Infected Cut On Greta's Toe!

[JaneW]

A week ago Greta apparently got a minor cut on the side of her toe. I discovered it the next morning after she had licked it into a raw mess. I thoroughly washed and disinfected it and then made "booties" out of old socks to cover it. It was healing well--though she tried to lick it through the socks, which had to be changed several times a day--until Wednesday when lack of exercise got too much for her and she suddenly sprinted across the backyard and burst the cut wide open. I had been disinfecting it every time I changed the sock, so I just kept doing that, but now it's infected. Off to the vet once I get an appt. We are going to run out of money, that's all there is to it. Doctors, dentist, vets,... Well, this isn't the Rant forum.

[Guest kydie]

Ya,, that money thing sure gets in the way,,, I don't care much about money,,,, It's what it can do for me I care about Hope your girl is O.K>

[Guest Energy11]

I'd start soaking the foot in epsom salts and keep antibiotic cream and the socks on it, as well. Sounds like Greta needs to be on an antibiotic, too. I use Keflex here for skin injuries. I am lucky enough to have it around, thanks to my former vet/employer. Maybe your vet will prescribe a seven-day course of antibiotics for you?

 

If you do all of the above, it should clear up fine. Yes, I know about the money thing, too. That is on reason we finally got pet insurance.

 

Good Luck, and hoping Greta feels better and heals, soon!

[inugrey]

Make sure the gives you some good $4 generic antibiotic options like keflex or cipro. I deal with infected and cut toes with some regularity and one thing my vet is always very serious about is keep the wound open to the air and not covering it up for too long. I would use her muzzle to keep her from licking it rather than a sock. What disinfectant are you using? Another thing I have learned is not to over use iodine soaks because it kills the good and the bad bacteria and actually prevents the wound from healing.

 

good luck

[JaneW]

We have pet insurance--it covers less every year and the premium is skyrocketing now that Greta is a "senior".

 

Greta tends to be allergic to topical antibiotics so I've been using a antiseptic wash instead.

 

I used the socks to let the wound air--they are old thin cotton. Greta doesn't like wearing a muzzle, but I will do that if I have to. I do have the wound bound up right now to keep it from oozing all over--which it started to do after her very short morning walk--and to keep the toe from moving, which clearly aggravates the injury. I have done one warm water soak, but no Epsom salts. Greta is allergic to so much that I don't use anything if I don't know if it's safe. I will keep checking the toe and doing warm soaks until we go to the vet.

 

She has a vet appt this afternoon. They had to figure out where to squeeze her into their full schedule, so I will expect a long wait in the waiting room.

[Guest IrskasMom]

Is there an Update on Greta ?

[JaneW]

The infection is not too bad, and she now has antibiotics to take. I will also continue to soak her toe in the antiseptic a couple times a day and keep her foot covered with a sock until there is no longer any danger of her compulsively licking the injury.

[Guest KennelMom]

Good luck with her toe! There isn't a lot of circulation in greyhound feet, so cuts like that can be a pain to heal. Definitely keep it clean and dry and finish out the anti-biotics. We went through a similar phase with Rocky and he ended up needing minor surgery to remove some necrotic tissue deep in the toe.

[JaneW]

Luckily, the vet says the infection is really minor. Greta is tolerating the antibiotic very well--I think it makes her feel a little uncomfortable shortly after she ingests it, but not actually sick. I never skimp on the antibiotics! I recently had an antibiotic-resistant type of infection myself, so I am paranoid about "super-bugs".