My 10-week-old puppy has an umbilical hernia. Will it heal itself?

Hi and thanks for posting! Umbilical hernias are recommended to be repaired at or around the time of neutering to prevent the hernia from becoming larger and also prevent the intestines from becoming trapped or strangulated in the hernia. Umbilical hernias can be genetic, so it is recommended dogs with these are not bred. I hope this helps and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

If you dog was born with an umbilical hernia, it will often "shrink" in size as the puppy continues to grow - the hernia doesn't actually get smaller but it is smaller in relation to the rest of the body getting bigger. If there is fat or tissue that you can easily push back up into the abdomen, then there is always a risk that a loop of intestine (and yes, even a pregnant uterus!) can fall through and become entrapped. The pregnancy itself will not increase the size of the hernia, and the hernia will not get smaller after pregnancy. However, a heavily pregnant uterus can put a lot more pressure on small intestines which could be pushed out the hernia. I would recommend that you have your dog checked out by a vet before she becomes pregnant to evaluate the hernia and decide if it would be better to be fixed before she gets pregnant. If she is already pregnant, you will have to monitor is a couple times every day to make sure it isn't suddenly larger; if it does appear suddenly larger and you cannot gently push the contents back into the body, she should be evaluated by a vet immediately.

This does look like an umbilical hernia, but I cannot say for sure without seeing Smokey in person. No, they do not go away on their own, they need to be repaired surgically. Have it checked out by a vet, and you can discuss having it fixed when you get him neutered. Dogs who have umbilical hernias should never be bred because it's a heritable condition. Best of luck.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Coco. It is common for umbilical hernias to go from reducible to non-reducible as the dog grows. I typically surgically repair it at the time of the spay. If you are not planning on spaying her, it still should be corrected. However, it is not an emergency as long as it not red, painful and she is not acting ill. Most of the time, it is just a bit of abdominal fat that slip through the opening in the abdominal wall (the hernia). The risk is if an internal organ such as a loop of intestine slips through the defect. In this case, the hernia would be painful to the touch and Coco would likely be vomiting and showing signs of pain. This is very rare though. I hope this information helps!

I would not buy the puppy. You want to buy a healthy puppy and not one that will cost you extra when being spayed. Also this puppy will not be suitable for breeding as umbilical hernias carry a hereditary risk. It is relatively easy to fix a simple umbilical hernia during the spay, however if you chose not to spay your puppy, fixing the hernia will cost almost as much as a spay, which is why we usually fix a hernia during the spay. That way the dog only has to have one anesthesia and surgery. I think you can find a healthy puppy without a hernia elsewhere, or get one from the breeder that has no hernia.

Umbilical hernias can be genetic, so it is possible there is a genetic link. It is not recommended to breed from a dog with an umbilical hernia due to the possible genetic link. Some hernia can close spontaneously before the puppy is six months of age, but if it is not closed by there, then it should be closed surgically.

If a hernia is repaired surgically, there is always a small chance that it will herniate again at some point of time in the life of the dog, obviously more care needs to be taken up to 10 days after the surgery to prevent from the wound and sutures to open.