Guest FireHorse Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Poor Jet. We noticed mid-week that he was gimpy, and ended up taking him to the vet for it on Friday. It wasn't broken (this time ), which was our first thought. Dr G says he's got a bacterial infection of the nail bed, and put him on cephalexin. His toe is swollen, red/purple and really sore, although still better than yesterday, judging by the way he's walking on it. It's also really oozy. Can this be soaked in epsom salts? If so, is the ratio like it is for people-1/4c epsom salt to 1qt of warm water? Does it need to soak for longer than 5 minutes or so? If not epsom salts, is there something I can do to help dry it up a bit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomDoggy Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) Yes, epsom salt soaks will help. Same recipe as for people. The longer you can get him to hold still for it, the better. 5-10 minutes twice daily in warm water epsom salt solution should be good. Rinse with clean water and pat dry each time. Edited February 13, 2011 by ZoomDoggy Quote ~Aimee, with Flower, Alan, Queenie, & Spodee Odee! And forever in my heart: Tipper, Sissy, Chancy, Marla, Dazzle, Alimony, and Boo. This list is too damned long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FireHorse Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Yes, epsom salt soaks will help. Same recipe as for people. The longer you can get him to hold still for it, the better. 5-10 minutes twice daily in warm water epsom salt solution should be good. Rinse with clean water and pat dry each time. Thanks! Jet is soaking now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhounds Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Rather than Epsom salts you might want to use an antibacterial soak by using diluted chlorhexadine solution. Also, here's a tip- cut the top off of an old iv bag and soak the foot in that. Sure if you ask your vet they will gladly give you some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dmt Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) At the track we used epsom salt and a little dish soap. We soak for 5-15 minutes every morning and night, more if there was any dirt on toe after going outside. Edited February 13, 2011 by dmt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyTzu Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Yes, epsom salt soaks will help. Same recipe as for people. The longer you can get him to hold still for it, the better. 5-10 minutes twice daily in warm water epsom salt solution should be good. Rinse with clean water and pat dry each time. :nod :nod And you have to be vigilent about doing it at least twice a day. Nail bed infections can be nasty and they can be hard to clear up. Quote Wendy and The Whole Wherd. American by birth, Southern by choice. "Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!" ****OxyFresh Vendor ID is 180672239.**** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest d0ggiem0mma Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Epsom salts are good for the swelling, but diluted chlorhex would be better! Chlorhex is a very good antibacterial and would go a long way in helping get the infection under control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatterseaBrindl Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Yes, epsom salt soaks will help. Same recipe as for people. The longer you can get him to hold still for it, the better. 5-10 minutes twice daily in warm water epsom salt solution should be good. Rinse with clean water and pat dry each time. :nod :nod And you have to be vigilent about doing it at least twice a day. Nail bed infections can be nasty and they can be hard to clear up. YES YES YES! Nixon did a nasty number on one of his hind nails and was on one antiobiotic for 2 weeks, then a second for an addtional three weeks. Our vet recommended doing the epsom salt soak twice daily. We have also been vigilant in keeping his nails (especially the torn one) filed down super short, so they are not touching the ground. Quote Nancy...Mom to Sid (Peteles Tiger), Kibo (112 Carlota Galgos) and Joshi. Missing Casey, Gomer, Mona, Penelope, BillieJean, Bandit, Nixon (Starz Sammie), Ruby (Watch Me Dash) Nigel (Nigel), and especially little Mario, waiting at the Bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FireHorse Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Okay, Petsmart doesn't carry anything with chlorhexadine in it, Walgreen's has an oral rinse, and Tractor Supply has this stuff: CHG Teat Dip, with Chlorhexidine Gluconate and Quaternary Ammonia in it. Is this the stuff I'm looking for? (Blast from the past-I haven't seen a bottle of dip since I was a kid!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stlgrey Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 I posted an early topic this week on Sierra's toenail. She went to the vet and she has to do foot soaks twice a day as well. We did one yesterday, and she lasted 2 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FireHorse Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 I posted an early topic this week on Sierra's toenail. She went to the vet and she has to do foot soaks twice a day as well. We did one yesterday, and she lasted 2 minutes. As long as there's a belly rub in it for him, Jet's usually willing to stand there for a bit with his foot in a bowl. I dunno that we'd get 15 minutes, but 5 is no problem. *knocks wood* We do have an IV bag in the first aid drawer, so if push comes to shove, we'll do that instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FireHorse Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Okay, Petsmart doesn't carry anything with chlorhexadine in it, Walgreen's has an oral rinse, and Tractor Supply has this stuff: CHG Teat Dip, with Chlorhexidine Gluconate and Quaternary Ammonia in it. Is this the stuff I'm looking for? (Blast from the past-I haven't seen a bottle of dip since I was a kid!) Hibiclens is chlorhex, per the pharmacist at Walgreen's (and the box/bottle). Aside: The pharmacist clearly gets a LOT of vet-related questions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 You can use Betadine or another 10% povidone-iodine solution instead of chlorhexidine. In fact, my vet recommended a combo of Betadine & epsom salts for my girl's scary, aggressive skin infection that also included swelling. Someone in our Greyhound club is a vet tech at a different vet practice. She suggested this same thing to a fellow Greyhound owner for a foot infection of unknown origin saying the vet she works for suggests this. Have also heard of using this combo to good effect for horses' with hoof abcesses. It worked well for the skin infection & later for a toe wound that developed a rapid infection. (This was my Deerhound pup from a coyote dog litter. She & a littermate had very slow developing immune systems.) Vet wasn't sure why it worked so well just knew did. My speculation is it is just some synergism between the antiseptic action of Betadine and the epsom salts reputed qualities as a drawing agent. My vet's 'recipe' is like this. To 2 cups warm water add enough Betadine or generic version (bought mine at CVS) to make it the color of strong tea. Then add 2 tablespoons epsom salts & mix well. You add the epsom salts last because for some reason they seem to cause the Betadine liquid to slowly lose most of its color. Note: That doesn't mean it won't leave some staining on fabrics especially if you use a higher than normal proportion of Betadine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FireHorse Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 My vet's 'recipe' is like this. To 2 cups warm water add enough Betadine or generic version (bought mine at CVS) to make it the color of strong tea. Then add 2 tablespoons epsom salts & mix well. You add the epsom salts last because for some reason they seem to cause the Betadine liquid to slowly lose most of its color. Note: That doesn't mean it won't leave some staining on fabrics especially if you use a higher than normal proportion of Betadine. Interesting. I'll keep this in mind if the chlorhex doesn't get us anywhere. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racindog Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 If it doesn't respond to antibiotics you might want to try Cowboy Magic Krudbuster. Antibiotics didn't do anything for Momma Seabird's, vet said pred was next. I was determined not to do pred. Tried Cowboy Magic and it worked! (Perhaps it was fungal? but CM also kills gram pos and gram neg as well). Do NOT wash it off after spraying it on. That is new directions the gov't apparantly made them do. Originally directions said and you just spray it on and forget about it and that is what I still do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FireHorse Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Today his toe looks both better and worse. He was crowding the kitchen gate yesterday and kicked my boot with his sore toe. As a result, a lot of the skin on the outside of his toe sloughed off and it was bloody, then weepy for most of the rest of the evening. This morning, the raw spot (where the skin came off) is still pretty raw but starting to dry up. Overall though, the toe is much less swollen and a more normal pink, instead of bruise-y purple. He's also walking on it better and licking at it less. I don't know if it's the cephalexin or the soaking (or most likely, both), but there is definitely improvement! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Excellent! Hope the improvement continues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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