4203. A very itchy dew claw

8 Aug 2022. Veterinary stories by
Dr Sing Kong Yuen, BVMS (Glasgow)

A case of a very itchy dew claw tumour

The dog could not stop licking his right hind dew claw all the time, given the chance. I knew about this case when the owner wanted to buy Banocin antibioitc powder as he found it “good” for the inflamed dew claw and neck. I had not seen this dog since he was a puppy more than 13 years ago.

The owner had washed the dew claw, cleaned, powdered it and bandaged the foot for months. The old Shih Tzu wore an Elizabethan collar for months too. He tried to rub it off but inflamed his left neck with his attempts using his paws.

The dog had two nights of "loss of balance, in-coordination and collapse" at two different periods of time. "Old dog vestibular disease" was diagnosed by the emergency vets.

After my surgical removal of this tumour around one month ago, antibiotics, heart disease medication and dental scaling, the dog is normal and has excellent appetite in my follow-ups.

I am glad the old dog is not forced to wear the Elizabethan collar day and night for months, as it must be stressful - he had mouth ulcers at one time although his teeth had tartar and he had no periodontal or gum disease. I advised heart disease monitoring and medication. "My dog barks now and wakes me up to go to the bathroom after midnight," the owner commented. "He had stopped barking before his dew claw surgery and other treatment."  

MORE INFO AND UPDATES AT:
https://2010vets.blogspot.com/2022/05/4053-14-year-old-shih-tzu-has-rh-dew.html

 

UPDATES AT:

https://2010vets.blogspot.com/2022/08/a-very-itchy-dew-claw.html