Cut on dogs pad causing limp??

7172 Views 21 Replies 7 Participants Last post by Chas, Apr 20, 2016

Tuxi

Discussion Starter · Apr 19, 2016

I adopted my new dog almost 2 weeks ago. After a few days I started to notice that after getting up from rest she had a limp. I left her alone and decreased her walks as I thought maybe she had just over-exerted herself when playing with my other dog however it seemed to get worse. Fearing the worst I brought her down to the vets. She checked her leg and done lots of stretches etc and couldn't find anything to be wrong. She then looked at her paws and turns out she had a small but deep-ish slice in her paw - obviously sore, so said that was the cause of her limp and sent me home with painkillers and antibiotics for her.
It has now been 4 days and there is only a little improvement. How long should it take for a dogs paw pad to heal? I still check it every day and it is still quite open but I can no longer see pink flesh on the inside so im guessing it has healed a little but im just not fully convinced that is what was causing her to limp so bad?

Any body have any advice or experience in this?

1 - 20 of 22 Posts

SchnauzerGirl8810

· #2 · Apr 19, 2016

I can't speak to how long it might take to heal, I feel like this might vary based on the age and general health of the dog.

However it wouldn't surprise me at all that a cut on the pad would cause the limp. One of my dogs will start to limp if he even gets something stuck on his foot or leg furnishings (burr, stick, acorn). Obviously, in the case of my dog, it's a bit of a dramatic response, but for you dog, the paw probably hurts, especially when she puts weight on it, so she's favoring that leg.

Tuxi

Discussion Starter · #3 · Apr 19, 2016

Shes young, only 7-8 months. My vet didn't advise to cover it up with anything or bandage it so I havnt put anything on it at all except a tiny bit of antiseptic cream. And I have been giving her the antibiotics and painkillers.

I find it weird too that the limp is a lot more noticeable after she has been lying down for a while - would that still be a symptom of a cut on the pad?

BrittaS

· #4 · Apr 19, 2016

Tuxi said:
I find it weird too that the limp is a lot more noticeable after she has been lying down for a while - would that still be a symptom of a cut on the pad?

Just think about a cut on your finger, if you don't move it, it's fine. But as soon as you start to move your finger a bit, it might break open again and hurt.
Or same example with your foot. If you cut your foot, e.g. stepping in glass, and rest it, it might hurt a bit but is okay otherwise. As soon as you use your foot walking somewhere, it's the same thing, it hurts much more until you get used to it and you feel discomfort, but manageable while waking.

Does that make sense?

Reactions: 1

jagger

· #5 · Apr 19, 2016

Happened to ours, I used krazy glue to close it. It'll heal.

Tuxi

Discussion Starter · #6 · Apr 19, 2016

BrittaS said:
Just think about a cut on your finger, if you don't move it, it's fine. But as soon as you start to move your finger a bit, it might break open again and hurt.
Or same example with your foot. If you cut your foot, e.g. stepping in glass, and rest it, it might hurt a bit but is okay otherwise. As soon as you use your foot walking somewhere, it's the same thing, it hurts much more until you get used to it and you feel discomfort, but manageable while waking.

Does that make sense?

yeh that makes perfect sense. I just hope that's all it is. And I really hope it heals soon, shes so bouncy and playful she wont relax with it and give it time to heal, silly puppy.
Il wait another few days before I start panicking again - always the worry monger

annageckos

· #7 · Apr 19, 2016

Vegas has cut his paw pad a few times. The first time was on glass and I freaked, wrapped up his paw and put a sock on it. It was a fight for the next week and I finally gave up and let him take care of it since he was just chewing the sock off anyway. I've found that it heals faster if you just let them lick it. I would clean the cut the first time and limit activity. Remember not to use peroxide after the initial cleaning because it will kill of the healthy growing tissues as well as the infection and bad germs. If I remember right it took about a week, maybe a bit more before it healed/was almost healed.

Chas

· #8 · Apr 19, 2016

jagger said:
Happened to ours, I used krazy glue to close it. It'll heal.

There can be issues with this, if it is really deep then you can get a pocket form under the closed wound add a bit of bacteria to that and it can form an abscess. If it is too long it will just open and tear the skin as the dog walks, I doubt that would happen with a min pin so much. The other issue is that unless you get medical super glue it may not be sterile.

Wounds on the pads take long time to heal because they keep opening with every step, you should call your vet if you are worried.

Tuxi

Discussion Starter · #9 · Apr 19, 2016

Chas said:
There can be issues with this, if it is really deep then you can get a pocket form under the closed wound add a bit of bacteria to that and it can form an abscess. If it is too long it will just open and tear the skin as the dog walks, I doubt that would happen with a min pin so much. The other issue is that unless you get medical super glue it may not be sterile.

Wounds on the pads take long time to heal because they keep opening with every step, you should call your vet if you are worried.

I already brought her to the vet and got antibiotics and painkillers for her. I will give it til Friday, that will be a full week and see how it is then.

If I can take a pic of it later I will post it here and see what yous think. its honestly not that bad, when I googled paw cuts it came up with all sorts of huge lacerations, this one hasn't even bled...although when I first saw it I could definitely see bright pink skin inside.

annageckos

· #10 · Apr 19, 2016

You can also put some coconut oil on it.

Chas

· #11 · Apr 19, 2016

@Tuxi the first paragraph was specific to putting glue on to close the wound, the second was answering why it might take a while to heal. I should have quoted twice.

If you are seeing improvement that's great!

Tuxi

Discussion Starter · #12 · Apr 20, 2016

2

After a good inspection of it last night it is definitely healing. I cant see any pink skin through it now at all. Her limp has most certainly lessened but I cant quite tell if its completely gone yet. Here are some pics anyway...

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Chas

· #13 · Apr 20, 2016

Oh wow, thanks for the pics! That,s really interesting I didn't realize dogs can get callus and splits. Since it pretty much looks healed in terms of wound I'd ask the vet about a safe moisturizer with urea or glycerol for dogs to put on regularly to help finish the skin healing and to put on regularly to avoid future splits.

Tuxi

Discussion Starter · #14 · Apr 20, 2016

Chas said:
Oh wow, thanks for the pics! That,s really interesting I didn't realize dogs can get callus and splits. Since it pretty much looks healed in terms of wound I'd ask the vet about a safe moisturizer with urea or glycerol for dogs to put on regularly to help finish the skin healing and to put on regularly to avoid future splits.

Someone earlier mentioned coconut oil, I think il try that and see how it works. Don't want to soften her paws up too much though as it might lead to more serious accidents if she stands on something dodgy.

Chas

· #15 · Apr 20, 2016

Coconut oil won't be as effective, because it doesn't have an active emollient quality. Asking the vet about an active emollient moisturizer (urea or glycerol content) shouldn't need an appointment so it shouldn't cost you anything to ring up and ask.

Passive emollient: oil that sits over the skin stopping water from escaping, sorbeline, olive oil, coconut oil.
Active emollient: destroys some sulfide bonds in the skin to allow water to be absorbed better by the skin.

I don't know if the ingredients are safe for dogs to ingest as they'll probably lick it off sometimes. If you go the coconut oil route it'll need to be several times a day and you'll have to be super careful about your dog slipping.

Chas

· #16 · Apr 20, 2016

@Tuxi The several times a day thing is until the current split closes not forever. Sorry I should have been more clear.

DriveDog

· #17 · Apr 20, 2016

Preparation H works well on many cuts, helps close them up. Horse owners and the vet is where I learned this, many years ago.

annageckos

· #18 · Apr 20, 2016

I use coconut oil on the dogs and myself, it works great actually. It's also not greasy, unless you put too much on.

Chas

· #19 · Apr 20, 2016

I'm not saying it doesn't work on healthy to dry skin, in this specific case I'd say an active emollient would be the most appropriate treatment as long as it is safe.

annageckos

· #20 · Apr 20, 2016

My skin is far from healthy, I have diabetes and very dry cracking skin. I also use it on cuts. All I know is that it really helps my skin and helps cuts heal faster. It also has antibacterial, anti fungal and antiviral properties. I'm not saying it's the best thing to use, I'm just saying that it works very well and can't hurt.

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