# Recessed Vulva - Urinary Support Useless?



## ChancetheGSD (Dec 19, 2007)

Gretchen has a recessed vulva which makes her more prone to UTI's. She's taken cranberry supplements since she turned 6 weeks old and so far we've been able to prevent things until now. Today I took her in to get weighed and drop off a urine sample because she was showing signs of a UTI, of course they called me back about an hour later and told me it was positive. So now I have to go back to the vet tomorrow for them to do a physical exam on her before I can be given medication to get rid of the infection. :/

I'm hoping this is a one time deal and with 1-2 heat cycles (preferably one) she'll be "poked out" enough that I won't have to resort to surgery to fix it. BUT I'm still worried about her getting a UTI. I already clean her with baby wipes but as you can see, a problem has still come up. Is there anything else to give to help prevent UTI's or is it a hopeless case because of how the UTI starts from a RV in the first place? (ie. pooling urine back into the vagina)

I've been reading a LOT about D-Mannose and it seems to have many good reviews to prevent and even treat a UTI but once again, will the fact the urine pools back into her vagina defeat the purpose of your normal UTI prevention?

Someone mentioned (I believe it was on this board, it wasn't too long ago, maybe the other day?) swabbing the vagina and creases with coconut oil since it's a natural antibacterial/antifungal. Does anyone else have experience doing this vs. baby wipes?


----------



## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

D-Mannose is great. I've used it for a UTI before. D-Mannose strips the outer wall from e-coli so it can not survive. And 95% of UTI's are caused by e-coli.


----------



## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

How old is she? Female puppies can be prone to UTI and vaginitis anyway, because of hormone levels. I don't know if it's better to keep the area clean with wipes, or whether it's better not to mess with it because of the possibly of bringing more contamination in. 

But any kind of urinary support should be helpful, I think--cranberry, corn silk, D-mannose, probiotics, or any other natural urinary supplement certainly won't do any harm. Whether it will help the recessed vulva or not is open to question.


----------



## ChancetheGSD (Dec 19, 2007)

She's 7.5 months old. I don't see it helping with the RV at all, that's a matter of her having a heat cycle or two and even then hers seems so deep I try not to get my hopes up and am trying to figure out how I'm going to afford the (estimated) $1,000+ "plastic surgery" for her vajayjay. *dies* I've been instructed by 2 vets to keep it clean, leaving it will almost no doubt lead to infection (Or at the very least, urine burns) because it'll just sit in the folds if it's not cleaned out.


----------



## ChancetheGSD (Dec 19, 2007)

Here's the best picture I got, if she goes full eagle spread it pops out a bit more but when she stands it goes into full hiding inside the folds. Here she is on her side with a leg up as far as she'd allow me to raise it in the swift second I had to take the picture. Lol!










And here it's circled where it peeps out since her fur and the extra skin kind of blends into it...










I guess I just don't want to run out and spend a ton of money on urinary support if she's going to be at a major risk anyways. I plan to continue the cranberry since I've always given it to my dogs and I figure some support can't hurt but for other things I wonder if it's worth investing in and what others do to prevent UTI's in a RV?


----------



## ChancetheGSD (Dec 19, 2007)

Well I went to the vet today for an exam and the vet didn't doubt one bit that she had an issue with her lady bits going on and was surprised how far up it was and agreed that for now it's best to keep her intact and see where we go from there. HE also brought up D-Mannose for supplementation which surprised me! He suggested I use it for maintenance along with her cranberry supplement she's already on so I went out and got some right after leaving the vet. They only had two types/brands in stock, powder and capsules and the powder was $10 more for less doses so I got the caps which the lady at The Vitamin Shoppe was very helpful and said she uses it on her dog with great results and that I could pop these open and sprinkle on her food. (But Gretchen is good about taking pills anyways so that's no worry) The kind I got is Solaray D-Mannose with "CranActin". So 1000mg D-Mannose, 400mg Cranberry and 30mg Vitamin C. And of course she's on a weeks worth of horse pills....I mean antibiotics, to clear up the infection. He thinks she's probably got puppy vaginitis vs. an actual bladder infection.

Oh my problem child. 

I'd still be quite interested in hearing how others deal with a RV though!!


----------



## WVGSD (Nov 28, 2006)

I have owned two dogs with recessed vulvas and one heat cycle was all that it took to "fix" it. The hormonal surge and swelling with the first heat cycle swelled the tissue and, when the heat cycle was over, the vulva was a normal vulva. 

Urinary tract infections are common in female dogs with inverted vulvas. This also almost always resolves with the first heat cycle and the effect that it has upon the vulvar tissue. 

At 7 months old she should be just about ready for her first heat cycle. Hang in there .


----------



## ChancetheGSD (Dec 19, 2007)

Yeah, I've been crossing my fingers that she'll go into heat asap. Hopefully my luck doesn't end with her being one of those who wait until 12+ months! :S

At this point I really just need to make sure I can keep her off antibiotics, I don't want to kill her system with them. Did you use any special wipes or supplements to prevent infection?


----------



## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

ChancetheGSD said:


> I'd still be quite interested in hearing how others deal with a RV though!!


I've never had a dog with it, but I've groomed a few that had it. With the one owner that kept her pup intact, it resolved itself with just one heat cycle. 

Sadly, I have seen a couple of dogs with RV whose owners had them spayed early... I don't know why... and those dogs suffer from chronic UTIs. To add insult to injury, one of the dogs is obese and so there are folds within folds.  

Thank your lucky stars you don't have a breed that grows hair in there... yes, some breeds can actually grow hair INSIDE the vulva, and it's a real pain to clip that hair out. Literally.


----------

