Pup Blood

A few nights ago, I noticed Rags limping and favoring his front left paw. I even saw some blood when I took a closer look. It turned out he had broken his dew claw (the weird thumb-like one) in half, but the broken half was still attached about 50%. He hates having his nails cut and hasn't let anyone cut them in years. He now demands that his groomer uses the Dremel drill/file instead. So I knew this wasn't going to be a fun experience.

With my brother holding down Rags' head, I was able to clip part of the broken nail off. However, he was in so much pain that he was trying to attack the clippers and he was clearly stressed out beyond his max, so I wrapped the paw in paper towels and taped it up since it was bleeding a bit. He was perfectly content to be carried around the rest of the night.

Lots of Raggies blood

Wednesday night, he was in obvious pain still, so I enlisted the help of my dad this time, and cut the nail below the broken part so it would stop dragging and getting stuck on the rug and moving every time he took a step. It bled A LOT. I couldn't find any cornstarch even though I know I bought some, but some flour on the nail stopped the bleeding. He seemed fine and was happy to run around and play, so I didn't worry about it.

I called his vet yesterday to ensure he didn't need an appointment. I was told unless it started to look infected (red or swollen), there was nothing to do until the nail slowly grew back.

Last night, I noticed that the "quick" is now looking fleshy, red, and swollen. And the vet can't fit me in after work tonight, and I can't leave at noon. I would if Rags seemed sick, but he is fine and I am probably just being dramatic. Even if it is infected, he doesn't have a fever (I checked) and he's acting like his usual self, so I got us an appointment for 9:45 tomorrow morning.