# Rucku's split paw pad PICS!!!



## ruckusluvr (Oct 28, 2009)

i took some pictures of Ruckus's foot issues. it has been going on for years now, and will not heal. they dont really heal up, but they look so much better in the winter and the fall than they do in the spring and summer. i have taken him to the vet many times, and they do not do anything but get me to try another balms or cream.

now the vet was talking about amputating a section of his back paw pads. I am hesitant.

here guys, take a look. i know it is up to me. but if he was your dog would you leave it alone, or have the vet take it off? it does not seem to bug him. but it is a good place for infections to hang out. he has not had one yet, but i have to clean them twice daily. and we are scared they will get hung on something. they actually got worse a couple of weeks back, but i have some awesome spray that heals it up in no time! (heals the new rips, not old)

the vet said that this deep gash in his foot that has been there for years is dead tissue and will never heal.

this is half of his foot pad that is open. it is deeper than it looks in the picture though. 

left paw









right paw










we do not know what is causing this. we think maybe it is a contact allergy to grass. i ordered him boots for when he will be on grass. maybe it will keep it from getting any worse.


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## g00dgirl (Nov 18, 2009)

Hmm, that is strange. Could it be possible that he cut them somehow at first and now that the pad is separated it just gets worse in the summer when he is more active outside?

I'm picturing the part of the pad to be similar to the extra thick skin we have on our toes and fingers around the nail- it's thick and doesn't hurt when you trim it- does that seem like the same thing for his pads?

I wouldn't consider amputating unless it was bothering him or infections became a problem. Will he leave booties on for a week or two and see if that makes a difference? Keeping the skin protected may help it heal faster.


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## ruckusluvr (Oct 28, 2009)

nope, its not a cut. i helplessly watched as they went from tiny cracks to this.

i would be scared to trim it, but i bet it wouldnt hurt him. the vet was just going to take that whole piece off, and even out his paw pads.

about it healing faster... the vet said its impossible. that it is healed separated. does that make since? it is healed to its self and not together. so it will never close up.


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## Khan (Jan 17, 2010)

My question is what would they be amputating??
That seems like such a Harsh word? Are dogs pads equivalent to a callus on our feet? If so, we "trim" those without any problems? Would this be along the same lines of that? If that was the case, then I might be inclined to get that done. Obviously the dead skin has no feeling so trimming that off makes sense.
Then again, if it is like a callus, leaving it would not hurt either.


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## ruckusluvr (Oct 28, 2009)

also, look at the pad in general, not just the split. 

his paws are in such horrible shape and i put a something on them every night. right now we are using microtek coat rebuilder. it is suppose to work wonders on paw pads. i have seen no difference and i have been using it for two week.

the vet was going to "amputate" the whole piece of the paw pad that sticks up.
amputate does sound horrible. but that is what she said. and that is what scared me away. if she said trimmed, that would be less scary. maybe she ment trimmed...


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## luvMyBRT (Mar 8, 2010)

Kodi, my Rottie, had some splits in his pads. Thinking back, they may not have been as deep as Ruckus's, but they really never caused him any problems.

I agree with Khan. If it's just a trim of the dead part of the pad, that sounds like an option.


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## malluver1005 (Nov 15, 2009)

Aspen used to get those. But not as deep. Bag balm closed the split Aspen had. I applied a lot (make sure to get it in the split) and put a bootie on him so he wouldn't rub it off. It closed within a few days. 

*ETA:* If it's not bothering him, I would just leave it as is.


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