Need wound care magic for geriatric dog

[Barn_Mom]

Supplements? Sprays? Magic? Voodoo?

Lurker here! My buddy for the past 12 years, a 15-18 yr old (otherwise healthy) Lhasa Poo, is being treated for abscesses on his tail and directly under his tail. They surgically closed the one under his tail with a drain that came out today. The vet was over all pleased, but is concerned that they may not heal due to size and location. For now I had her wrap it and will take him back tomorrow and Monday for a bandage change. (he’s a horrible patient for me, I’m willing to try, but don’t want to make things worse fighting him)

In the meantime I’m looking for ideas of what we could try to help his poor tush heal!

I’ll have another bridge to cross next week…they biopsied the lump on the top of his tail, as they are suspicious of cancer. Age aside, hypothetically if they were to remove his tail the vet is concerned that there isn’t enough healthy tissue to close it.

He’s the worst dog I’ve ever had, and I wouldn’t trade that knuckle head for the world. And I’d sure hate to loose him to a rotten tail now.

I’ll worry about that when the biopsy comes back, for now I’m focused on trying to heal his bum. (And basically keep my mind busy and away from the Google)

Thoughts, ideas?

Thank you!

[Horsegal984]

The one on the tail likely won’t heal if it’s cancerous, they just don’t heal well. As far as things to try, I really like Manuka honey, there’s a brand called TheraHoney that works well.

[Barn_Mom]

Thank you! Yes, the location, especially the large one under his tail, makes it difficult and a huge concern! It has actually had the vets kind of scratching their heads. Yesterday, when the drain came out and I could see daylight through the hole, I asked them to bandage him. They packed his wounds with sugar and wrapped his tail. Today we had it changed and the vet was very pleasantly surprised especially the areas under his tail. She now
thinks that, depending on the biopsy and how it looks on Monday, if his tail has to be amputated she will have enough healthy tissue to work with.

I started this post after our vet mentioned Granulex, but I couldn’t find it online and it appears to have been discontinued? So I was curious about other potential remedies. In the meantime, I’ve been reading about honey and sugar for wound care. Very interesting!

My sweet old dude has had a rough week for sure, but he’s feeling much better today and is getting quite spoiled with lots of wet food. He has let me know that he prefers his medicine stuffed in pieces of steak or cheeseburger and has been barking at me for biscuits!

I’d still be really interested in knowing about any wound care products or strategies that have worked for other folks and their furry friends. Hopefully, I won’t need them but if I do…

Thank you!

[Simkie]

This might fall into “magic” or “voodoo” but one of my vets shared a story years ago about a totally neurotic deaf/blind Aussie:

The dog had an awful lick granulomas that refused to heal despite several different kinds of treatment, and the dog was terribly difficult to treat because it was deaf and blind and neurotic. On a whim, she started using a laser on it…just your run of the mill laser pointer. The owner would bring the dog in, and the vet would stand near (but not touch, the dog couldn’t stand to be touched by anyone but the owner) and shine the laser on the lick granulomas. After a few sessions, the wounds started to heal. Eventually with more lasering they went away.

A laser pointer is a cheap thing and it sure won’t hurt to try. (But seriously, is that voodoo or what??)

[Barn_Mom]

Since there are no chicken feet involved with this voodoo, I’m in! I’ll have to add a laser pointer to my shopping list! And even if it doesn’t help my boy’s bum and tail, it’s no loss since my cats will love it!

Thank you!

[Foxtrot_s]

What a lucky dog to have a doting owner.

I use Derma-Gel on lots of things. It is Swiss made, very gentle and mostly natural ingredients. The reason I like it and my vet likes it is that it is not caustic and the new cells that are trying to grow have a hospitable place to grow.

[Barn_Mom]

Thank you, I will add Derma-gell to my list too!

We finally got his biopsy results…NO CANCER! Woo hoo! He still has some nasty wounds ano lots of healing to do, but it isn’t cancer! His sugar bandages are making a huge difference in the healing process. We are going to keep doing the sugar bandages and re-evaluate on Monday. The doctor was so happy with the amount of healing she saw today that she feels like he might get to keep his tail. And the best part…he feels really good!

What a roller coaster the past week has been! Thank you for your kind words and suggestions!

[Cat_Tap]

Unpasturized honey is supposed to be very good for healing, works well on horses, should work on dogs. I am going to try it on one of my cats who has several wounds that just won’t heal.

[Foxtrot_s]

Derma-Gel comes in a tube and a small spray bottle I think the spray is worth the extra $/oz cost as it goes on so sparingly and easily without touching the tender spots…unless you have a big wound like on my horse.

[DrBeckett]

like honey, we use sugardine. iodine mixed with sugar. works great. problem is, like with honey, you have to be able to bandage the area and if tails are crappy to wrap.

[Barn_Mom]

So fingers crossed…it looks like sugar bandages were my voodoo all along!

Tonight my buddy came home with just a tail bandage! He had been getting “pants” to help support and protect under his tail and to help keep the tail bandage on. They kind of looked like a weird vet wrap sumo wrestler thong!

[csaper58]

Is your pup wearing a cone to prevent him licking the sugar bandages?

Glad he is healing!!!

[Barn_Mom]

Awesome Update: No more bandages! Woo hoo! I am so thankful and relieved! Under his tail looks almost normal and the spot on top is only about the size of a dime now! (It was larger than the size of an egg and looked like a chunk had been bitten out of it)

I do have to say that with his shaved tail, he looks like a 35lb opossum with a short nose and a curly perm!