Dog licking infected paw

54and56

Hi all,

I've an 18 month old Newfoundland cross who fractured a toe in her front left paw a few weeks ago chasing a whippet in a local dog park. After x ray etc it was splinted and bandaged and she was put in a lampshade type collar to prevent her knawing at the bandage but she is able to work the collar into a position where she can get at the paw and somehow the bandage got wet, either as a result of her licking it or when she went outside to go to the toilet even though we put her foot in a heavy plastic bag when she goes out and it's literally only to go to the toilet.

The wet bandage caused a bad infection of the underside of the paw with broken skin and sores etc so she's now on two types of anti biotics and the bandage/splintv is off to allow the infected sores to heal.

My concern is that since the bandage had been removed she is licking the site of the sores a lot.

Is this a problem and if so is there any practical way to stop get of the head collar isn't going the job?

Thanks for reading.

DBB

Jeez... That was all a bit unfortunate!
I conquered an expert at getting at wounds despite the lampshade... I used a combination of the lampshade and an inflatable collar. The inflatable collar holds the lampshade in such a position that the dog just can't manipulate the lampshade to access the feet!
You may be able to make your own sort-of inflatable collar by wrapping a fleece blanket around a very large collar. I hope that makes sense

54and56

DBB wrote: »

Jeez... That was all a bit unfortunate!
I conquered an expert at getting at wounds despite the lampshade... I used a combination of the lampshade and an inflatable collar. The inflatable collar holds the lampshade in such a position that the dog just can't manipulate the lampshade to access the feet!
You may be able to make your own sort-of inflatable collar by wrapping a fleece blanket around a very large collar. I hope that makes sense

Ha, it does make sense.... Kind of!!

I suppose what I really want to know initially is whether the licking is a good or bad thing? I assume dogs do it naturally so perhaps it's nothing to worry about and could in fact be some sort of natural healing support???

DBB

If she's doing it a lot, and not letting them heal/dry up, that's not good. It likely means they're irritating her. Did your vet give you any painkillers for her?

54and56

DBB wrote: »

If she's doing it a lot, and not letting them heal/dry up, that's not good. It likely means they're irritating her. Did your vet give you any painkillers for her?

Yes, a pain killer / anti inflammatory which she Rheumocam.

I'll adjust the lampshade and see if I can make it so she can't get at the paw. If that doesn't work I'll see about getting the inflatable collar.

Thanks for the input.

neris

we had some thing similar with our Lab a few months ago after getting a paw stitched and bandaged. She managed to lick to herself raw so we had to get one of those cone type thing and also used a spray that stops them licking the wound but cleans it aswell. Keep the cone on as much as you can and if you do take it off keep a close eye on the dog and it should heal over time. It seems to be more a natural thing, like an itch they have to get at but they scratch it to the extreme

Ms Doubtfire1

oh man..what a bout of bad lock.Uhm..keeping a dog away from getting at the frontpaw is very difficult as it's sooooooooo handy. Try bitter paste-vet should have it. just wash your hand after applying.It taste absolutely rotten.

54and56

Thanks guys, we're currently bathing the paw in an iodine dilution twice a day but she licks the remains off the paw in jig time. The sores are looking quite raw which I think are a result of her constant licking which is irritating them and it's like a vicious circle. The sores are sore/itchy so she licks them which makes them more sore/itchy so she licks them some more and on and on we go.......

I'll tip into the vet and see if I can get some of the bitter paste which might put her off.

Never a dull moment eh? Thankfully I have her on a pet insurance policy with a €75 excess so I should get most of the €500 I've lashed out over the last few weeks!!

tk123

If you're near a maxizoo they stock inflatable collars AND they have a voucher on LivingSocial - €12 for a €20 voucher It's not valid until Monday though - in case you go in with it and are sent away like I've done a few times lol! I've used baby/kids socks in the past to protect wounds and secure with a band of tape around the top of the sock - my two will leave it alone if I tell them though.. I know other dogs would just pull the sock off!

aonb

Our collie was in a similar situation. Licking prevents the sores from drying and scabbing over, so its as you say a vicious circle.
I took an old sweatshirt. Sewed the sleeve closed at one of the cuffs. Put it on the dog at night, covering his paw. I put his harness on, and with velcro attached the waist of the sweatshirt to the harness. Is this making sense?!?!
During the day, an inflatable collar and a cone. he was so miserable with the cone on, but it was only for 3 or 4 days to get the sores to heal.

Lucky you to be insured. I cant imagine a newfoundland chasing a whippet

54and56

aonb wrote: »

I cant imagine a newfoundland chasing a whippet

It was hilarious, she was huffing and puffing after the whippet barking like mad in a friendly "slow down ya fecker" sort of way and was all good fun (plus I was selfishly thinking that this would knock her out and I'd be home early as there was a match on the TV I wanted to see) but then she suddenly pulled up and was limping. It's been all downhill from there.

Thanks for the tip ref the homemade sleeve. I'm going to put something similar over the paw which will hopefully allow the wounds to still get air but will discourage the licking.

This is trickier than dealing with young kids!!