Tilly came in from the snow, and I went to wipe her paws off. I noticed a back nail bleeding badly - it had somehow snagged on something and split. Since I was at my brother’s house, I didn’t have that powder that comes with her nail clippers. She’s currently confined to the crate.
She doesn’t seem to be in any discomfort, other than general annoyance at being in the crate when everyone else is home and having a good time. A few vet websites suggest that a split nail is cause for removal. That seems drastic, but I’ll take her to the vet tomorrow when they open.
In the meantime, is there anyhing I might be able to do? Would something like liquid bandage work to stem the bleeding (which isn’t flowing or anything, it’s akin to an open cut)?
You can use the liquid bandage or cornstarch to stop the bleeding. Make sure the dog is leaving the area alone. We used to put an old sock over that foot on the dog to keep him from mussing it up.
I’ve had to have a dog’s toe amputated for it, but I thought it was an extreme case. The toe kept getting infected and wouldn’t heal. Once the amputation was done, we no longer had any issues.
I had a dog who broke his dewclaw and had to have the toe amputated to fix it. In his case, the same trauma that split the nail also broke the toe, you just couldn’t see from the outside. It was going to keep getting infected and never heal.
My Lab had a split nail last year. When I called the vet, they said to bring her in, and they would tear it off (cringe). We let it go a few days, and it eventually fell off by itself, with no complications.
I called this morning, and the vet didn’t sound too concerned. Said that unless there was obvious pain, shed be fine. Later today, she aggravated it. So to just be safe (since it was worrying me, nothing would be open tomorrow and I’m back on the road Monday) I took her in. The vet trimmed the flayed nail portions, and soaked it in an iodine solution. We got some antibiotics, so we should be good. She in pretty good spirits, especially since she’s not confined anymore.