He's only done it again

Further adventures in the life of Finnegan the Foolish Hooligan.
He's caught the top of his tail on something. It's oozy, gooey and gunky, nice. And now has been clipped to expose the damage for cleaning and treatment.

One raw, gooey patch - not for the faint hearted!

Now for the rest of his medical bulletin (oh, yes there's more); he's got an appointment with Eastgate's new toy next Tuesday - they're getting a digital x-ray machine.  Katie has booked his private room out because he'll need a spot of tranquillizer to lie still for long enough, we're looking at his heart and lungs and being such a huge beast one shot doesn't cover the whole picture - it could be three and possibly a scan too. Like Maia he's huffing and puffing, but unlike her he's only two and is also a little lethargic, plus his bloodline isn't too great on cardiac matters.  Fortunately Laura has just finished a cardiac course so he'll be in the best of hands, with his very own Mandy to soothe his furry brow and stop him destroying the door!
Oh, you stupid boy - who'd have a hound?

Pink bandage AND a trip to see the vet!

Apparently several miles of tape and bandage with dressings thrown in for good measure, not to mention half a tube of fusciderm are not sufficient when it comes to clobbered tails. We changed the dressings this morning and it wasn't looking -or smelling- too good. An hour of open air and more disinfectant scrub and anti-everything gel before a lighter, to let the air in, dressing which seemed ok. BUT twenty mins left unattended one Friday afternoon and Finnegan had not only ripped the dressing off but chewed an enormous hole in his tail gushing blood all over. I know a little blood goes a long way but this was more than a little and required a pressure bandage to make it stop. Mum was recalled from an afternoon "tea party" and off to Eastgate we went. Favourite vet Katie greeted him with a "what have you done now, Finn?" before clipping all the hair off the bottom half of his tail. Cleaned again, lathered in chamomile cream and more dressings, which unfortunately didn't last the journey home. With a bag full of 'shopping' and a few pounds lighter in the wallet we came home. Stupid hound is feeling sorry for himself, partly the trip to the vets, partly a bit on infection, partly the antibiotics and antinflamatory but also that he's still careering about like a crackpot and belting the great long appendage on doors, walls, chairs, people, tables - pretty much anything that happens to be vaguely within range.
A weekend of feeling sorry for himself and having his tail grabbed everytime it went anywhere near any hard (or even soft) surface / upright and it's looking loads better, a few hours of no dressing to let it dry out helped enormously too.  A check up on Tuesday and he gets signed off, we have another bag of 'shopping' to keep him wrapped up until it's healed.
Nearly two weeks later and he's bandage free.

And Custard cried for a nice safe cage

Whilst all Hebe wanted was to get out.

Last week Finnegan clobbered his tail on a table causing a small fissure.  Unfortunately as he's in the middle of his 'spring rash' pyoderma phase it became very itchy and he nibbled it from a small nick to larger wound.  On Thursday red splashes were seen in the hall prompting investigation and the raw patch was discovered, cleaned up and treated with fuciderm gel.  He carried on nibbling, under cover of paw and out of sight, increasing the raw patch. Cries of "Finnegan, leave", and "Finn, no" were heard for days on end and the tail began to dry up. But then mysteriously the patch began getting bigger and red again, the girls sniffed it and Hebe thought about having a lick, Finn didn't seem in the least bit bothered, but then he's not as green as he's Irish looking. Monday morning and it's red raw dripping blood and looking like fresh steak.  The suspicion fell on Hebe.  So the puppy cage (wolfhound sized puppy I hasten to add) was hauled out of storage and erected in the dog house.  Hebe was very happy to hop in and out having slept in it for months as a puppy and then again when Finnegan was too big for it but not big enough to share the dog house sensibly without wreaking havoc.  Bedtime came and Hebe hoped in, she looked a little worried when Maia didn't join her and then more than a little worried when the door was closed but her bedtime bonio distracted her.  Tuesday morning and Hebe was a liberated prisoner having been in solitary confinement all night what joy unconfined (at last).  Finnegan's tail? Red raw again.  Hebe has been exonerated and now we have to find a way to bandage the bottom third of a nearly 3 foot long tail.  Elizabethan collars don't work on long nosed, long tailed wolfhounds.