected. He has it bloodied from about two inches away from the base right down to the tip. We will head for Pet Smart tomorrow to see what we can find in the way of collars. If no luck there, then we'll just have to take him into the vet's on Monday.
Jane

[Bendy Kitty]

we've had cats who licked themselves raw (my kittyfostermom Ninga licked all teh skin off her chest once) and we put them on a tranquilizer for awhile to calm them down and let things heal up.
for her it was a stress reaction.
sometimes it is a food issue, manifestation of an allergy.
i know of one extreme case where the cat kept tearing his own tail open, but no where else, and they amputated the tail (not what you want to hear, i know).

have you tried any meds? maybe even something mild like benedryl - it calms them and if there are any itchies should take care of that too.

bendy

[critters]

I wonder if gabapentin would help?

[Jane Scott]

Thanks for the suggestions. I googled the gabapentin and am not sure I want to go that route yet; may be we will have to try drugging him but not yet. Harley is OCD his obsession is on licking - we call him our "Hoover Boy" The licking is his soothing mechanism - used for 4 years while crated nearly 24/7. He feels very content to snuggle next to us on the couch under his blanket and lick the blanket, couch or self. However, this tail licking has become really compulsive and mostly due I think, to the itch while it heals. So today we went to Pet Smart; they did not have the proper size E Collar but the clerk suggested we try a bitter spray on the bandages first. So we bought "Bitter YuK" no lick spray; it's all natural and can be sprayed right on the dressing / vet wrap or directly onto hot spots etc. I tried a teeny drop of it and still can't get the taste out even after a glass of milk! Here's hoping this will work.
Jane

[GabrielDeafBlindPupFamily]

OCD? You can visit Possum's thread under seizure. I recommend chlomipramine and L-T for OCD-CCD. First, though, behaviour modification - ie distraction. Keeping him on lead while undergoing this is quite helpful.

[GabrielDeafBlindPupFamily]

ANTI-LICK STRIP! From Nurtured Pets. Have not tried it, saw it in Dog Fancy and pulled up their website!

http://www.nurturedpets.com/products/Default.aspx

I'm gonna buy a GREAT BIG ONE for what's left of my couch!

[Jane Scott]

Thanks Karen - the biggest strip is 6" long so you're going to need a heck of a lot of strips to cover your couch!!!!
The bitter spray is doing well, we re-apply it as needed. The majority of his tail has healed, even has some fur growing back. There are a still a couple of areas that are raw and bloody but it's looking a heck of alot better than it did.
He has gotten so good at laying still while "Mum" fixes it, he knows he'll get his reward for laying still - "cookies!" Well, not a full cookie only the knob off the end of a cookie! Full cookies are reserved for really really special things like BMs done outside!
Cheers, Jane

[Christine]

A friend of mine has a dog with terrible itching where she would go under a bed and rub her back raw. Their vet gave her a monthly shot that was for flea allergies and expensive. After a year, nothing seemed to work. They went to a different vet who told them that the shot could damage the liver and he suggested Benadryl as it has no side effects. It worked like a charm (they gave her one in the morning and one at night - she is a jack russel chiuaua mix) but I would check dosage for Harley if you need to try this. After doing this for a month, she now needs nothing.

It sounds like you may have gotten it under control, though

[Jane Scott]

Thanks Christine - yeh I'm thinking that the root cause is allergies - dry, dry, winter weather so will wait to see how it progresses. Being OC does not help at all!
Jane