umbilical hernia

karen9497 · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 10:21 am Post subject: umbilical hernia

Miss Pep has a tiny umbilical hernia. When she was a puppy obviously it looked much bigger, but she has sort of grown in to it, if you will.
How detrimental is it that we get it repaired??

PamK · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:17 pm Post subject:

What does the vet say and why?

karen9497 · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:31 pm Post subject:

Well, the vet saw it when she was a puppy and said she'd have to have it repaired. Every time he saw her after that it was for some type of ailment (ear infection, vaginitis(EWW), being hit by a car Rolling Eyes

) so it hasn't been mentioned again. Honestly, I'm not sure he even remembers it was there....that's how small it is. Like I said, every time I have brought her in, he was looking everywhere but there, so I'd have to ask him again, butI'm sure he'd say to get it fixed....$$$$$$$$
Though he has been really good to me thru this whole ordeal with her, so I shouldn't say that..

Cathy · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:38 pm Post subject:

Marley had the same thing and the vet said she would fix it when we got her spayed if need be. But it was fine. The vet never mentioned it again, and it's hardly noticeable now. I think they heal up on their own a lot. If it is small and flat and doesn't bother her to touch, it's probably okay.

karen9497 · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:45 pm Post subject:

My gut feeling is to just let it be....and I think that is what I'll do...its way too small for a loop of bowel to get strangulated in, and that would be my only worry. It looks like a little bubble, no bigger than a pea on her belly. Its soft, and she doesn't care if you touch it, it doesn't bother her in the least. I'm not going to be breeding her, so I don't think its a big deal. I just didn't know if anyone had a flip side of the coin to share.
Thanks!!!! Very Happy

luckyloo · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:00 pm Post subject:

I asked my vet about this as well. He told me that when lucky is relaxed and just laying you can kind of rub it and push it in. And if the hole is the size of the tip of your index finger that is normal but if it starts getting to be the size of your thumb you need to worry. Hope that helps and is what you are talking about

karen9497 · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 1:05 pm Post subject:

Yup...that's a great bit of advice...thanks Luckyloo! Laughing

Hers is not even the size of my pinky, so we should be ok.

scrbear11 · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 6:42 pm Post subject:

Zehen has a HUGE umbilical hernia. It was two inches long and 1/2 inch wide. There was a piece of liagment running through it that you could feel. I went to have it repaired when he was 12 weeks old, but the vet doing the surgery changed her mind- she wanted to wait till he was 6 months plue so we could do a prophylactic gastropexy (stomach tack- since weims bloat so much) and we neutered him then too. I had to check his hernia twice daily to make sure it didn't get hard or didn't change consistency. It started to get a little harder, so we did his surgery at 7 1/2 months old (he actually had it done Tuesday).

Your vet will probably want to fix this fairly soon, probably before you decide to neuter/spay. But it's up to your vet. Voice your concern next time you go in for a puppy visit.

ange165 · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 6:56 pm Post subject:

Ruby had one as well when she was a baby.. it almost disappeared minus a slightly raised bump. When she had her operation, her scar line herniated as well as that original hernia came back. Since then they have disappeared as well.
Like the others I wouldn't worry about it too much.. It seems so small. I thought our vet was after some $$$$ as well, but the subject has never benn raised again.

versatilek9s · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 8:14 pm Post subject:

If it is smaller than the tip of your little finger it's totally fine. It's thought to be genetic in cases where the dog has a larger one, but smaller ones can be caused by the momma when they are babies and they aren't sure about the genetic component. In most cases they don't need to be surgically repaired.

hoochmamas · Posted: Sun Aug 31, 2008 3:33 am Post subject:

hooch has a hernia that will be repaired when he is neutered and chipped.. i massage it a few times a day.. it bulges most when he has to pee, or just ran around a lot. when he was a pup, it was significant.. it has reduced in size tremendously and although it is very small now, i am still going to get it stitched shut at neuter time...

2kids2weims · Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 10:28 am Post subject:

Cooper & my youngest (human) son had umbilical hernias when young. We were advised to wait & watch. In both cases they went away without surgery.

My son's was actually quite big & distressing to look at. Cooper's was small. We were told it can take some time for the abdominal muscles to strengthen & correct this problem.

Any sudden change is something to worry about. If you are having neuter/spay done, you can ask again whether it is worth fixing at the same time & the cost will be minimized. Incidentally, our experience with the vet was the same - it was noted & we were told surgery was a possible outcome & then it was never mentioned again.

ChloeArnold · Posted: Fri Sep 26, 2008 8:45 am Post subject: hernia

Chloe had 1 too. Our vet said no need to repair. She was spayed just yesterday w/o any issues. The breeder sold her to us at a $50 discount, so that's 1 good thing!

JacksMommy · Posted: Fri Sep 26, 2008 8:52 am Post subject:

Jack has never had a hernia (knock on all the wood he eats LOL)

But my daughter was diagnosed with an umbilical hernia (two completely different beings here, I know!!!) when she was a baby, and later on it actually turned out that she had a gastrointestinal hernia that was wrapping around her intestines and causing severe pain.

They say umbilical hernias usually repair themselves or fade overtime, however I would just be sure that its not a gastro. My poor baby to this day will not allow anything near her belly button as she associates it with pain Sad

(She had the hernia removed when she was 3 - shes 8 now).

But - my point is, just be sure it is indeed an umbilical hernia, and if so - they say those can fade with time and treat themselves.

anne · Posted: Fri Sep 26, 2008 12:14 pm Post subject:

If the hernia is now gone it's a non-issue. It means that the hole closed up without trapping the intestines.