Johnny is a 3-year-old Pekin drake who had a history of chronic phallic prolapse. Over the course of several months, he experienced 7 prolapses. This can be a common condition in drakes, especially when they are frequently around females.
He received treatment several times for previous incidents which consisted of reducing the prolapse, placing stay sutures across the vent to keep it in place, and with anti inflammatories, the recommended treatment for this in the initial stages. He was also separated from female ducks and was even given a hormone implant to reduce hormonal behavior. However, despite aggressive environmental modifications and medical interventions, Johnny continued to suffer prolapses.
Johnny was taken to Dr. Rebecca Gounaris at Pleasantville Animal Hospital of Fallston to perform a phallectomy (amputation of the phallus), which is considered a salvage procedure.
Johnny’s prolapsed phallus upon arrival at his first visit with Dr. Gounaris.
Although Dr. Gounaris had performed this procedure before, Johnny’s case was a little more complicated, since his phallus had been prolapsing over the course of several months. Dr. Gounaris first tried conservative amputation by just taking the proximal portion, but Johnny prolapsed the entire base of the phallus about a week later.
Left photo: Johnny’s first amputation surgery, where just the proximal portion of his phallus was removed. Right photo: A week after surgery, when the base of Johnny’s phallus prolapsed.
Dr. Gounaris suspected that due to the chronic nature of the problem, it had caused a lot of swelling that could not be retained. She performed a second phallectomy on Jonny; however, this one involved radical resection if the phallic base, all the way down to the cloacal mucosa.
Luckily with appropriate clamping, suturing, and resection, Dr. Gounaris was able to remove as much of the phallus base as possible - you can see just how much tissue was removed, and this was after some “deflation” once the tissue was fully removed.
Left and Middle Photos: Johnny’s second surgery. Right Photo: The amount of tissue that was removed during the surgery.
Johnny had an uneventful recovery from the anesthesia after the surgery. Since there was no longer a phallus for him to prolapse, no stay sutures were required. Johnny was prescribed anti-inflammatories to help with recovery from his surgery but were no longer needed long-term.
Johnny’s owner was very relieved, as she was worried that his condition could never be resolved. In just a few days after surgery, Johnny was reported to be doing well and pain-free. However, moving forward, Johnny's owner decided that to be on safe side he would only be housed with other male ducks. He has already made friends with a Rouen drake named Jack.
Johnny should live a normal duck life without his phallus since it is strictly for copulation purposes and doesn't have any "plumbing". There is a risk that ducks can develop chronic pain/straining as a complication to the surgery, but luckily so far Johnny has been pain-free.
Pleasantville Animal Hospital of Fallston, located in Fallston, Maryland, is a family-owned, full-service hospital that provides veterinary services for dogs, cats and birds. Their expertise in the field now spans over three family generations, and they are very proud of this unique heritage. The hospital has an in-house laboratory, allowing for rapid diagnostic testing for critical care patients, digital radiography (xrays), surgical suite, and an on-site pharmacy. Dr. Scott Gounaris has been practicing veterinary medicine for 35 years and founded Pleasantville Animal Hospital in 2002. His daughter, Dr. Rebecca Gounaris, now works alongside him, and they approach each case as a team.
Follow them on social media:
About Dr. Rebecca Gounaris
Dr. Rebecca L. Gounaris is a 2016 graduate of the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine and is Dr. Scott Gounaris's oldest child. In addition to her lifetime love for cats and dogs, she has a deep passion for birds and participated in externships at several exotic veterinary clinics during her senior year. She has also worked for many years at Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research in Newark, DE, starting while she was earning her undergraduate degree at University of Delaware, and continues to provide veterinary care there to wild birds in need. After spending much time away from home for her education, she is thrilled to be practicing medicine back in her hometown and alongside her family members. She is a member of the Avian Association of Veterinarians, American Veterinary Medical Association, and Maryland Veterinary Medical Association. She also competes in synchronized ice skating and has two cats, Arwen and Pippin, a Sun Conure, Nino, and a Green-cheek Conure, Dutch.
About Dr. Scott Gounaris
Dr. Scott Gounaris graduated from the University of Florida Veterinary School in 1982. His lifetime love for animals drove him to choose veterinary medicine as he wanted to help animals that could not help themselves. Dr. Scott Gounaris enjoys the teamwork that we and the pet owners employ to work together for the welfare of their pets. The greatest reward for him is a positive outcome for his patient and their owners. With over 40 years of experience in the veterinary field, Dr. Scott Gounaris has seen it all. Prior to opening Pleasantville Animal Hospital of Fallston, he worked for his father, who was also a veterinarian. Now the father of a recent veterinary school graduate, a current veterinary school student, and a college undergraduate, he has shared his love of the profession with the next generation of Gounaris doctors.
