Hernia

[Bernie]

Hannah had a small hernia removed in April when she was spayed. Last night I discovered a much larger hernia almost at the same location on her stomach. I am going to call the vet first thing tomorrow, but in the meantime I am confused and frightend. Has anyone else had a hernia removed from their doxie and another, larger one appear a few months later? Our vet didn't tell me that there was a possibility that another one could appear. Thanks for any information!

[wireweiners]

Hernias are caused by the intestines portruding through a hole or weakness in the abdominal wall. So technically, they aren't removed, they are fixed by pushing the intestines back into the abdominal cavity and then closing the cavity with stitches. Sounds to me like either the stitches didn't hold and allow the cavity wall to repair or the cavity wall was weaker than the vet thought and gave way again. Button was born with a very large hernia that I had fixed in April also. She had to have a "tuck" taken in her abdominal cavity to make sure the area was strong enough to hold. She has had no problems since. You need to get this fixed asap since sometimes the intestines can strangulate and cause major problems.

[Bernie]

Thanks so much for the information about hernia surgery. You explained the procedure clearer to me than my vet did. I hope the vet will be able to do a "tuck" this week. I don't want Hannah to suffer any dire consequences.

[Penny's Aunt]

Hernias are "usually" genetic problems; the other cause is usually injury. If she had one (usually near the navel), it was probably genetic, indicating weak muscles in that area. It's entirely possible that even if the first was fixed, another one could appear spontaneously, just the way the first one did. You usually don't want to breed dogs with hernias.

If it appeared in exactly the same place, it COULD be that some of the inner stitches pulled loose from the weak muscles, & the same hernia is open again.

Is the lump you are now seeing soft or hard? If it is soft, it is probably just abdominal fat coming through the hole in the muscle. You can probably push it back in & you may even be able to feel how large the hole is with your fingertip. (You won't hurt the dog.) If the lump of fat is only as large as the end of your thumb or smaller, the hole probably isn't very large, & it's unlikely that intestines would come through.

Occasionally, a stitch will pull loose after a spay is done, resulting in a tiny hernia with fat coming out. Ask your vet about it if it happens, but usually they aren't harmful.

IF THE LUMP IS HARD, CALL YOUR VET AT ONCE. Don't try to push it back in. Leave it alone. This could well be intestines. If the dog also acts like it is in pain, this is an emergency. Don't wait until morning.