Tail Injury help

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Wishful

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Orange lab wags tail stupidly hard (hard enough to bruise human legs) and seems to like the noise on hard surfaces too. Inevitably now aged 6 the tip is getting bald and bleeds occasionally/ frequently. Low level walls look like murder scene due to force.

Bandage helps house decoration but doesn't help tail for long. Latest innovation is syringe case which isn't great for legs- potential lethal weapon!

Not convinced chopping offending tip off will help as scar will just split once bandage removed. Don't want full docking if possible - prefer to redecorate than that really.

For a dog which is very good at associations, he seems unable to associate tail pain with wagging hard onto walls, doors, furniture, his own face etc

Any advice much appreciated. None of the many vets we know have any ideas beyond the current attempt with syringe case...
 
Hose too small - 20 ml syringe case is the right size - larger than our hose. Long tail + long tongue means sock has been unsuccessful - Elizabethan collar didn't foil it for long. Bandaging hasn't helped healing much in past. Stoopid orange dog...
 
Thanks though - creativity is the way forward. OH is a vet so bandaging materials will be at cost and dog is insured so cost not massive issue. Damage to us/ dog / house / small children is main concern
 
Foam pipe lagging helped heal my friends dogs tail. She did not want any part amputated as it would have meant an end to a promising show career. Split the pipe lagging and then use gaffer tape to attach it to the tail. B v careful not to use tight bandages as they can effect the circulation
 
Pipe lagging as above, gaffer tape and then a liberal spray of Bitter Apple.

A good bone as a distraction may help.
 
Shuttlecock with the end chopped off. Secure to tail hair with sticky bandage (care not to compromise circulation!)
 
Thanks all.

Idiot creature has now sprained the tail by continuing to wag hard with syringe case on it! Currently on ABs as tip is raw and not showing much sign of healing. Trying to avoid pain relief as quite frankly it needs the warning that wagging too hard against things hurts and should not be done. This is a dog that has associated rude words from the kitchen with food on the floor (but ignores rude words from elsewhere in the house), the difference between popping out of the room and being properly distracted (for thievery of food) and is more likely to steal gradually over the course of an hour or two rather than stuff until caught-so he can be seen where he "should" be. So generally quite "bright" for a dog when he bothers - seems to vary between utter idiocy and leaving me standing - when I first met him as a 12 wk puppy he quickly learned that in a prickly bush gave more time to consume what you shouldn't as it takes me time to get through... Still can't work out that tail on door - ouch - don't hit tail on door!

At the moment trying to get as much air to it as possible so open ended syringe cases splinting it down to the thick strong bit, but looking like he's going to lose about 1/3 of the tail unless it heals unexpectedly. Which will probably leave him with a near enough normal length of tail - as the normal tail is long.. Just going to have to protect the healing scar tissue for a while!

Giving him a nice bone would provoke yet more wagging - which it would be "good" to minimise for a while. He's not too horrendous about chewing things, but as he is already interested in socks the temptation on the end of the tail was too much.

OH is very careful with bandaging tightness - but I suppose that 6 years of being thumped against anything and everything will damage the skin - it's only become an ongoing issue in the last 3 months - and a concern in the last week - before that we just had occasional incidents with several months to a year between them.
 
Just a quick update that we seem to have found a solution. .. poulster plast (horsey super sticky foam dressing) has let the raw tip heal and should work as prevention in future as we don't mind the sticky marks. Yay!
 
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