I went to the vet yesterday because my Toumaï was licking his paw and wouldn't put any weight on it, etc.
Anyway, it turns out he had a grazed pad, so he's on anti-inflammatories and antibiotics, with an ointment and some long-term treatment.
I've just gone to put his ointment on and I can feel it coming loose! I had a look and a massive chunk of his pad is actually coming away! A large part is still attached but I really don't like the look of it!
I haven't got any bandages or anything! I'm calling the vet first thing tomorrow morning, but what should I do for tonight? Should I put a sock on him or something like that? I'm worried about it getting infected with the heat and everything.
Thanks.
Translated from French
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Hi Melly, I’ve only just seen your post! Regarding your last message, you can get paw balms to help toughen up their pads.
The same thing happened to us this winter; my husband called me at work to say that Harkos had torn the skin right off his paw pads (on all four paws!) and they were bleeding, and he couldn’t find the first aid kit! He’d called the out-of-hours vet who just said to disinfect them and bandage them up for the night, and that it could wait until the morning.
When I got home, the dog was bleeding like crazy and had ripped off all the bandages! I called the vet back three times and really pushed, but no, they said we had to wait until the next day. I was absolutely fuming!
I went to the vet as soon as they opened (I was even waiting in the car park). He ended up needing a general anaesthetic and stitches on all four paws. The bandages had to be redone every two days, plus a course of antibiotics!
Morning update:
When I woke up, the cheeky little sod had managed to get his sock off XD. I rushed to have a look and he’d torn off the bit that was hanging (sorry for the TMI!), and it was actually a lovely surprise!! It turns out it wasn't a bit of his paw pad as such, but more like a "scab" on the pad :) So now his pad looks lovely and clean, and there's just a tiny bit that isn't quite right that I'm keeping an eye on.
Anyway, I’m much more relieved now :) We put some more ointment on him this morning and the poor lad seemed to be in less pain ^_^ I panicked a bit last night XD.
Thanks again for your replies!
Be careful not to put the sock on too tightly.
Keep us posted tomorrow. In the meantime, disinfect it with some Betadine to stop it getting infected overnight. You could also give an out-of-hours vet a ring, but just to find out what to do for now. (That’s what I always do when I have a problem during the night with my little ones but it can wait until the next day for a trip to the vet).
I have a feeling this is going to be tough... really tough lol.
You can't really tell from the photo, but he’s actually about twice that size :s
Right, I live in a flat, so when we go out I've got no choice—it's all pavement around my place :/ (there is a little patch of grass, but we have to get across the pavement first haha).
It’s quite a long time :s I’ve no idea how I’m going to keep him calm, he’s absolutely bursting with energy.
Thanks Axu.
One last question: did you use one of your own socks for him?
In my case, it was fairly minor (well, relatively...) – it was about the size of my little finger nail.
Well, at first, on the vet's advice, I was cleaning the wound twice a day with some antiseptic and putting a dressing on it...
But in the end, since I’d stopped taking her for walks outside (pavement really doesn't help matters...), and seeing as it wasn't healing – quite the opposite, in fact!
So, I stopped disinfecting it (I just kept an eye on how it looked) and started using a bit of Bepanthen to keep it hydrated, and the little madam would stay lying down until it had soaked in ^^
Within a fortnight, it was all sorted!
I've put a dressing on him with loads of Vaseline so it doesn't stick, some surgical tape to hold it in place, and then a sock over the top. I just hope he doesn't mess with it too much :s I don't think the sock will still be in one piece by tomorrow...
Thanks Ptitefleur!
Looks like he’ll be getting his booties sooner than expected :s
Axu: how long did yours take to heal?
