Hair in a tongue

[OscarMurphy]

Hi All,

This is my 1st post.  I've joined to see if anyone else has experienced hair either stuck in or growing from a tongue?

We have two english show type cockers, a Blue Roan "Oscar" and an Orange Roan "Murphy".  A while ago Oscar yawned quite close to me and I noticed a small dark patch on his tongue.  I thought little of it as I once had another dog who had a black spot near the back of his tongue.

A few days later, I caught another glimps of Oscars tongue and realised that the dark patch was actually a few small hairs.

I thought little of it as Oscar tends to try to eat his own hair when he is groomed - and so I assumed these hairs where lying on his tongue.

Another few days passed, and I spotted these hairs again. With a struggle, we looked at Oscars tongue and indeed these hairs seemed to be sticking out of his tongue rather than resting on it.

I took our tweesers and gently pulled the hairs which did not "pluck" but simply came straight out.  They  were positioned between a grove in his tongue which made it hard to see if I had taken them all out - but as far as I could see, I'd got them all.

Still not sure if these hairs had "stuck in" or "grown from" his tongue... we got on with life & Oscar seemed as happy as ever.

A week or so passed and yet again I spotted hairs on his tongue and so repeated the tweesers removal.  Now I was getting worried but wondered if I'd just missed these hairs during my previous effort to get rid of them.

Then.. last night.  We noticed more hair.  In the exact same place and still just a few - but there is no way I missed these.

So, my question.  Have any of you experienced anything like this?  Can hair grow from a Cockers tongue?  What do you think we should do?

[cazza]

Welcome to COL

Never had experience of hair on / in the tongue

Personally I would contact your V.E.T - sorry. Hope it's nothing to worry about let us know how you get on (others may have experience or knowledge, hope they come along soon for you  )

[OscarMurphy]

Hi Everyone,

I've found this reference on the net which suggests my Oscar isnt the only Cocker to experience this.  I'd still like to hear from anyone else who has experienced this.

I fear going to the Vet with this (at this stage) as I doubt Oscar would let the vet look in his mounth in the same way he lets me & I assume the vet will suggest knocking him out - which I'd like to avoid if at all possible.


"Cocker who has a hair growing on his Tongue
Q: My Cocker Spaniel has a really strange condition that comes and goes. He has curly black hair (like that found on his ears) growing out of the line of his tongue, at the back of his throat. Sometimes it grows quite long, and stretches down to the front of his tongue, and if he is panting, and it gets dry, he starts to choke on it. We did take him to the Vet, but he would not let the Vet look inside his mouth easily, and the Vet thought we were imagining it. Please help explain this odd condition, for although it is not affecting Henry, I worry it might be a sign of something else. Henry is 10 months old, and the hair appeared when he was about 4 months old.

A: I have not heard of this condition before, and cannot find a reference to it. I do not, however, find it difficult to believe. It sounds as though your dog simply has some hair follicles at than back of his tongue where they would not normally be. This can happen in other places (e.g. the cornea) following anomalies of embryological development and so it is possible in the site you describe. The best way forward would probably to revisit you vet for a more productive examination to be carried out. This may necessitate sedation or anaesthesia to fully examine the throat. Once the problem is better understood a course of action could be decided. It may be sufficient to simply pluck the hairs to remove them (my concern here being Henry's choking), or possibly the hair follicles could be surgically removed if they are accessible and not too extensive. My suggestion would be that the follicle were present from birth, but the hairs were not apparent until four months of age as they had not grown sufficiently to be visible until that time."

[bracken]

Yes  My Bailey has a channel of hair in the middle of her tongue. We only see it when she pants heavy or yawns.  So pleased someone else has this

I have never touched it and would never use tweesers (ouch)

She is a red show cocker aged 3 we noticed when she was little     She is my special girl, hairy tongue or not  

Jo
Forgot to add my vet said it was just a few misplaced cells....... do nothing.

[OscarMurphy]

Thank god someone else has experienced this.  It really would have been just my luck to have a unique problem!

I must stress that Oscar is my little boy and I would never do anything to hurt him.  I used the tweesers only because I thought the hair was "stuck in".  As I say, it came out without any resistance... he didnt even flicker.

So do you think its best I just leave it (unless he shows signs of discomfort)?

[bracken]

You could mention to the vet when he has his next check-up    He may smile as mine did   Just pop it to the back of your mind.



I have left alone   She has no idea she is different and shows no signs of any distress with her uniqueness    It makes them more special 

Jo