Caper is missing his 5th (outermost) toe on his front right paw and
I'm concerned about how it will impact his running, playing, and overall happiness in the long run. I'd also like to know what to avoid or look out for as far as aches and arthritis down the road. Any one with missing-toe dogs out there who can share their experiences?

Here are some before and after pics that for some reason I'm compelled to share. I'm so happy the foot has completely healed. The before pic can be a bit unsettling, so sorry for those who are a bit squeamish:

Before:


After:

I once had a dog who had a toe removed due to a melanoma. Once it healed from the surgery, it didn't affect her running and playing at all.

I could have sworn that one of Tiffany's huskies was missing a toe and has no problem moving around like any other dog. I'm not 100% certain it was one of her dogs, so I hope she'll see this thread if she pops on and correct me if I'm wrong.

Diamond is actually missing 2 toes from her right rear leg. It does not slow her down one bit

I think you're right Val, I think it's keno with the missing toe. I have a friend that had a tumor removed from her dogs leg but had a lot of trouble healing the wound. When the feeling came back to the dogs foot she actually started eating her toes off (I know gross) but she did some damage and is now missing part of her foot. She is soon absolute fine no issues so I think your pup will have no issues.

A customer at work had one removed on his dog due to cancer, and Sara had a foster with a missing toe.

Abby my recent rescue, was ran over by a car. Her paw was de-gloved and part of her paw was amputed. She seems fine except for the casual quick limp after being on a sit or down position for a while.

Other than that acts like a normal husky.

I'm glad the prognosis is good. He does hold his paw up seemingly after cutting sharp corners while running, but other than that it doesn't seem to bother him.

Thanks everyone for your input.