Another Hannah Foot Injury

[Guest tammymacb]

 

Ok, for those who missed it, Hannah was diagnosed with having an infected nail the day before Thanksgiving. It was abcessed and she had surgery to remove it. While taking her to the vet, she broke off another nail in the back jumping from the car.

 

Tonite, my stepdaughter stopped to visit. Hannah ( who has been having pain issues lately with her feet ) jumped up and screamed. Upon inspection of her foot you can see that her nail has peeled back from the quick completely and is bleeding. She'll be back at the vet to have that nail removed.

 

No more kidding myself, I KNOW there's something wrong with her feet and don't know what. HELP?? What diagnosis am I looking at? What are treatment options? How do I treat the pain in her feet? I'm crying thinking how unfair it is that she hurts all the time and I don't know what to do. Please give any advice. I am so scared.

 

Just wanted to add, the outside toe that is missing a nail is the one she lost in November.

Edited January 22, 2008 by tammymacb

[Guest Peanut]

There is a medical condition where the toe nails fall of or get "icky" before following off. I cannot think of what it is called though.... If I remember correctly, it can affect all the toes on the same foot.... From your photo, looks like all 3 toes are right in a row..... hmmm, let me keep thinking of what it is called!

 

ETA: I FOUND IT!!!! http://home.comcast.net/~greyhndz/toenails.htm

Edited December 18, 2007 by Peanut

[Batmom]

SLO.

 

Send a PM to krissn333 and MomOfSweetPotatoes. Can't think right off hand who else has experience with this, know there are some others here.

[Guest tammymacb]

I tried, her inbox is full..

[Batmom]

Some more info here:

 

http://home.comcast.net/~greyhndz/toenails.htm

 

Old thread:

http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php?showto...mp;hl=SLO+lupus

 

[Cynthia]

Tammy, sounds like your vet is not familiar, so print out the Dr. Stack article (linked by Peanut) and off to the vet you go! Hope Hannah gets treatment and relief quickly.

[Guest tammymacb]

I've printed the article. I'd go and buy the niacinimide tonite but I just called the pharmacy and they have niacin 500mg available? How are they different?

[Batmom]

NOT niacin. That's different.

[vjgrey]

No advice. Just hugs I hope you get it figured out soon.

[Guest CyndiW]

Stevie has SLO and his feet looked just like Hannah's when it all first started in 2003. We tried every protocol out there and the only thing that brought him relief long term is a hypoallergenic diet and essential fatty acids. He responds best to flax seed and vitamin E. Occasionally he will still get an infected one and takes cephalexin. Also, if he loses more than 2 or 3 within a couple of weeks I will usually pick up some cephalexin for him to prevent an infection. I have noticed a pattern over the years and he mostly flares from August to November but he really lucked out this year with the drought and did not flare at all. This disease is very painful in the beginning stages but you and your vet will eventually figure out what works best for Hannah. Because toenails take so long to grow back, it takes a LONG time to figure this disease out and how your dog will respond to various treatments. For most dogs, I think eventually all four feet will be effected. This disease seems really horrible, especially in the early stages and Stevie went into a deep depression at first from the pain. However now he is a very happy and healthy 11 year old that just happens to lose a nail now and then. Please don't hesitate to PM me if you have anymore questions about SLO. I used to belong to the SLO group (yahoo I think) and they have some great info and articles so you may want to check there also.

[GreyhoundNan]

I want to echo what CyndiW said about the hypoallergenic diet. My Hunky has SLO and has been in remission and off meds (knock on wood) for about four months now. He was on tetracycline (1000mg/day) and flush free niacinamide (1000mg/day) most recently but has gone as high as 2500mg tetracycline and 1000mg niacinamide. The first vet I took Hunky to did not think he had SLO (she had never even heard of it, as I recall), and throughout the six-eight months she treated him we did everything from anti fungals to having four toenails removed (two on each back foot AT THE SAME TIME). I saw a holistic vet that worked at the same practice who gave him a little relief with acupuncture (mostly for pain, but also to beef up his immune system) and she's the one that suggested the raw diet to eliminate grains. His littermate, Marky, was allergic to grains and so it only made sense. Went back to regular vet, discussed said diet with her, and was told that what I needed was science diet rather than raw. I switched vets.

 

New vet said he hadn't heard of SLO either but he did some research and suggested the tetracycline protocol. It was a slow process for all of his toenails to grow back out from the surgery, and even then some of them were still so brittle that they broke off. However, when THAT set grew back they were stronger and since then (again, knocking on wood) he hasn't had a flare up. His back feet do look funky, but they're hard toenails with healthy quick inside and that's all I care about.

 

It is very painful and very frustrating but it can be managed as long as you stick to your guns and watch carefully how the treatment is affecting your whole dog, not just her feet. Hunky did great with prednisone because he wasn't licking his toenails and making them worse. He also gained about 10lbs and was almost up to 90 (raced at 78). Obviously we stopped the pred. I've never belonged to the SLO group, but that's only because by comparison Hunky's case was so mild. I will say, though, that sadly the photo you posted of Hannah's foot looks very familiar. If your vet wants to contact mine let me know and I can get you the contact info.

[Guest CyndiW]

I wanted to add that as you find what works and doesn't work for Hannah, one of the things that really helps as they start to grow back in (as funky looking as they can be) is to keep them very short. It seems to encourage healthier growth and they are less likely to break one in their day to day walking, running, and playing. Stevie has been great about the whole thing and seems to enjoy to attention as I lie next to him clipping and filing. I like spending my time doing this versus crawling around on the floor cleaning up blood when he cracks/loses one.

 

Even his "healthy" toenails now are very soft and very easy to clip and file. When he has one that has cracked and just hangs, it seems to cause the most pain and blood. I usually only give them a few days to finally fall off before my husband or the vet pulls it like a tooth. Once you know it is going to come off regardless, this seems to take all the pain away. Stevie just stands there and lets us "pull" it. He seems to know that once it is off, then he can run and play again. Soaking them in warm epsom salt water for 5-10 minutes also seems to provide some pain relief and prevents infection. It can also help to soften the nail and speed up the falling off process.

 

I also wanted to note: We took Stevie to a board certified dermatologist to confirm the dx. His #1 suggestion was the hypoallergenic diet and then supplementing with EFAs. That was after we had tried some of the other protocols recommended by Purdue University. However, each dog with SLO is very different and responds differently to different meds. We even got desperate during one flare and tried pred. He gained a lot of weight, became obsessed with food, and had to pee a lot. Needless to say, he wasn't on it long.

[Pippismom]

I hope her footsies feel better real soon ! Hugs to you and Hannah both !

[Guest tammymacb]

Hannah is now on Prednisone, Doxy, Niacimimide, Vit E and Flax Seed Oil.

 

She'll be going back to the vet in a week for a check up.

 

I questioned the vet as to why doxy instead of tetracycline, and was told they are essentially the same antibiotic except she can take doxy once a day vs several times a day.

 

I really hope she gets some pain relief as I feel so guilty to see her hurt all the time.

 

All I want for Christmas is for her to be well...

[Guest tammymacb]

After a month, Hannah is slowly improving.

 

She's finished her doxy but still remains on the prednisone, flax seed oil, vitamin E and niacinimide. She's walking with MUCH less pain and she's beginning to show a tiny bit of nail growth. So far, they're looking almost normal.

 

I want to thank everyone again for all the advice when I really needed it. Right after this happened I was late for work because I'd been up with her all night. When I explained how I overslept a girl I worked with said "Maybe you just need to put her down. " Of course, I told her she was an idiot and I'm in for the long run with my sweet girl.

 

 

[Patsy]

Glad to read things are gradually improving. Scritches to your sweetie.