Dog Skin Tag Removal Rubber Band

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It can be unsettling to find a skin tag on your dog. They’re not only gnarly looking, but they’re scary too — skin growths can occasionally be cancerous.

However, most run-of-the-mill skin tags are completely harmless growths. They may cause your dog a minor bit of irritation or look a bit gross to you, but that’s about it.

Obviously, you should take your pup to your veterinarian for evaluation any time you notice anything unusual, but skin tags are common, and rarely require treatment of any kind.

How To Remove Skin Tags On Dogs

We will be taking a look at what in our opinion at least, is the best commercial product on the market for removing skin tags on your dog. We will also be taking a look at a few other popular home remedies for skin tags in your dog that can be effective.

Although some of the home remedies may not be as effective as the commercial product, they are common items in most households so will allow you to start treatment immediately.

What Happens After Your Dog’s Skin Tag Has Been Tied Off:

Bruce explained to me the following things:

  • Within a few days, the blood within the tag would start to dry up. This is because the flow had been cut off and over the course of about a week it would then would shrivel up, turn black, and fall off.
  • Initially, the tag could swell up so it would be a good idea to put Brutus in a t-shirt to keep the tag close to his chest so that he didnt try to catch or scratch it with his back paws.

    • So as you can see from the next two photos, I willingly gave up my Superman t-shirt for him to wear. Personally, I think it looks better on Brutus than it ever did on me!

    After skin tag removal, putting your dog in a t-shirt is recommended.

    Tying Off a Skin Tag From a Dog

    I was worried that he might catch it whilst snuffling around in the garden, thus creating a bigger problem than we already had, so I took him to the vet, who exclaimed, “Oh yes, it is a large skin tag isnt it?” Er. Duh.

    He explained to me that it could be removed through surgery, but as Brutus was older in his years, he thought that it would be best to try to tie it off! Tying off is a process that entailed the vet first tying some sort of thin line (like a fishing line) around the top of the tag close to his chest. Hed tie it as tightly as he could to stop the blood flow. It would hurt a bit, so I had to hold Brutus head, so he didnt take a chunk out of the vet.

    So, I held onto Brutus, gently talking to him whilst he tried to take sidelong glances at the vet trying to see what he was up to. The vet (lets call him Bruce) told me to brace Brutus head as he pulled the line tight. Brutus let out a whimper and thrashed around a little, but within about 30 seconds, he seemed to have forgotten it had happened.

    FAQ

    Can you remove skin tags with rubber bands?

    Some people recommend removing skin tags by wrapping dental floss or tiny rubber bands around the growths. But once again, this is a bad idea. The floss or rubber band may cause an additional wound or fail to work, leaving a potentially infected skin tag behind.

    How long does it take for a skin tag to fall off using a band?

    It is also possible to buy kits of bands for at home skin tag removal. These are in effect tiny rubber bands which come with a plastic cone which is designed to help apply the rubber band to the skin tag. There are different sizes of bands depending on the size of the skin tag to be removed.

    Can I pull off my dog’s skin tag?

    Some skin tag removal kits aim to cut off the supply of blood to the base of the tag with a tiny band, a process called ligation. The idea is that, without a supply of blood, the cells will die and the tag will fall off, usually within 10 days.