When Things Go Wrong

If your dog is anything like mine, injuries pop up suddenly and without much (if any) acknowledgment.

Shadow can have his nail hanging on by a thread, staining his paw red, the quick snapped... and STILL be obsessed only with PLAYING. Perhaps he's just being brave (yeah, right), but it's difficult for his humans to tell when something is really wrong.

In no way should this be considered above expert medical advice from a licensed veterinarian. This is simply an ongoing list of Shadow's ailments and what we did or were told to do in order to heal them.



1. TORN FOOTPAD

As new puppy parents, we nearly curtailed a vacation in Maine one year when Shadow tore a piece off his foot pad. He'd been playing like crazy with a few other dogs, and just must have overdone it. But at the time, we flew into hyper-protective mode. Let's drive home now! To do what? I don't know! Take him to the vet? Is it bad? How serious? Shouldn't he be home? Home is for healing!

What we did then: Created a makeshift booty with a sock and kept him mostly indoors for the rest of the trip. When we got back, he went to the vet, who gave a "you-must-be-new-parents" smirk, and basically told us to keep it clean. It would heal on its own. Then he sold us a ridiculously expensive booty for him to wear outside.

What we do now: Yes, it happens once in a while. He's a dog. He plays on his feet, and he doesn't wear shoes. So now, we have a nice big bottle of BETADINE (a must for dog owners), which is essentially hydrogen peroxide for dogs. We wash the wound, apply some betadyne, and then swab it off. We make sure the floors in the house are clean. And whenever he goes outside, we put on a booty for protection.


(Note: The booties we use now, called Pawtectors, are much stronger than what the vet sold. Plus, they come in a pack of four and cost about 1/100 of the price. Click on the Dalmation, at left, to find them on Amazon.)




2. BROKEN NAIL

Christmas Day 2012. Shadow is sitting on the carpet, hovering over his bone, waiting to play. All of the sudden, my husband realizes the outside nail on his left front paw is protruding at a grossly unnatural way. It's broken. Hanging on by a thread. Oh, and his paw is stained dark red. Sound the alarm!!

The torn nail

It was gross, and we freaked. Should we cancel all our Christmas plans? Hunt down the vet while he's at his house opening presents? Shadow had just come inside from a walk and from throwing the ball around. When did it break? How? And why on Earth did he not seem to care? Like, at ALL?

What we did:

This was one scenario in which the Dog Bible failed me. So a frantic Internet search told us that yes, we should consult a vet to avoid infection. But because it was a holiday and this was not a life-or-death situation, we had to wait until the next day.

Meanwhile, we used his Pawtector booty each time he went outside. We abandoned all hope of getting him to cover it up while inside the house, which turned out to be fine. Because the quick was already torn apart, I (cringing) cut the nail off completely so it wouldn't get caught on anything. Then I dunked his "toe" in Styptic for the first time, to lessen any pain.

Shadow visited the vet the next day. The fact that he wasn't touching/licking/biting at the injury, indicated that it was not infected. This was a $57, three-second diagnosis. (Meanwhile, his human counterparts have ignored their own ailments and $20 co-pays for years. Ain't it the truth.)

The vet's advice: Keep using that booty outdoors, and soak his paw for five minutes a day in an antimicrobial solution (1 tbsp Nolvasan Skin and Wound Cleanser, 1 cup warm water). Oh, and keep keep his nails trim!

Planning ahead: Nolvasan is available at Amazon.com, 1-800-Petmeds, and Doctors Fosters and Smith, to name a few.


3. SHAKING HEAD (a LOT)

When was the last time you cleaned his ears???