There is no other sight guaranteed to stop you cuddling your pet than a mere glimpse of your pet’s bulging penis. Once they are on their back exposing their belly to be scrubbed, just an eyeful of the moist and engorged flesh can put you off from petting them!

Why do they do it? Why does a dog flash their dog lipstick or the red rocket? Well, here’s what you need to know.

The swelling or protuberance in the penis are usually called colloquially as the ‘dog lipstick’ or the ‘red rocket’. The scarcely hair coated projection you notice underneath your pet’s abdomen which you thought was their penis, is not their penis. It is their prepuce. This is a sheath which protects their penis from damaging itself from an unforeseen mishap. The penis is in fact, moist, pink and fleshy.

Why do some dogs show off their dog lipstick more often than others?

A couple of things can make the dog lipstick pop out of the prepuce. Mainly, it is due to arousal. It does not necessarily mean sexual arousal. It can be caused by any form of excitement, like when a dog meets a new person or a dog. So, dogs that are excited can develop slight erections that cause the dog lipstick to pop into view. Hence, the dog lipstick phenomenon is quite common and not just seen in un neutered dogs.

Some dogs show their penis due to medical anomalies such as a size variance between the penis and its prepuce, or a penis that is often sagging out of the prepuce leading to frequent dog lipstick flashes. Dry penis is a common problem for dogs that have their penis out of the prepuce for long intervals.

What to do about a dog lipstick that is out for a long time?

Usually dog lipstick that is out just for a brief while will not pose any problem to a dog but certain medical conditions can make it painful like the paraphimosis. It is a chronic bulging of the penis from the prepuce. The penis that gets trapped outside the prepuce will swell. It can cause pain and severe tissue damage. It is often a veterinary emergency.

A dog afflicted with this problem will be in constant pain and will want to groom themselves repeatedly in that particular region in order to feel better. Paraphimosis occurs as a result of misdirected sexual activity a dog engages in, like humping the leg or inanimate objects that cause the penis to peek out of the prepuce. The prepuce has a thin coat of hair and the hair at the tip can clog the opening of the prepuce therefore stopping the penis from retracting after the activity. This is followed by swelling and pain.

How to treat paraphimosis?

This condition is treated by gently extracting the clogged hair from the opening and re inserting the penis back into the prepuce. Since the condition is a medical emergency you must take them to the vet immediately for them to quickly reinsert the penis back into its position. Dogs that are in terrible pain will be sedated during the procedure.

To sum it all, dog lipstick can be an unfavourable sight for us but it indicates a state of arousal in dogs and is quite harmless. However, they also can be a sign of a serious condition that must be treated immediately!

You can always contact your vet for further professional advice.