This past sunday we were at the in-laws, Appadog was playing hard and having a good time with Willow and Mavis (did I ever mention that the new Welsh Terrier's name is Mavis? 'cause it is. Everyone, meet Mavis). See, good times:



He never acted like anything hurt him, but when the night was winding down and I was petting him I noticed his foot. He wasn't limping, and there was no blood, but this is what I saw:



For a slightly different angle to maybe clarify what happened, even though this is ultra blurry:


So ... What I ended up doing was cutting the flap off (which he didn't even flinch at). The flap was surprisingly thick. So now we're soaking his foot in Epsom Salt and applying triple antibiotic to it twice a day. When we go out he has a little sock duct-taped to his foot to keep it clean, and we don't let him lick it (which isn't that often). He doesn't act like it hurts or anything so I don't want to go to the vet, but obviously I will if he needs it, I just assume they'll tell me "keep it clean and keep an eye on it" and then charge me for it.

It's quite the "crater" so I fear if he gets running again he'll grab the edge and tear some more. Is there anything else I should be aware of, or just make sure it doesn't get infected? Any ideas on how long until I can stop keeping it ultra-clean or to let him start running again?

Wow, Appa's getting big.
That looks like it would hurt, but if it doesn't seem to bother him, I'd let him run.
But, I'd use a booty on that foot and keep it really clean.

I took my first husky hiking across a long stretch of lava on Mt. Adams.
He blew out all four pads They were a bloody mess.
I felt so guilty. (And I had booties, but he hated them so I didn't put them on.)
When we got home, I put Bag Balm on it several times a day.
He had to wear the booties for a long time.

Poor pup. That looks painful. Hope it heals up fast.

Poor AppaDog.

Get well soon.

I`ve had it happen with a Chow before, sounds to me like your spot on. Keep it covered and cleaned until it Calluses back over. Best way to have that happen is to let him work it.... Nothing intense but like Michael says if he`s not in pain let him run.

yep, been there with Jack, what your doing is just right to help it heal. i would say that maybe after a week let it air out and harden up some so he can keep walking on it. glad it was a clean break, was probably a blister or something, was he on some hot surfaces or different gravel surfaces?

We don't think any hot surfaces, but we did recently start bikejoring with him, and our last hike was some pretty nasty terrain. I was just inspecting all his feet after running around today and the remaining three look to be doing the same. we might have to invest in some boots for this hiking season.