Scooby4
04-09-2006, 04:04 PM
Help! My dog Scooby has again lost a toenail in the last 3 weeks! :eek: The first time I did not witness it and don't know how it happened. I just found blood all over the place in a random pattern. No identifing place of injury. :confused: Luckily, the bleeding had stopped by the time I got home and limited treatment was needed.
Today, I was walking Scooby and Shaggy, when another incident occurred with another toenail on the same foot. I came into the house and notice blood all over his paw. He never once indicated any kind of pain during the walk or discomfort. This time I was able to get some Corn Starch and stop the bleeding. :cool: (It works like septic powder in a pinch).I've just finished bandaging his foot. He's hiding and not wanting me around since the treatment. He's licked at it a few times already.
Here's the issue. Scooby about 2 years ago suffered a BIG stroke. His entire RIGHT side of his body became "dead". It was cold to the touch and had limited feeling to it. The vet said that he would may always tend to walk to the right and he may get better. He was unable to stand or walk for weeks. Since then Scooby has made a remarkable recovery with about 80% of his feeling coming back to his side and back areas.
However, his front right paw has never fully recovered. I've asked the vet about it and he said the dog did have positive reaction with an important nerve located there. This indicated to me that he was going to be able to recover more in that paw in time. This has NOT been the case. He still tends to drag it and loses balance with putting weight on it at times. It just doesn't function very well and he lacks control in it.
I've put mittens on his paw because he tends to wear his claws down when walking on concrete. I moved so we could walk on more grassy areas. He'd also lose the mitten by the time we got back. This solution was impractical for the most part. His nail would wear down and become extremely pointy. I'd have to trim them twice as much to keep the point down. It would hurt if he jumped up on you.
Scooby had also developed a "sore" on his right paw he would keep licking at for the last few months. I've treated it and used bandages on it. The vet said that it was because Scooby was feeling some kind of "tingling" in that paw. That could mean feeling was coming back into that paw. A good sign I hoped.
Now, it has gotten even more serious. I think his nails are coming out! I have no clue if this is the case or not. There has been no indication of anything wrong with his nails when I trimmed them. Nothing loose or out of the ordinary. After he lost the first one, I was upset but thought maybe something was wrong and it came out naturally. All I could find of the nail was just a small stub of it at the end of his paw and that was just recently. The second one that just fell out seems similar to that. It's left just his nailbed intact. The blood was pouring out of a hole at the end of it. The paw pads were okay.
Does anyone think this is related to his paralysis? That the nails could be coming out because of it? Could it be that he's wearing his nails down too much by walking on pavement/sidewalk? Could this be an appropriate time to think about amputation? I don't think his back right leg is strong enough to be able to compensate for the loss of the front one. His back is slightly better than his front. Lately, he has been "falling" or stumbling a little more than usual. He also is unable to make it up the stairs without a "running start".
I lost my job and can't afford to take him to the vet. He was recently already on prescribed antibiotics for an ear infection that had spread to effect his coat. Could the anitbiotics effected him in some way? He's been off of them for 3 weeks now. I am also between vets right now. I'd gotten recommended to one that I don't like. I am going to try to change back to his original vet. Hopefully, he can provide better care and answers. Thank you for anyone who can help.
Today, I was walking Scooby and Shaggy, when another incident occurred with another toenail on the same foot. I came into the house and notice blood all over his paw. He never once indicated any kind of pain during the walk or discomfort. This time I was able to get some Corn Starch and stop the bleeding. :cool: (It works like septic powder in a pinch).I've just finished bandaging his foot. He's hiding and not wanting me around since the treatment. He's licked at it a few times already.
Here's the issue. Scooby about 2 years ago suffered a BIG stroke. His entire RIGHT side of his body became "dead". It was cold to the touch and had limited feeling to it. The vet said that he would may always tend to walk to the right and he may get better. He was unable to stand or walk for weeks. Since then Scooby has made a remarkable recovery with about 80% of his feeling coming back to his side and back areas.
However, his front right paw has never fully recovered. I've asked the vet about it and he said the dog did have positive reaction with an important nerve located there. This indicated to me that he was going to be able to recover more in that paw in time. This has NOT been the case. He still tends to drag it and loses balance with putting weight on it at times. It just doesn't function very well and he lacks control in it.
I've put mittens on his paw because he tends to wear his claws down when walking on concrete. I moved so we could walk on more grassy areas. He'd also lose the mitten by the time we got back. This solution was impractical for the most part. His nail would wear down and become extremely pointy. I'd have to trim them twice as much to keep the point down. It would hurt if he jumped up on you.
Scooby had also developed a "sore" on his right paw he would keep licking at for the last few months. I've treated it and used bandages on it. The vet said that it was because Scooby was feeling some kind of "tingling" in that paw. That could mean feeling was coming back into that paw. A good sign I hoped.
Now, it has gotten even more serious. I think his nails are coming out! I have no clue if this is the case or not. There has been no indication of anything wrong with his nails when I trimmed them. Nothing loose or out of the ordinary. After he lost the first one, I was upset but thought maybe something was wrong and it came out naturally. All I could find of the nail was just a small stub of it at the end of his paw and that was just recently. The second one that just fell out seems similar to that. It's left just his nailbed intact. The blood was pouring out of a hole at the end of it. The paw pads were okay.
Does anyone think this is related to his paralysis? That the nails could be coming out because of it? Could it be that he's wearing his nails down too much by walking on pavement/sidewalk? Could this be an appropriate time to think about amputation? I don't think his back right leg is strong enough to be able to compensate for the loss of the front one. His back is slightly better than his front. Lately, he has been "falling" or stumbling a little more than usual. He also is unable to make it up the stairs without a "running start".
I lost my job and can't afford to take him to the vet. He was recently already on prescribed antibiotics for an ear infection that had spread to effect his coat. Could the anitbiotics effected him in some way? He's been off of them for 3 weeks now. I am also between vets right now. I'd gotten recommended to one that I don't like. I am going to try to change back to his original vet. Hopefully, he can provide better care and answers. Thank you for anyone who can help.