I think that Tara may have got frostbite. Has anyone any experience of this in a dog ?? She often gets a bit of a sore paw on frosty mornings and if she has trodden on something a bit sharp, but it usually doesn't last long. This time she hasn't walked on the paw since Thursday. She has a white patch about the size of a sixpence on one of her poorly pads. She'll let me put Aloe Vera gel on it which seems to help. I'm not sure whether taking her to the vets this weekend is worth it as they'll probably just sell me some cream which she'll lick off anyway :) If there's no improvement by Monday I'll definitely take her then.

(Tara lost part of her paw 18 months ago and so hasn't got the full protection of normal pads on part of her paw)

Daisy

Have just found an article about frostbite in dogs - affected area seems to go blue then black - so don't think that it is frostbite then.

Has she been anywhere which has been gritted? Salt often makes their paws sore

No - unless it is the 40 foot between our front gate and the entrance to the field next door. I don't walk her on pavements as they are often rough on her foot - so it is always in the fields :) I'm keeping a close eye on it - our vets is open 7 days a week, so can take her if I feel it is not right :)

Daisy

Tara has now started chewing where her toe used to be :( It has bled :( I hadn't noticed any problem with that bit of her paw, although it is covered in hair and she is always very wary of me handling that foot, so my examinations have always been brief :( Anyway, I have an appointment tomorrow at the vets, so we should find out what is going on with her foot.

Daisy

Oh dear, that doesn't sound great. I know how difficult it can be to check their paws when they've had a toe off - my Harry's just the same with his three-toed foot. It's not usual for them to nibble so much they make it bleed. :( I hope it turns out to be something trivial.

Ahh poor Tara :(  Hope her paw gets better soon :)

There is a lovely old Lab called Diamond in our village. He has had problems with a pad on one of his paws. They have bought him a fantastic leather shoe to wear :)

It has really helped him as it isn't as sore when he walks and it has helped alot !

Thanks all :) Tara does have some boots that I bought for her when she hurt her foot - but she never liked them and the vet thought it better not to use them so as to toughen the 'pads' up. She has always managed fine and if you saw her run or do agility, you would never know that she had large part of her foot missing :) Usually she will hop if she doesn't like a surface - a rough bit of pavement or the frosty grass. Depending on what we find at the vets, I may have to go back to using the boot :(

Hi Daisy,
might this help?
Shaws paw wax
I swear by it :D

That sounds very good - where do you get it - in PAH ??

Daisy

I order it on line..but yes it is available at PAH :D
silver tin like a shoe polish tin with red and purple label. :)

Will get some tomorrow :) Thanks

Daisy

This morning, Tara has a red, raw lump where her toe used to be :( The only good thing is that she is not licking or chewing it. Appointment at the vets isn't until 3 :( Could it be a grass seed ?? Yesterday her foot looked normal - certainly no lump there. I had assumed that it was her pads giving her trouble and in the brief time she let me exam her foot, didn't see anything else :(

Daisy

I wonder if it's an interdigital cyst? (Except that because the toe's missing it's not between the toes as it would have been otherwise!) Is it up near where the toes join the paw?

That sounds likely - she has just started walking on it, which is a good sign. What's the normal treatment/outcome - mine have never had one before (if it is that :) ) ?

Daisy

Mine have had them a couple of times. I do the usual soaking the foot in hottish water with Epsom salts added (supposedly good for drawing cysts to a head) and they've either burst or subsided.

I've been soaking it in salted water which she likes. She is such a devil with her paw :) The toe next to the one she lost is a bit funny - the claw sticks up at about 45 degrees to the horizontal and so never touches the ground. It doesn't wear down and grows quickly. She hates having her claws cut, especially this foot. A while ago I took her to agility and the trainer and a very experienced, senior veterinary nurse tried to cut it. We were all in stitches as they tried to hold her - in the end they only managed to snip a little off. I usually leave it alone until my daughter comes home (hubby is useless at holding her) and then we don't always manage to get it cut. The only time that it is relatively easy is when she goes in for a groom once a year and they can do it there when she is 'strung up' :D

Daisy

Once they've had a lot of painful work done to a foot they're very reluctant to let anyone touch it ever again, aren't they? Can't say I blame them, but it doesn't make life easy!

It does sound like an interdigital cyst.  They often look like the dog has got wet eczema, and of course it is sticky and itchy, hence the dog would be licking and gnawing at it.  The Vet may give an antibiotic, but I would also recommend soaking in salt water.  Sometimes the Vet lances it (don't worry, he just knicks it with the edge of a blade.) but not always.  Any the dog should feel relief quite quckly.  I have one bitch who has had them a couple of times and never had any problems from them.  They clear up really quickly.  Good luck.