# Ripped out claw - any advice please?



## sozzle (May 18, 2011)

Well we had a very short walk this morning at the river after I discovered Stanley had ripped out one of his back middle claws, which I presume happened after he had chased a small dog around where there were tree stumps. Stanley is very accident prone which is maybe why greyhounds run on sand! he is forever getting scrapes and cuts on his feet and legs. Anyway he acted perfectly normally and so I didn't notice anything until about 5 mins later when I stopped to talk to someone and she noticed blood on the tarmac. Well it was coming from Stanley's foot and I initially thought a cut in the pad, but on closer inspection noticed he had lost one of his claws. So we turned around and walked the 15 mins or so back to the car, he didn't limp at all or show any signs of pain or discomfort. When I got home I bathed it in warm water that had salt and a couple of drops of tea tree oil in it and have since done again two hours later. Should I bandage it and not walk him for a couple of days do you think?
I suppose infection is s possibility hence me bathing it.
He hasn't been licking it at all either.
Don't really want to have to go to vet for something I can do myself but might need to go and get some sort of waterproof sock thing to cover it for when he goes outside?
Any advice gratefully received.


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

You mean it's gone??? Poor fellow.

i don't really have any advice, except to sympathize and say "ouch" because that's how I felt when I read your post. Maybe he'll never even notice? I wonder if he'll start licking it. If he does, you'll have to protect it from him.


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## Celt (Dec 27, 2010)

Had a doxie do something similar, but we found the toenail daggling off. We didn't do much more than clean it, put antibiotic ointment on it and then just kept an eye on it. She recovered without any "special" care.


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## CoverTune (Dec 20, 2011)

Keep it clean, and try to keep it dry. Leash walks should be fine as long as he's not showing pain. If you can get a bag to pop on the foot for going outside, that would be great (at the clinic we use empty IV bags with one end cut off, and tie it onto the leg with a piece of gauze), if not, just a sock to keep out the dirt would be ok as long as you dry the foot well when he comes in.


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## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

Greyhounds have very tight fitting and thin skin- they get scrapes really easily- Tess does too.

I'd keep a close eye on it, and maybe wrap it if he starts to bug it. Otherwise just keep it clean.


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## Kat (Jul 12, 2011)

Our old dog lost one of his nails too, it completely broke off with only a bit of the quick remaining. It grew back. All we did was keep it clean and dry, didnt let him walk in any overly dirty/muddy areas, and he was fine. Never showed any signs of pain or discomfort.


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Yep, clean it and keep it dry. Keep him from licking it or it will take FOREVER to heal. I've always just put a regular sock on my dogs' feet to keep them from messing with it...and a bag (like Covertune suggested) if its wet outside. You want it to be able to breathe a stay dry...


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