removing quills from a dog

[TsPoet]

This question is too late, I already spent $715 to get quills out of my dogs' chins. They both got into it with a poor porcupine (which I'm happy to report was fine when I extracted the stupid dogs). I chickened out and took them to the vet, who sent me to the emergency vet, to get the quills removed. Murphy had 14 quills in his chin, although the photo makes it look like less. Finn had a few more.
Murphy didn't handle the anesthesia very well, he was very cold to the touch, shivering, and cried ALL night long.
Has anybody extracted these things themselves? If this happens again (I have a feeling it will), can I do this myself?

[mimitabby]

there's no way you'd want to do it yourself. your dogs will scream and bite. sedation is a good thing. But yes; people DO extract quills from their dogs. I know I'd try giving it a tug or two and then I'd chicken out and take them to the vet.

[r900]

You can do it yourself. It's not pleasant, but the sooner you pull them out the better. They will steadily work themselves deeper into your pup and lead to infection if left alone.A plain old pair of pliers and a firm grip is what it takes.IMO $715 was unethical.

[sundial]

Oooh, poor baby. He needs a hug!

[TsPoet]

You can do it yourself. It's not pleasant, but the sooner you pull them out the better. They will steadily work themselves deeper into your pup and lead to infection if left alone.A plain old pair of pliers and a firm grip is what it takes.IMO $715 was unethical.

Yeah, I thought the $715 was pretty steep. But, it was 7 pm ($100 was just an "emergency" fee) and there were 2 dogs involved, so $350 each, which maybe is OK.
I tried to pull one from the Murph and he was obviously in pain from my attempt.
Neither dog backed off on it's own, they weren't bothered by the quills until about 15 minutes after the event, so not sure they'd be smart enough to not get into it again. I love to walk them there, but I guess I won't. At least not at dusk, that was stupid on my part.
A web search has come up with the same answers I'm getting here - Yes you can, and no you can't at about 50:50.
I'm guessing for me "no you can't" is the right answer, just because I'm a coward.
thanks,

[Tri Girl]

Oh, poor babies! I'm so sorry all of you had to go through this.
I remember when I was young, my dog got into a porcupine fight. He had a ridiculous number of quills in his chin (I think 50 or so). I remember dad pulling them out with pliers while he howled in pain. He never did it again, but that's not to say he didn't try.

I would've done the same thing as you. It would be too hard for me to tug and cause them more pain and to hear them howl and cry.

[ibcycling]

Ouch! Not sure if you'd want to try and do it yourself. It would really depend on how bad they were and how they handle the pain. If you had extracted them you'd still need to see the vet for antibiotics and a checkup but that would be much cheaper than the emergency vet.

I helped a vet remove quills before and some actually had to be pushed through the lip and pulled out from the inside. It was not fun and the dog did have to be sedated.

I hope they are both doing well today!

Lora

[smilingcat]

I think its best left to the vet

from wiki:

Contrary to popular belief, porcupines are not capable of throwing their quills, but they detach very easily and will remain embedded in an attacker. Porcupine quills are as sharp as needles. Unlike needles, however, the quills of New World porcupines have microscopic, backwards-facing barbs on the tip that catch on the skin making them difficult and painful to extract. Quills are about 75 mm long and 2 mm wide. If a quill becomes lodged in the tissues of a would-be attacker, the barbs act to pull the quill further into the tissues with the normal muscle movements of the attacker, moving up to several millimeters in a day. Predators have been known to die as a result of quill penetration and infection.

i thought the quills were barbed. And it can be very painful to remove. Yes you can do it; but, at what cost either way. Pain inflicted if you did it your self or $$ if you went to the ved and had the dog anethetized.

Geeze, rash of furry baby problems lately...

Well I hope they learned their lesson. And speedy recovery.
smilingcat

[snapdragen]

Oh poor baby! He's got such an "oh damn what did I do" look.

[Flybye]

I remember your pooch as the force to be reckoned with aka. the coyote in the fall leaves thread. Poor baby.

It reminded me of a picture that I saw a few years back. This pooch didn't know when enough was enough!

[oxysback]

I remember your pooch as the force to be reckoned with aka. the coyote in the fall leaves thread. Poor baby.

It reminded me of a picture that I saw a few years back. This pooch didn't know when enough was enough!

Holy cow!! I'm in pain just looking at that picture!

[elk]

I remember your pooch as the force to be reckoned with aka. the coyote in the fall leaves thread. Poor baby.

It reminded me of a picture that I saw a few years back. This pooch didn't know when enough was enough!

betcha it was a pitbull or a pit mix....look at the blocky head and the body...and that's what makes a terrier a terrier...never give up!

OUCHY...TsPoet...You did right to take them in...you don't want to do that; it's HARD! That's what we pay the professionals for...

Also, anytime sedation is involved, extra monitoring is necessary...thus higher prices...

[OakLeaf]

Yeah, I agree. Think about what it costs to get minor surgery under general anesthesia for yourself, then you'll realize that $350 for a dog is a bargain. It's almost identical in terms of expertise, drugs and equipment.

I remember when I was a kid and my dad and my uncle pulled quills out of our dog. Yeah they did it, yeah the quills came out, no the dog didn't get infected.

Besides pliers, it takes two adults (one to hold the dog, one to pull the quills) who are physically strong enough to do the holding (IMO few women would qualify, and if you've ever tried to hold your dog for a mere nail trim you know what I mean), and emotionally strong enough to hang on and/or pull when the dog screams and struggles (IMO few MEN who are not ranchers or hunters would qualify).

[Brandi]

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

[ibcycling]

betcha it was a pitbull or a pit mix....look at the blocky head and the body...and that's what makes a terrier a terrier...never give up!

OUCHY...TsPoet...You did right to take them in...you don't want to do that; it's HARD! That's what we pay the professionals for...

Also, anytime sedation is involved, extra monitoring is necessary...thus higher prices...

Nose is too long for a pit. If I remember right that pic is a bull terrier. That picture always makes me cringe!

Lora