Hernia's in puppies

I have found a little lump today on Poppy's belly. When she lies down it goes but when she stood up you can feel it. If doesn't seem to bother her. I read on the introduction to Shih Tzu about them are they common in Shih Tzu puppies?

I'm going to the vet's on Thursday so I will mention it to him. Just wanted to see if its a common thing or not for them to have and if it will go away as she gets bigger.

Thanks

Both Daisy and Hattie had these and my vet was going to remove Daisy's when she was spayed but he got called out to an emergency and one of the other vet's did her spaying and didn't think it was neccessary so poor little princess still has hers.

Hattie had hers done when she was spayed cos I insisted on them calling me if Graeme was not going to do the op but he did so he sorted it out while she was under the anaesthetic

Graeme checks Daisy's whenever we have to go in for a visit and it hasn't got any bigger since she was apuppy so basically nothing too much to worry about.

Mention it to your vet any way.

Think they are fairly common in shiddies.

my two have both had them, i would not have even noticed if the vet had`nt said when they went for their first injections, the vet said they were comon and just said they were nothing to worry about.

Thanks guys I was worried about it.

They are two types of hernia's I think, one is called umbilical hernias and the other inguinal hernia . One is a bigger op then the other.

Both can be done the same time as being spayed. Dogs with a inguinal hernia should not be bred from.
I would pop her along to the vets to find out

If its only small then it will be fine, alot of Shih Tzu puppies have them and in most cases its nothing to be alarmed about, some are corrected at the time of spaying and some just have them for life.....now if it is small some say it can possibly close as they get older but i havent found this but thats just me and some have found they do so its luck.

If its a large one then it will have to be closed as it can be dangerous as intestine can come through and become strangulated...if yours feels very small it should be ok.

Get your vet to check it out and see what they say but please be warned as some vets just love to say they need the operation when really they dont so my advice would be to get a second opinion.

Really the breeder should have found this on the puppy and told you about it as it saves a lot of worring for the new owner.

Yes Bex is right my breeder told me about Daisy's and Hattie's saved a lot of worry.

Thanks guys I only felt it today. So maybe breeder didn't feel it herself as I think she would of told me if she had cause she told us all about her. Weight at birth dates she wormed her and flea her ect.

It doesn't feel very big and when she lies down it goes.

One of my pups had a rough birth and I thought at the time that she'd probably have a hernia. Her cord got caught up behind the sac in back of her and she was out of her mama, but the cord was still inside, with very little space between the pup and the mother. When the mother started getting frantic to get at the pup, we had to pull the pup to get enough cord visible to even snip. Her hernia didn't show up until she was about 10 weeks old and had put on enough weight to cause it to drop. I didn't sell her until she was older, so I knew about it and told the new owner about it and how it probably had occurred. It was very small and would go in and out. Actually at the time that I sold her, I hadn't felt it for a couple of weeks. It was repaired when she was spayed. There is something else that can occur that isn't actually a hernia, but rather a delayed closure of the midline in the abdomin and chest. It's nothing to worry about, but when this occurs, there's a short window where it feels like the pup has a hernia, and then the midline closes and there's no more hernia. Your breeder may have thought that this was that, or she may have thought the hernia closed on its own before you got her.

Jaent

Fluffyangel wrote:If its only small then it will be fine, alot of Shih Tzu puppies have them and in most cases its nothing to be alarmed about, some are corrected at the time of spaying and some just have them for life.....now if it is small some say it can possibly close as they get older but i havent found this but thats just me and some have found they do so its luck.

If its a large one then it will have to be closed as it can be dangerous as intestine can come through and become strangulated...if yours feels very small it should be ok.

Get your vet to check it out and see what they say but please be warned as some vets just love to say they need the operation when really they dont so my advice would be to get a second opinion.

Really the breeder should have found this on the puppy and told you about it as it saves a lot of worring for the new owner.

If I can jump in on this one Becca - first Josh had one which has completely closed up and also My show dog Beau had quite a large one and he never had it operated on. I used to make sure it would pop back in every day and it never gave him any problem (but you do have to check it every day!) Having said all that Ming had one which went like a hard pea it did not move in and out at alland I thought this was better but in actual fact she is the only one of mine who had a hernia stragulate!! It was very difficult to tell from this hernia because it had never been able to be pushed in anyway! I thought she had hurt her back becaus she cried out when I picked her up and she portrayed to the vet that she had a tender back or tumm. He went in to the hernia just to be on the safe side really and I am so glad he did because it was just at the point of turning gangrenous - had we been a few hours later it would have been too late.

So I think the golden rule is to always make sure the hernia moves in and out freely and if your dog displays any sort of discomfort then take it to the vet to have the hernia checked.
The other glden rule is not to panic and rush into surgery because very often as the pup grows so the hernia seems/becomes smaller!

Thanks guys you have all been great it seems quite a common thing in this breed. I am taking her on Thursday for her injection so will get the vet to check it out for me. It does move in and out and dosn't seem to bother her infact she thinks i'm playing so starts to nibble at my fingers. Puppies teeth you forget how sharp they are

Hi Guys Poppy went to the Vets today for her first injection she was so scared all the time in there she was shaking and put her head in my coat. Everyone at the vets fell in love with her and wanted to take her home.

I asked about the lump and was told it was a hernia and not to worry about it as when they spay her they will correct it. Everything else was fine.

Thanks again guys.

Love Karen and Poppy

Kaz65 wrote:Hi Guys Poppy went to the Vets today for her first injection she was so scared all the time in there she was shaking and put her head in my coat. Everyone at the vets fell in love with her and wanted to take her home.

I asked about the lump and was told it was a hernia and not to worry about it as when they spay her they will correct it. Everything else was fine.

Thanks again guys.

Love Karen and Poppy

Bless thats great news