One of my bitches has developed a painfully swollen pad under a front toe. There is no visable foreign body or injury. I have tried immersing her foot in warm salt water but as she found this distressing I had to stop. Obviously, she will go to the vet as soon as they open in the morning, but can anyone suggest anything to help meanwhile?
Regards, Joy

Joy, have you had a good look at the claw bed ? One of my dogs had a swollen and painful toe pad, but after a couple of days an infection in the claw bed appeared.There was no visible sign of injury and we still do not know what caused it, but it did get quite nasty so you are wise to get your vet to check it out.
We bathed it in salty water to and just gave him arnica or half an asprin to help with the pain. Rescue Remedy is also very good.

Leigh

Thanks for your comments yesterday Leigh, you confirmed we were doing all the right things. We managed to soak the foot again for about 20 minutes in the afternoon but she was still very lame this morning so we took her to the vet first thing. The vet couldn't find anything in it but as the toe was very swollen and red underneath gave her antibiotic and anti-inflammatory jabs plus a course of antibiotic tablets. Hopefully that will sort her out otherwise she will have to go in for exploratory surgery. Oh, and for good measure she came into season today too!
Thanks again, Joy.

I had a similar problem a couple of years ago and it turned out to be a minute sliver of glass that had worked its way well into the pad. The pad needed to be completely opened up as it had not gone in straight and it took nearly 6 months before she was completly sound again.

Hope this is not the case with your girl

Good Luck
Christine