The spikelets are no small ears of wild grasses. Widespread from the end of spring until the last summer months, they can plant in the skin of the natural orifices of the dog and cause very serious damage to migrant inside his body …
What is an epilell?
An epilell is the common name given to the flower of all plants that belong to the family of grasses. This is a small epi, similar to that of a wheatear that we can find where wild grasses are likely to push in a high-grass field or in any zone where the vegetation is not regularly cut.
Very schematically, this plant fragment consists of a relatively hard vegetable axis, the “Rachlet” and barbel.
Why are the spikers dangerous for the dog?
The dangerousness of the spikers is due to the fact that they are able to cling to our clothes but also to the fur of our animals. Also named – rightly – the “traveler”, the epilell has indeed the ability to puncture the skin thanks to its very hard spinal and advance through the body always in the same direction to the same—help of his barbs, causing big damage to the passage.
To convince you, just place a spikelet in the handle of a knitted sweater at your wrist, points it up. After going a few minutes to your occupations, you will find the spikelet that will have migrated into your garment at your shoulder Unfortunately, an epilell can also make this route “inside your dog” If, however, it has been planted in their skin or if it has been introduced by one of its natural orifices.
If the spikers remain dangerous all year round, these pieces of plants are all the more formidable during the “beautiful season”, which extends from the end of spring in the last summer months from June to July because they become very dry and hard and are more easily detached from their stem. The risk is that they cling to your dog’s coat during one of his walks, and they enter:
his ears,
their eyes,
Ring,
his pharynx,
The spaces between his fingers,
In his anal bags,
in his genital lanes
Or anywhere under his skin.
Once entered, the spikelets can even “strip” Foremost from their entry point in your dog’s body, causing organ perforations and serious infections.
My dog has a spikelet.
My dog has an epilell in the ear.
Be vigilant if your dog shakes his head after a ride in tall grass or shows signs of pain a spiker can have lied in his ear. Of course, dogs with long hairs and drooping ears are the most at risk.
It is then necessary to consult your veterinarian before the spikelet does not penetrate deeper, does not pierce the tympanum of your dog by winning the middle ear or cause an ear infection.
In the vast majority of cases, the veterinarian manages to remove the foreign body from the ear with a clamp introduced in the cone of an otoscope. Only, the dog does not always be done very easily, especially if the spiker causes him pain. In order to avoid suffering and moving, the veterinarian can then use slight sedation or short anaesthesia. Once the spikelet removed, the veterinarian may prescribe atrial drops for a few days to calm the inflammation and prevent the occurrence of an infection.
My dog has a spikelet in the nose.
The spikelet can also sneak into your dog’s nose. This very painful situation is manifested by violent sneezing, which occurs very brutally after a walk in a risk zone, and the scratches of the nose. Narine, where the spikelet has planted, can also present slight bleeding.
The spikelet can be visible again by exceeding the nostril, but it is not always the case. Do not attempt in any way to remove it yourself at the risk of breaking the spikelet and continues its crazy run towards the nasal pits, pharynx or lungs of your dog.
In the nose, an epilell can only be removed by the veterinarian, and, in the vast majority of cases, this withdrawal will be under general anaesthesia by intubating the animal with an endotracheal probe. If the spikelet remained planted in the nose, the veterinarian could then remove it with a clip and an otoscope or a rhinoscope. If, on the other hand, the spikelet has grown more deeply, the veterinarian will have to make a more delicate extraction by endoscopy.
My dog has an epilell in the eye.
The eye is also an orifice where the spikelet can also slip. It can cause the loss of your animal’s organ if it is not supported very quickly.
Very brutally, if an epillet is in his eye, your dog will present a closed eye and a discharged eye flow that can quickly infect. Of course, the animal will show signs of pain that will push it to rub the eye until even more injured.
At the level of the dog’s eye, the spikelets will often stay in the back of its third eyelid. The risk is that the plant rubs on the cornea and ulcer, even the performance.
The veterinarian proceeds with the withdrawal of an eye housed in the eye by generally resorting to local anaesthesia. Anaesthesia can, however, be general if the animal is not very cooperative. In order to treat the horny lesions induced by the presence of the spikelet, the veterinarian may prescribe an ophthalmic ointment containing antibiotics as well as the port of the collar for a few days to prevent the dog from getting more rubbing his eye.
My dog has an epilell in the pharynx.
The mouth is another gateway to the Epilelet in the dog! The plant can then plant or land in the pharynx of the animal. The dog then gives the impression of choking and trying to vomit, even sometimes to achieve it.
The risk, if the epillet remains stiped, is that it penetrates the mucosa and causes an abscess. The dog can then develop a fever and painful swelling of the throat and neck that will prevent it from swallowing its food. The pharynx, the spikelet, can also sometimes migrate to the lung. The dog will then present cough, and the presence of the foreign body in the lungs can complicate pneumonia or pneumothorax (lung perforation).
If your dog has planted a spiker in the pharynx, the veterinarian can withdraw him by practising general anaesthesia. The withdrawal of the plant will generally be followed by the administration of antibiotics for a few days.
My dog has a spiker under the skin.
When they slide under the skin of the dog, the spikelets cause purulent and painful abscesses that end up breaking up by releasing pus.
Most often, the entrance point is between the fingers, where the skin is finer. It progresses then under the skin forming sorts of red buttons called fistulas, very painful that the dog drips constantly.
Anal bags also constitute another classic entrance point of the spikelet. This skin folds on either side of the dog anus can then stop and absolver. The dog will then felt a sharp pain at this place, will try to lick or go on the sleigh.
Once under the skin, remember that the spikelets are still likely to “strip” Foremost from their entry point in your dog’s body, causing organ perforations and serious infections on their passage.
My dog has an epilell in the genital lanes.
The spikelets can also penetrate via the holes of the vulva and the dog’s penis. They can then migrate into the uterus or in the dog’s abdomen, causing serious infections.
In any case, it is necessary to consult a veterinarian to remove the foreign body and avoid complications. If the spikelet is already deep into the tissues, the veterinarian will need to operate the dog under general anaesthesia.
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How to avoid epilets?
Some prevention measures are needed to minimize the risks associated with epilepsy
avoid as much as possible the areas at risk with your dog, do not let it burst into a field of soaps,
Inspect the in all seams during your return from walking, and remove the potential spikelets that would be present in his fur,
If you have one, maintain your garden and toner it as regularly as possible,
Take long bristle dogs regularly to the groomer to reduce the risks that a spiker clings to his hair. If his nature of hair allows, you can also mow your dog upon arrival of the Fine Days.
