Aussie dogger, thanks for the info, thats the best advise so far. Much obliged to ya.
Its all good Charles, once you soak tail you could even pinch one of the wifes hair curlers & tape it to the tip of the dogs tail with duct tape, just for a bit of extra protection.
Oh yer & just a warning make sure the solution dry's before letting dog lose other wise you will have purple stripes on everthing

Let us know how you go mate.
Cheers