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Porcupine Quills in Dogs: Finn’s Urgent Care Story
After a long day searching for help, Finn came to our urgent care team for porcupine quill removal. Learn why prompt treatment matters.
After a long day searching for help, Finn came to our urgent care team for porcupine quill removal. Learn why prompt treatment matters.
Urgent Care Case of the Month: Meet Finn!
Finn’s unexpected encounter with a porcupine turned into a very long day for him and his family.
After Finn was struck with porcupine quills in June, his owner, Kim, began searching for veterinary care that could safely remove them. After several calls and a long drive trying to find help, Finn’s regular veterinary team at Fryeburg Veterinary Hospital recommended Mainely Veterinary Dentistry & Urgent Care.
By the time Kim contacted us, it was near the end of the day, but we knew Finn needed care. Our team stayed late so we could get him comfortable, safely sedated, and remove the quills.
Finn was understandably uncomfortable and would not allow his owner to muzzle or handle him around the affected area. Forcing the issue could have caused additional stress and potentially driven the quills deeper.
Dr. Birr and our team took a Fear Free approach to getting Finn comfortable enough for sedation. Knowing that Finn loved burrowing underneath blankets at home, Dr. Birr covered him with a comforter and approached him in a way that helped reduce his fear and stress.
Once Finn was safely sedated, our team could carefully examine him and remove the porcupine quills.
For Kim, the difference this approach made was significant.
“The entire staff was kind, compassionate, incredibly knowledgeable, and the bill was very reasonable. I am so grateful for their Fear Free approach!”
Dr. Birr also called the following morning to check on Finn and make sure he was recovering well.
Porcupine quills are more than just painful needles stuck in the skin. Each quill has microscopic backward-facing barbs near its tip that make it difficult to remove and allow the quill to work deeper into tissue over time.
That is why a dog that encounters a porcupine should receive veterinary care as soon as possible rather than waiting to see if the quills fall out on their own.
Quills are commonly found around a dog’s face and mouth because dogs often investigate or bite at a porcupine. They may also become embedded in the chest, legs, paws, or other parts of the body.
In uncommon cases, retained quills can migrate deeper through the tissues and cause serious complications. Quills have been reported in areas including joints, the chest and lungs, abdominal organs, and even tissues around the heart or nervous system.
Prompt, thorough removal gives the veterinary team the best opportunity to find and remove as many intact quills as possible before they become more difficult to locate.
No. The idea that cutting a porcupine quill “lets the air out” and makes it easier to remove is a common myth.
Do not cut the quills.
Cutting them can make the remaining portion shorter and more difficult to grasp. If part of a quill breaks beneath the skin, it may also become much harder to locate and completely remove.
We want as much of each quill intact as possible so it can be grasped securely and removed in its entirety.
Trying to pull large numbers of quills at home is also not recommended. Porcupine quills are painful, and even a normally gentle dog may react when someone attempts to remove them. Sedation allows the veterinary team to perform a more thorough examination and removal while minimizing pain, fear, and movement.
If your dog encounters a porcupine:
Quills near the eyes, inside the mouth, or deeply embedded in the face or body make a thorough veterinary examination especially important.
Finn’s ordeal began around 11 a.m., and he and his family did not make it home until approximately 9 p.m. After hours of trying to find someone who could help, Kim told us how much it meant to finally find a team willing to stay and care for him.
“Can you possibly imagine how grateful I was for these amazing folks? Highly recommend and I would not hesitate to use them again!”
We are grateful to Kim for trusting us with Finn’s care, and to Fryeburg Veterinary Hospital for helping connect his family with our team.
Porcupine encounters are an unfortunate reality for many dogs in Maine. If your dog comes home with quills, prompt veterinary removal can help reduce pain and decrease the chance of retained or migrating quills causing additional problems.
Mainely Veterinary Dentistry & Urgent Care provides weekend care for porcupine quills and other non-life-threatening illnesses and injuries affecting dogs and cats throughout Southern Maine.
Visit our Urgent Care Services page to learn more about the conditions we treat, or book an urgent care appointment online.
