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Why is my dog's foot swollen? What can I do before seeing a vet?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

my dogs left foot is swollen?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on February 19th, 2017

Poor pup! Your dog's foot could be swollen from an infection, injury, foreign body, or broken bone. You can try soaking his foot in an Epsom salt bath to see if that helps with the swelling. Rest him tonight, taking him out to toilet on a lead only, and bring him right back in when he's done. Have him seen by a vet in the morning if his foot is still swollen. The vet can diagnose what is causing the swelling so it can be treated.

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    Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on November 25th, 2017

    You need to get him back to your vet for an exam. If he is on antibiotics it sounds like they are not working. He may need to be switched to a different class of antibiotic or he may need a combination of antibiotics. The vet should also be able to give you some pain medication/anti-inflammatories to give him to make him feel better. I suggest that you DO NOT give him any over the counter medications. Just continue to soak his feet in Epsom Salts - 10 minutes 2-3 times per day and get him back to your vet as soon as you can.

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Hello.. Good Day! I just want to know why did my dog's right foot is so swollen? It's been 2 days and we don't know what happened. Thank you so much.
This could be from an injury or this could be edema due to a systemic disease or infection. It is hard to say. I would recommend having a veterinarian examine him so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I would recommend having x-rays taken of the foot and leg. I would also recommend blood testing to see if there are any changes that might suggest why the foot is swollen. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.
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After looking further I think the problem is in his foot. One of his “toes” are looking red, slightly swollen and he is reacting when I touch it. Is it possible for dogs to break a toe or something along those lines? Or he might have got something
A foreign body or a fracture are both possible and ideally a check up would be required to determine exactly the underlying cause and give you appropriate treatment options. you can try to salt water bath his paw but if you don't see any results in the next 36hours a check up would be essential.
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My dogs paw is swollen..the big one..what can I give to him?
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my dog is limping has a swollen paw
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My dog has a swollen red spot on her paw. What is it?
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Poor Chico! You can try soaking his paw in an Epsom salt bath. That can help with swelling. If his toe is still very swollen in the morning and/or he's still in a lot of pain in the morning, then he needs to see a vet right away. Please do not give him any human pain medications, as many are toxic to dogs and can be fatal if given.
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Hey my 10 week old puppy refuses to walk on his back foot today when I check his foot his little toe is all swallow and red
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My husky has what looks like a swollen toe. We saw some blood on her bed a couple days ago, but we didn't see anything wrong with her then. She gets at pop bottles and things like that, so we didn't know if she cut her gum on things like that. She ge
This swollen toe on your dog could be caused by a foreign body, an infection, or by a broken toe. I would have her seen by a vet tomorrow for it. It does sound like it's bothering her if she doesn't want to go on a walk lately. The vet can diagnose what is causing the swollen toe so it can be treated. In the meantime, you can try soaking her foot tonight in an Epsom salt bath to see if that helps with the swelling.
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My 8 month old pup has one swollen toe on her back paw. She acts like it isn't to painful. What could be the issue
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