Do dogs get blisters?

[Athena]

I took lil’ Gromit out for an hour long walk/run yesterday. I admit, I don’t take him with me as often as I should - he’s not used to being on pavement at all. He seemed fine on the run, and was fine for several hours afterwards. However, as the day progressed, I noticed he was limping.

We held him down and took a look at his paw. There’s a lot of thorns around here, but I couldn’t find any in his paw despite doing several very thorough checks. I also don’t see any bleeding or swelling, and moving his toes around doesn’t seem to cause him any distress. However, on one of his front pinkie toes, there’s a large circular patch that looks like a blister to me. None of his other toes have this patch, and putting pressure on it seems to cause him some pain. Is it possible that he got a blister on our run yesterday? Like I said, we went out for an hour, mostly on sidewalks and pavement, which he’s not used to (he spends most of his days sleeping on a couch, walking on carpeting, or walking on grass.)

[bordelond]

I’d imagine it’s full well possible for a dog to get a blister. Disregarding sweat glands, it seems reasonable that canine skin and human skin share many mammalian skin traits – one such trait being the formation of a blister in response to unusual pressure or rubbing.

A quick Google search on “dog, blister, skin” picked up the interesting monograph Hiking with Fido by Tom Grenell, D.V.M. Dr. Grenell hikes with his dog. From the article:

Most foot problems occur overrough, rocky terrain, especially underdamp conditions. Wetness tends to soften foot pads. However, another situation must also be considered for dogs. Road walks should be avoided during the hottest parts of sunny summer days. The heat from hot pavement can blister and even ulcerate the bottoms of a dog’s feet. I learned this the hard way – by personal experience. If possible, have the dog walk along the side of the road, or better yet, try to schedule the road walks early in the morning or at night.