Repeat Toenail Breaking

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Taylor_B
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Repeat Toenail Breaking

Post by Taylor_B » Thu Dec 06, 2018 6:24 am

Hi All
So this whole situation started about a year ago.
Our one dog came inside and we noticed that her one toenail had a vertical crack. It had split from the bottom the entire way up beyond the hairline.
We went to the vet and they said that all they could do was cut the nail as short as possible and wait for it to grow back. The vet told us that since the crack extended beyond the hairline and into her toe, the nail would likely grow back with a crack in it (since she couldn't actually cut it off above the crack) and we'd have to come back and have it cut again once it grew back in.

SO...we did that. Her nail was cut flush with her toe and we waited for it to grow back.
Once it had grown in long enough for us to take her back for another trim, we did so. Just as the vet suggested, it grew back with the crack.
So this past summer, the vet trimmed it back again.

It has been growing in nicely and we figured we were out of the woods when, lo and behold, last night she comes in after romping outside with my husband, and her nail is broken again.
So we will be going BACK to the vet today to have them trim it back to a safe, blunt edge that won't catch and rip on anything (I choose not to do this at home since she's 80lbs and it can be super painful for her, so I'd rather the vet take care of it).

THAT SAID - at the last visit, I asked our vet if we should be concerned about any conditions of the nail bed that would allow for repeat cracks/breaks. My biggest concern being cancers of the nail bed. The vet said she really didn't think cancer since there's been no history ever of any sort of mass/irritation/ulceration/infection/swelling around the nail at all.

Our dog is only 4 years old, but still - I worry when I read online about Squamous Cell Carcinomas and Melanomas of the nail beds. She has never had any swelling in the toe, and has never had any sort of lesion/mass/ulcer/bleeding in the affected digit. I've read about how aggressive those types of cancers are and I feel that if in fact one of them was to blame, we should have noticed some sort of ulceration/swelling/irritation by now - a year later. She's never lame the foot - even with the nail being broken. The only time she's ever limping is after the vet trims the nail back to the quick.

Her other nails are intact, although I notice occasional peeling on them, but not regularly.
But she's not losing nails or breaking nails on other toes, so that leads me to believe this isn't a systemic immune condition - but again, I'm not a vet.

Has anyone run into a situation of repeated breaking/cracking nail in a young dog with no signs of anything else wrong? If so, what was the outcome?
Not sure if this could be a case where the nail bed was damaged permanently last year and we're just destined for broken nails on this toe?

Thanks!

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Cicada
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Re: Repeat Toenail Breaking

Post by Cicada » Thu Dec 06, 2018 6:23 pm

Have you tried using a grinder to trim the nail some nails are brittle and can crack when cut? Even though the dog is big the both of you can handle the dog make it a bonding experience. Also there are some good UV glues that could seal the cracked nail.

Grant

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Taylor_B
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Re: Repeat Toenail Breaking

Post by Taylor_B » Fri Dec 07, 2018 6:41 am

Hi there!
Usually her nail cracks/splits up the toe, so we can grind off the sharp edges, but we can't actually grind out the crack since it goes the length of her toenail.
The vet warned against gluing it for fear of gluing in anything that could cause infection.

That said, at this point, I've considered the gluing option after a really good washing of her paw.
Do you have any glues that you've used on your own dogs and might recommend?

shags
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Re: Repeat Toenail Breaking

Post by shags » Fri Dec 07, 2018 7:07 am

I don't know if it would work for your dog, but when my horse had hoof cracks that would extend up to the coronet, it helped to rasp a horizontal line across the crack as far up as we could on the top of the crack.. The rasped line interrupted the crack so it couldn't go farther.

Also, have you looked at nail caps? The intended use is to protect floors and furniture from dog nails, but one might protect that nail from splitting further. Fairly cheap, around $10 for a pack of them.

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Cicada
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Re: Repeat Toenail Breaking

Post by Cicada » Fri Dec 07, 2018 9:21 am

Taylor_B wrote:Hi there!
Usually her nail cracks/splits up the toe, so we can grind off the sharp edges, but we can't actually grind out the crack since it goes the length of her toenail.
The vet warned against gluing it for fear of gluing in anything that could cause infection.

That said, at this point, I've considered the gluing option after a really good washing of her paw.
Do you have any glues that you've used on your own dogs and might recommend?
I have just used super glue never thought about infection but if it is bleeding then it might be a concern The UV glue is Solarez Thick I use it with fly tying it should not cause any problem if you just do the front half of the nail.

Grant

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