I had to take Fennel to the vet yesterday as all four feet are infected.

The front ones have lumps between the toes and the back ones have puss coming out from back of the toe pads underneath. She is not lame but does show discomfort when they are examined and is now on antibiotics. This has come up over a couple of days - I first noticed a red lump between the front toes on Thursday and the others were bad by yesterday.

My vet has seen a couple of cases like this recently and believes it is due to infected muddy areas or ponds as the other dogs have spent time in this sort of water. Whilst Fennel does not go near any ponds we do have a couple of places where water lays and the ground has a bright green alge type growth on it.

Christine

Kerioak,

I think you should ask Environmental Health or the Water Authority to check the water. It could contain dangerous chemicals. Alternatively, has someone near you been using weedkiller etc.?

Michael
15 June 2002

Hi Michael,

Fennel is in season so has not been out of the garden recently, and I do not use any chemicals where the dogs can get and we have woods around and a field with sheep/cattle in front so I don't think anyone spraying locally would affect us. There is some beautifully luminous algae on the ground where it is soggy though

Christine

Christine, it could be related to this: Blue Green Algae. This algae can appear in any 'still' water source. If your dogs are likely to come into contact with it through ditches and puddles on a regular basis, I would be tempted to hose them off when you get back. If it is connected to this, then you can't afford to take chances.

It sounds as though Leigh is right (again!), but I thought I would mention another danger I have come across. There is a river near me where dogs have died after swimming in it because poison (arsenic, I think) has leaked into it from the old gasworks site.

Michael
16 June 2002