I have a 2 year old Bichon Frise, who has been cleaning her private area incessantly for weeks now. It appears that she is in heat since she is so swollen from the licking, yet she is spayed. A urinalysis was done that revealed she has "crystals", so the vet said to change her Dog Food and treats over to prescription diet (CD) and he gave her antibiotics for a week. I was feeding her "Caesar" wet food, "Beneful" Kibble, and "Beggin' Strips" treats. She took the antibiotics and the "CD" dog food for a week, yet the problem is still there. My question is this, what else can I do next, because the licking is not easing off at all, and I can see how uncomfortable she is. She is on flea and heartworm medication, and is groomed every two months. She growls when I approach her private area, which is most uncharacterist of her.
Customer
The initial urinary problem may have started the licking/cleaning but the constant irritation and moisture has most likely lead to a skin infection.
Do you see any brown discharge around her vulva? Is her vulva reddened?
Dr. M
Did not see any brown, but how would I if she is constantly licking, right? And, yes, very, very red, and very, very swollen vulva . . .
First off if the vulva is that swollen your veterinarian may want to extend the antibiotics. Give them a call when you can and let them know her vulva is badly swollen.
You can at home try to apply some hydrocortisone ointment to her vulva to help with the swelling and irritation. Once she seems comfortable you may want to switch to an antibiotic ointment (triple antibiotic is fine) if the vulva is still swollen. You can apply this about 3 times a day.
So now before she gets a chance to lick that off as well, do you have any small children's underwear or shorts? If you cannot find anything like that you can always go to a pet shop and get the "underpants" they make for female dogs to wear when they are in heat. This arrangement can help to keep her from licking her vulva.
Hopefully the antibiotics will clear the urinary problems and if you can get the swelling of the vulva under control she should be fine.
If there is anything else I can answer please let me know.
Experience: 12 yrs in a mixed animal practice