No not this Bigfoot.
You may remember that a couple weeks ago Samba was wearing 'the cone of shame' while her foot healed from an infection. It was originally caused by a cracked nail that she tried to repair by herself. There's much to be said for self reliance, but in some cases it's better to ask for help. She spent almost two weeks in the cone and took antibiotics, had special gel applied to the sore spots and needed dailey soaks with a medicated shampoo.
Well, Samba's foot is completely healed and the cone has been removed and life is good.....for Samba.
It's a new week and we have a new foot problem. This time it's Lola's foot. On Sunday Fudge alerted me to a problem with Lola's foot. Why do these things always happen on weekends or holidays? On close inspection, one of Lola's toes was red and swollen. I had learned from Samba's experience and immediately got out the cone of shame again. It was still warm from the last use.
I put some of the same gel I'd used on Samba on the swelling toe and confined Lola to her crate. The next morning we made the decision to see the vet.
Have you ever taken a good look at a dog's toes? They're usually long and slim. One of Lola's toes was bright red and about an inch and a half wide and almost an inch think. Dr B was quite impressed with the amount of swelling. I won't gross you out with a photo. Take my word, it's ugly.
Dr B shaved her foot and examined it for any kind of sliver or foreign matter. He didn't find anything, but wouldn't rule out a bite, perhaps from a spider. He said it's become infected, so she's taking antibiotics and we're applying the same gel we used on Samba. Good thing I had a nice big bottle of it. Twice a day I'm soaking her foot in hot water and iodine solution in hopes that whatever may be inside will work it's way out.
This morning her toe was about the same size and still red, but one small area was more swollen than the rest. It's the part where we thought the bite might be located. Keep your fingers crossed that the hot soaks make it open and drain soon. Poor Lola is really hating her new bonnet and I'm not thrilled about doing this routine again so soon. We want to get back to this.
10 comments:
Maybe in your spare time, you could be scouting around the yard, looking for the bad spiders. With all of your pups, it seems like the decent thing to do.
Kisses,
Stella
They do like to keep you busy, don't they? We had Phantom to the vet on Monday for nail trimming and fur on the pads trimming. His nails all curl under now and start to grow into his pads. Then for some reason he has been sprouting fur between his pads like someone planted grass seed and fertilized it well. He had what looked like pillows under his pads. Mom says he will have to go more often now for trims.
HOpe all your good care gets that toe better soon.
Woos - Phantom, Thunder, Ciara, and Lightning
I've seen two dogs lately with hugely swollen feet/toes for no explainable reason. Must be the season?
that little toe better get better soon...
Benny & Lily
Sissy has a spider bite between the folds in her ear when she was a youngster. It was a mess, but at least we knew what it was. Good luck to you and Lola.
Paws are crossed that your tootsie is all better soon, Lola. How dare that spider!
Love ya lots,
Mitch and Molly
Foot problems are the worst! I'm glad you were on top of it. Yes, these things do seem to happen at the worst possible times.
Mango Momma
Poor Lola... hope it clears up soon!
Your girls might just need sneakers! This is too many swollen feet for one pack to bear!
You are such a good doggie ma to notice quickly. I did have a bad bite on my own thumb a few years back. It was so painful. I saw an article online and decided to soak it in epsom salt in warm water. That did the trick. I've since learned that the epsom salt is good at sucking venom or poison out of a bite. Might just be something you'd want to try next time. And I'm hoping for some good news/blessings for you soon.
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