[kbultje]

Hello all,
My 3 year old doberman seems to have damaged his toe nail. It is still securely fastened and not bleeding. It's more like the exterior of the nail has chipped away and pulled back. It also seems noticeably shorter than his other nails... I've been keeping an eye on him for a while now. I wasn't sure what was going on, as he was keeping weight off his back leg for a number of days. Tonight, he was full out limping after a fun off leash run in the bush.
Maybe his limping is from something else? damaged nail is my best bet after much poking and prodding.
SO I'm wondering what I can do to help him? cut the hang nails off? wrap his paw?
Has anyone gone through something similar. Any advice will be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

 

[melbrod]

Given he has been limping for several days, I'd be inclined to take him into the vet. I did have one dog limp with a badly broken toenail, but you could see the split going all of the way up under the skin at the top of the nail, and there was obvious raw flesh exposed inside the nail. It was so badly broken he had to have surgery to remove the broken part of the toenail so it could grow back properly.

Even if the pain seems to be coming from his toe area, he could have a stretched or ruptured tendon or ligament to one of his toes, or a thorn driven into his flesh behind the pad or between his toes where you can't see an obvious entry wound easily.

 

[SilasPup]

My boy had a really, really, really badly broken nail — super gory and required lots of vet visits ... and he never limped.

What DID make him limp was a soft tissue injury he incurred while on a very routine off-leash walk. This also required numerous vet visits, pain meds, and very special care while healing.

I agree with Melbrod; get him in to the vet. Dobes are so stoic — usually, if they're showing signs that they're in pain, in means they're in a LOT of pain. You need to figure out what's going on with him so you can treat it properly and help him recover.

 

[Lady Kate]

Sofia ripped one of her toe nails OFF... (down to the quick) after breaking her leash and chasing a feral cat half way up a tree... lots of blood.. not a peep from La Diva.. rushed her to the vet.. he cauterized it.. and bandaged.. we put a sock on it for a week ( told her it was a majorette boot)
The nail grew back. And yes, they are so stoic, sometimes you can never tell there's a problem.

 

[dobegal]

Roxy had ripped her toenail almost off after running in some bushes and her nail got caught on some roots. She was limping and when I went to inspect it that is when she cried out. Off to the vet we went and he removed the nail. The nail has grown back without the quick and it very short. It looks like a vet visit maybe in order.