[jspash]

I have a tiny long-haired dog (the first dog I've ever had) and I'm glad our first trainer/behaviourist mentioned the dangers of foxtails to us. We casually asked the vet if it was a problem and she said they see around 2-3 animals a week with issues caused by foxtails during the late summer/early autumn months. This is in the Southern UK. It's been getting drier and drier every year. And subsequently more and more foxtails seem to be appearing.

The main issue we've found is she gets them stuck under her "armpits" and under the tail. Places that make them very difficult to find. Even more insidious is when they embed themselves in the harness, only to make an appearance weeks or months later when the outdoor foxtails have mostly been cut down.

The problem is that they can work their way under the skin with a barbed spike that is one-way only. So if they get deep enough the only remedy is to cut the skin with a scalpel - by the vet of course.