JaderBug Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 The last couple of days I've noticed Jade paying particular attention to her right hind foot, licking it whenever she's resting. I didn't think anything of it at first, but now the hair is gone. I can't tell that there's anything really painful about it... we had a herding lesson on Monday night but other than that we haven't really been out and about that much. Is this anything to worry about or just keep an eye on it? Any ideas what it might be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Looks to me like she's well on her way to creating a hot spot. Has she shown any soreness on that foot/toe? I think I'd run her to the vet to have it checked and make sure she doesn't have something imbedded in her foot, and to get something to break the cycle of irritation/licking. I have a dog who presistently licked a spot on his foot like that until he created a lick granuloma, which then had to be removed surgically (this was before I got him as a rescue). J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journey Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Ditto to what Julie said. You could try "shaving the entire area" close then looking to see if something is embedded in the toe area. Clean it well too! It could be anything I'd check around the toe bed first. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted August 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Oh my... and I thought it was nothing! Did a brief Google search... is this something that needs to be taken care of by a vet or is there any medicine or wash I can take care of her with? ETA- She doesn't really obsess over the spot, she only messes with it when she's laying down. Right now she'll play and carry on like normal and ignore it, but what I found online says they'll go into a frenzy about it. Is this like mange, only with bacteria instead of mites?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Celt had something like this once near a hind foot. The vet checked it out, felt it was an infection (or an irritated spot on the way to an infection), and gave us antibiotics and cream. Those cleared it up. One reason to get it checked is that squamous cell carcinoma (a skin cancer) can look a bit like this in the beginning, so it's well worth getting the vet to check it out. My vet was concerned Celt's spot might be that until he examined it and saw the positive results with the medication. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted August 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 Well, I shaved her whole toe and just washed her with a medicated shampoo. She seems to be leaving it alone, I'll have to see what it does. Thanks for the info and suggestions all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journey Posted August 28, 2009 Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 Good deal, hope it is nothing! BTW, love how close her toe nails are cut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted August 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 Post-shave and post-wash: BTW, love how close her toe nails are cut I try to keep up on it as best as I can... house dogs with super long nails drive me crazy! She's only got two dark nails thank god, the clear ones are so much easier to tell where the quick is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agilityrunningdogs Posted August 28, 2009 Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 Actually looks exactly like what Mal had about a month ago. I have an ice wrap that's for human wrists, that I wrapped around his toes few times per day and put him on crate rest with a good bone for two days and by the end of the week it was gone. Mal's sister, Meg, had the same thing happen to her the same day (they just went swimming together two days prior, but it's still weird) and she went to the vet and came home with nothing but Clavamox and instructions for crate rest - although they were both limping, not sure if Jade is. I would have taken Mal to the vet, but short of quitting, I couldn't get off work and it was improving day by day. I would go to the vet and have it checked out, better safe than sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BCjetta Posted August 28, 2009 Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 Turbo gets similar type things but not as severe as that. I clean it and stick a cone on his head for a few days and it seems to resolve. He knows he's not supposed to lick so he'll sneak off to the bedroom to lick, or lick overnight or when no one's home - hence needing the cone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journey Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Update? How is her toe doing now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted September 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 Update? How is her toe doing now? Well, I shaved it and after a few days of washing it with a medicated shampoo, it wasn't seeming to get any better, it was actually swelling up more and the red irritated part was spreading inwards. I took her to the vet on Monday afternoon, and the vet said it was either a bacterial issue or there could have been something stuck in her toe, but it was clearly infected. So, she got antibiotics, and could continue activity as usual. Two days later her toe is already looking much better... the swelling has gone down quite a bit. She's never once limped on it or looked like she was sore, from what I can tell she doesn't seem to be licking it anymore either. I got high marks from the vet on how well shaved she was and that I had been treating it So, we're on our way to recovery! PS- there was a boxer at the vet's office that had mainly been brought in for some skin irritation on his feet... along with that, the boxer had one leg and foot that were horribly swollen and he was limping on it, he had a testicle that was swollen as big as a baseball, and I heard the vet saying something about chest x-rays. He was only 2 or 3 years old! :S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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