So my pup is 3 years old and he must've caught his dew claws on something. It was swollen for a while now it back to normal size. He is still licking on it. Should I take him to the vet or not. Hoping someone here has experience in this matter. Tia
Dew claws
- Thread starter HuskerT-Roy
- Start date
I had a dog get a garden spike go through his paw...I was able to pull it out (gross) and put some ointment on it...he was fine.
He's a king shepherd black lab mix. I'm seriously considering just getting them removed
I wouldn't remove them. Just put some hydrogen peroxide on it and keep an eye on it. I have had many shepherds, and they will use those dew claws, even if they look non functional to you, the dog doesn't see it that way.
My Vizslas came with their dew claws removed. 2 less nails to cut was good with me.
I have never cut my dog's dew claws.
I wouldn't remove them unless it was a really big problem.
I train dogs and worked for a dog daycare/boarding facility several years back. We used neosporin for just about any wound that wasn't a big bite puncture/tear.
My Cane Corso/Lab mix just ripped her dew claw for the second time. She tears it bad when she does it so I just went through this same thought process. She licks at it and gets blood all over until she gets the rest of the cracked nail off, then she licks at it some more. Must be very sore because she is not a fan when I have to put the Neosporin on. At any rate she healed up fine both times and the claw grows back.
My big lab has never torn his, but then he's got nails that practically require a bolt cutter. Pro tip: if they're awful about nail trims and you're worried you'll cut their quicks, grind the ends of their nails with a Dremmel instead. Just take plenty of breaks because the grinding process generates a lot of heat, you don't wanna burn their quicks either.
If you know what an infection does or doesn't look like, you can probably skip the vet in most cases and just put Neosporin on it like suggested above. Vet will be happy to ring you up for $200 to clean it, clip it, and sell you a week of antibiotics plus maybe a wrap plus maybe a cone. If it's getting infected get them to the vet.
Be super gentle, it's very sore for them. I wouldn't clip it if you can help it, you'll cut the quick and it hurts them like hell plus they'll never trust you for a nail trim again. Might want a muzzle, you could get bit trying to treat a dog's injury. They'll screw with it enough to get the rest of the nail off on their own.
If they won't stop licking it and lick all the neosporin off you can buy bitter spray to put on after the neosporin. Stuff tastes God awful, we used to prank the other workers at the dog daycare and spray some on their straw if they left their drink sitting around. Otherwise the cone of shame will stop them being able to lick it.
I've had good success putting the neosporin on right before they go to sleep so it can soak in for a bit without them licking it off.
My Cane Corso/Lab mix just ripped her dew claw for the second time. She tears it bad when she does it so I just went through this same thought process. She licks at it and gets blood all over until she gets the rest of the cracked nail off, then she licks at it some more. Must be very sore because she is not a fan when I have to put the Neosporin on. At any rate she healed up fine both times and the claw grows back.
My big lab has never torn his, but then he's got nails that practically require a bolt cutter. Pro tip: if they're awful about nail trims and you're worried you'll cut their quicks, grind the ends of their nails with a Dremmel instead. Just take plenty of breaks because the grinding process generates a lot of heat, you don't wanna burn their quicks either.
If you know what an infection does or doesn't look like, you can probably skip the vet in most cases and just put Neosporin on it like suggested above. Vet will be happy to ring you up for $200 to clean it, clip it, and sell you a week of antibiotics plus maybe a wrap plus maybe a cone. If it's getting infected get them to the vet.
Be super gentle, it's very sore for them. I wouldn't clip it if you can help it, you'll cut the quick and it hurts them like hell plus they'll never trust you for a nail trim again. Might want a muzzle, you could get bit trying to treat a dog's injury. They'll screw with it enough to get the rest of the nail off on their own.
If they won't stop licking it and lick all the neosporin off you can buy bitter spray to put on after the neosporin. Stuff tastes God awful, we used to prank the other workers at the dog daycare and spray some on their straw if they left their drink sitting around. Otherwise the cone of shame will stop them being able to lick it.
I've had good success putting the neosporin on right before they go to sleep so it can soak in for a bit without them licking it off.
This ^ is it right here.
I've had this happen 2X on my first dog. I had to take her to the vet, It was obviously painful and infected. My vet told me how to treat at home if it didn't get infected or tear off to much of the Dew Claw. I pretty much did verbatim what TheBeav815 said second time around. I caught it quicker second time around and was able to take care of it at home. Healed up just fine.
They often get obsessive though, and lick to the point of harm. Gently dress and if he messes with the bandage, just put a sock over it and use some soft stretchy medical tape to secure the sock. Works pretty good.
Not accurate. They can actually cause a wound by licking obsessively.
It's cleaner than if you licked it yourself but dogs still have bacteria in their mouths and there can certainly be infections they can't clean themselves.
Last edited: