Poor Atka. He’s had a rough few months. He got neutered, he’s currently battling an eye infection, and now a broken nail.
The fluffies really enjoy their evening zoomies. They will chase, sprint, and twirl around the backyard for a good fifteen to thirty minutes. It’s extremely rare for them to miss their zoomie session.
Last night was no different than any normal night. Mauja and Atka were happily panting away in the cool evening waiting for me to call them in for dinner. As they trotted inside, I noticed spots of blood over both of their coats. After a brief panic, I looked for the source of the bleeding and this is what I found.
Atka’s front dewclaw must have snagged as they were playing, which caused the toe to become exposed. I don’t understand how he wasn’t limping or crying as it looks incredibly painful. I was pretty sure I knew the proper course of action, but I always like to verify with my vet. Here’s our advice for dealing with a broken nail.
- Call your vet. I can’t stress how important it is to call your vet before you decide on a course of action. Most vets are happy to give you information over the phone to ensure your pup gets the best care. If your vet believes it can be taken care of at home, follow the next few steps.
- Remove any broken nail. Atka’s nail had completely come off, so we didn’t need to follow this step. The best way to remove the nail is with a dog toenail clipper. Take care removing the nail as your dog is most likely in a lot of pain.
- Disinfect the wound. If the wound is still bleeding, gently hold a cloth against bleeding site until it has stopped. If the wound has clotted, use warm soap and water to remove any debris.
- Bandage the wound. This step is vital to keep it from becoming infected. A sterile pad over the wound wrapped in gauze should keep any dirt out. Flexible “no hurt” tape is a great way to keep the gauze in place, but still allow comfort for your dog. The bandage should be changed once or twice a day to keep the area clean and to allow you to check the healing progress.
We were able to skip the vet this time because Atka is currently on antibiotics for his eye. Many times a vet will recommend a visit to decide if antibiotics are necessary. If the wound ever gets worse, make a vet appointment immediately! They will make sure your pup gets better in no time 🙂
Has your dog ever broken their nail?
Mom’s last dog ripped the nail right out, it was a bloody mess, but it healed. The new one grew in but was always crooked.
I wonder how Atka’s will grow in. I hope it’s a quick healing process.
Had a similar incident with Leo when he was a puppy. The nail wasn’t gone, but there was blood all over the carpet. He had broken the nail very low and torn a chuck out of his pad. I can relate. Sending healing thoughts your way….
Oh no, poor Atka. Haley had this happen once too from playing outside in the winter and crunching through some frozen, iced-over snow. There was a lot of blood, but it didn’t seem overly painful for her luckily. Rest up Atka 🙂
The blood always makes me freak out more. Glad her injury wasn’t painful!
Poor Atka. Broken nails, punctured webbing, cut pads…we have had them all. You have to watch those foot injuries for infection and that is usually what causes a vet visit for us. Last time we had an issue it was because Freighter jammed his nail into his nail bed. That took forever to heal. It was very painful for him.
aww poor thing! xx
Mika’s dew claw came off once, but not the whole thing, just the outter shell. I had never seen anything like that before!
ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
Poor Atka!! Broken nails are so painful! The girls have never had one but I’ve had many clients who’s dogs have. I also had a co-worker who’s dog fell in the swimming pool and as he was trying to get back out, he was clawing at the pool and he wore all of his nails down until they were all bleeding. Dogs and their nails, no fun!!
Nails bleed so copiously. It can be super scary.
Honey’s breeder removed her dew claws when she was a puppy. I’m not typically a fan of elective surgeries for dogs. But I’m relieved I’ve never had to face this issue. Honey is a major zoomies runner.
This happened to my dog this week, I wanted to see how long it took for your dogs nail to heal/grow back? My dogs looks almost identical to the picture you have. thanks.
It took Atka’s nail about 5 days to look pretty good and 2 weeks to heal 🙂 Hope your pup is on the mend soon!
My Loki has split he’s nail but the nail is still intact! He’s in so much pain and we’re trying our best to comfort him as much as we can! It’s the second day and it’s still painful for him to walk on, I have given him his own medication but the vets won’t see him as it’s not life threatening for him 🙁 just hate seeing him I’m this much pain has anyone got any advise? Thanks
Hi there did you ever go to the vet or did it heal on its own? having similar situation right now no vets until almost a week from now!! But i do not want to spend $300 just to remove a nail!