Ripped pads on front paws

[macksworld]

This is the second time our little rottie Lulu has torn the pads on her front paws. The first time we were letting her run in the empty hockey rink by our house and realized the surface was too rough for her, but this time we were at the off lease dog park - all grass and paths with wood chips.

Is there anything we can do for her to help heal the pads and prevention of future wounds? One pad has a round hole on it and the other the flap of skin is still attached - Would that heal back on or should we trim it off?

Her front pads always seem rougher than her back ones and we are also wondering if there is some kind of balm we could put on her front ones to soften them? Or don't we want to do that?

Any advice would be appreciated.

John and Michelle Mack

[Ayoka]

I find bag balm works great, you can get a tin of it at pharmacies for like 10$ I'd trim the flap off so it doesn't get cought in anything and tear her paw further.

You might try boots on her if you take her out before she's healed completely.

[moondog]

You don't want to soften them, you want to help toughen them. I wouldn't use bag balm for that. You might want to try a product designed to help toughen them, like http://www.tuffoot.com/about/dogs.htm

Nu-skin works well to keep the raw areas protected while healing. As for the skin flap, better make sure it's dead skin before you clip it. How big of a flap is it?

[Ayoka]

True, bag balm won't toughen but it does speed healing...

[Dugganmom]

I have also heard bag balm helps....minnesota hmmm? me to!!

[macksworld]

Originally Posted by moondog

You don't want to soften them, you want to help toughen them. I wouldn't use bag balm for that. You might want to try a product designed to help toughen them, like http://www.tuffoot.com/about/dogs.htm

Nu-skin works well to keep the raw areas protected while healing. As for the skin flap, better make sure it's dead skin before you clip it. How big of a flap is it?

About the size of a dime I would say. I certainly don't want to be the one to trim or clip it. It's hard enough for me to trim her nails and I always quick one - poor thing. I will check out the link to tuffoot too - thanks - our local pet store didn't have anything like that.
Michelle

[flyballmom]

Blitz has torn her pads pretty badly herding. We (Becky and I) trimmed off the skin flap (yes AFTER making sure it was only attached by a thread and on it's way out!)...then filled in the hole with super glue. It worked GREAT...we tried Nu Skin and Liquid Bandage first, and it just came right off.

[macksworld]

Originally Posted by Dugganmom

I have also heard bag balm helps....minnesota hmmm? me to!!

Nice to see a fellow Minnesotan - It was such a beautiful day today finally - hardly any rain and we wanted Lulu to get some much needed exercise to get the rambunctiousness out of her. Our walks don't seem to phase her much at all, and I'm not about to take up jogging to wear her out.

[macksworld]

Super glue? I would think that would sting like heck on an open sore like that, but your dog tolerated it? Thanks for the tip - I will see how it looks tomorrow.

[flyballmom]

Originally Posted by macksworld

Super glue? I would think that would sting like heck on an open sore like that, but your dog tolerated it? Thanks for the tip - I will see how it looks tomorrow.

She tolerated the super glue a TON better than the Nu Skin. I thought the same til I saw the result.

[moondog]

We used the Nu-Skin on Gracie the Zoomer for a chunk she took out of her pad that was about 1/2 the size of a pencil eraser and about 1/8" deep - it didn't phase her at all. But...this was also the second day after she hurt it, so some initial healing had occurred by then...maybe that's why it didn't sting. It worked really well on her and didn't come off, but she wasn't out there herding, either, just zooming! We put a new coat on every couple of days until it healed.

I've used it on me, and it DID sting like heck at first when put on a fresh wound.