Please help...

Saturday I was out hunting and normally I'm cautious about where I let Sadie run and where I setup. I was unaware of a small oyster bed near the shoreline but she was in hot pursuit of a wounded duck and hit the shell reef and nearly rolled over. Her paws are all cut up. Its mainly her front paws. I washed her and put hydrogen peroxide and alcohol on them once we were back in the car.

She's still limping today I'm sure she licks at it while I'm gone... Anything I can do help ease her pain or promote healing?? I hate seeing her limp around.

I'm buying dog boots for her now since she doesn't need to swim in this one area. What brand / model does everyone like or suggest?

Thanks in advance!

My sister is a vet asst. and she said there is some stuff called Bitter Apple. It helps prevent them from licking the wounded area cuz it taste like crap to a dog ( can't imagine what it actually taste like seeing as a dog will eat just about anything lol) But i digress Just keep it clean put some neosporin on it.

make sure the wound is clean and put some super glue on her pad. it will give it time to heal and keep dirt out of it. she will still limp but the wound will stay closed and heal. the best dog boots are ones that are made of hard rubber not canvas or neoprene as these will just shred. you will find that the dog will learn how to walk on the oyster beds once they cut their feet a few times. if you hunt those type places alot i would just let them get cut so they will build callouses on their paws, if you dont hunt them alot then buy boots. the boots will not last very long no matter what you kind you buy. hope this helps.

When I introduce new dogs to boots I will set up a few short training days for the dog. This will get them used to the boots before you put them in a hunting situation.

My dog has trouble with his pads when we hunt frozen fields alot. I found a product called Tuff-Foot (bought it from gun dog supply) and it works great. It not only heals the dry, cracked, bleeding pads but it also toughens them up. I would akin it to a baseball glove type texture. They are alot softer than non treated but are much more pliable and "tough". Since using it the cold ice and corn stubble has not tore his feet up. It is easy to apply, I use a small foam brush from a hardware store and it dries an about a minute. Highly recomend for any dog with pad problems.

http://www.gundogsupply.com/7-95.html

i would suggest against using super glue...i went through this on a trip to south texas this past season. The super glue sticks to hair around the paws and makes a big clump of hard glue. When the hard clump pulls off, it scalps the skin where the hair was attached. Ling's paws were cut pretty bad after the first day of a week long hunting trip and i put super glue on his paws before every hunt. once we got home, he had more sores between his claws where the glue clumped his hair. I'm with others though. if he hunts oysters often then let him be, and try some boots if he hunts over oysters only a few hunts per season.

Sadie hates the boots just watching her attempt to walk was hilarious! Maybe I should have gotten the shorties instead of the tall boots.

I have made boots for dogs out of leather. Get a strips of leather wide enough to sew on each side of the dogs foot and have enough to have two tongues about 6-8' long, one in front of the leg ankle and one in back.

Slip the boot over the dogs foot and duct tape (not too tightly) first the back tongue then the front tongue.

When the boot wears through, just turn in over and use the top of the boot for the bottom.

Treat the boots with mink oil or a simular product just as you would a good pair of leather hunting boots.

When I lived in west texas I would make my dog boots out of bicycle inner tubes. Worked great against cactus and sharp rocks. Just like everything else a little duck tape would make it work.