Why is my dog's penis tip suddenly swollen or looks like a ball?

Hi and thank you for your question on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! He may be licking himself near his genital area because he is painful near the area. Although it is hard to say exactly what the problem is without seeing Taco in person, I can offer a few possibilities: The redness near the tip of his penis may indicate a mass (tumor) or a urethral prolapse. Failure to retract the penis for a prolonged period of time (more than 15 mins), is an emergency and needs to be treated as soon as possible at a veterinary hospital. It is possible a mass or urethral prolapse is causing the penis to not retract fully and this can alter his ability to urinate normally which is a concern. A veterinarian will be able to examine Taco and make an accurate diagnosis and will be able to treat Taco accordingly. I hope this helps and I hope Taco can be seen soon and make a swift recovery!

Dogs can become sexually aroused even if they aren't sexually active, getting an erection. If his penis is swollen and sticking out, I would be concerned that the swelling could potentially constrict his urethra, leading to difficulty urinating. Because he's having trouble walking and his penis is swollen, I recommend you taking him into your vet to have the paraphimosis resolved. It's important to have him seen now, as it's causing him difficulty walking and you don't want it to lead to a constriction of the urethra.

This is a serious edematous swelling and needs to be seen by a veterinarian today. This may be located in the preputial mucous membrane, or possibly the tip of the penis. Unfortunately I cannot determine this from the photo. Please take Tyson to a veterinarian or PetER today. You may want to put some vaseline on the swelling to keep it from drying out.

There are a couple of things this could be causing this to happen to Bruzer. It could be that he has an erection, and the penis is swollen and the tip is out because he is aroused. He could also be suffering from paraphimosis, which is an inability to retract the penis back into the sheath. This can quickly turn into an emergency situation, as constricting of the blood flow will lead to a larger engorgement of the penis, necrosis (dead tissue), and potential damage to the urethra. Should you suspect it isn't an erection and it is paraphimosis, I will give you some advice that may help Bruzer. If his penis hasn't been out too long (less than an hour), you can try to put it back yourself. First, thoroughly clean the penis, making sure there is no foreign material (such as fur) that is wrapped around the penis. Take a bag of frozen veggies wrapped in a towel, and apply it to the penis for five minutes at a time to try to reduce the swelling. Packaged peas work very well because they are mobile around the penis. Then apply a lubricant such as KY Jelly onto the penis, and very gently try to move the penis back into the sheath. Very gently try to push the penis back into the sheath, or try to gently pull the sheath over the penis. If this does not work, or if the penis has been outside the sheath for more than 30 minutes to an hour, you will need to take Bruzer into your vet.

Keep it moist with some lubricant so it cannot dry out. You can gently try to pull the skin back over the swelling to protect it but he may not let you. The only way to permanently fix this and help it not reoccur is to have him neutered. This will remove the hormones and make him not so excitable.

Hi, I believe you are referring to pharaphamosis. The glands in the penis swell and the penis can get stuck outside the skin. This occurs in unneutered young dogs who are sexually mature. To reduce the swelling, try an ice pack wrapped in a wet towel to the groin area. Also, lubricate it with a water based lubricant and gently massage it to try to get it back in the skin. Sugar applied to the penis itself can help reduce swelling. These things should get the penis back down and normal again. If not and it is stuck outside for more than 6 hours with no improvement, he needs to go to an emergency vet or the penis could be damaged. Good luck!

It could be he is suffering from paraphimosis, which is an inability to retract the penis back into the sheath. This can quickly turn into an emergency situation, as constricting of the blood flow will lead to a larger engorgement of the penis, necrosis (dead tissue), and potential damage to the urethra. If his penis hasn't been out too long (less than an hour), you can try to put it back yourself. First, thoroughly clean the penis, making sure there is no foreign material (such as fur) that is wrapped around the penis. Take a bag of frozen veggies wrapped in a towel, and apply it to the penis for five minutes at a time to try to reduce the swelling. Packaged peas work very well because they are mobile around the penis. Then apply a lubricant such as KY Jelly onto the penis, and very gently try to move the penis back into the sheath. Very gently try to push the penis back into the sheath, or try to gently pull the sheath over the penis. If this does not work, or if the penis has been outside the sheath for more than 30 minutes to an hour, you will need to take Lukas into your vet. Best of luck.