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Dog's dew claw infected, not healing. Should I get a second opinion?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed | Male | neutered | 1 year and 5 months old

Panda has a very swollen dew toe he is on antibiotic and rimadyl but after 4 days the infection is still bad but the swelling has reduced a bit so its more around the nail.but the toe is still swollen vet suggested removing toe but I have been cleaning and treating with chlorohexidine and betadine twice a day should it have improved by now or will it need more time .

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on March 25th, 2018

Poor Panda! I would expect to see some improvement in his toe within 48 hours after starting antibiotic treatment, and it is concerning that his infection is still bad. You can talk with the vet about giving it a few more days, but the concern is the infection can spread. Other options besides removing the toe include culturing the area to get the exact bacteria causing his infection and then using antibiotics that kill that bacteria in the hopes getting rid of the infection, or taking him into another vet today for a second opinion. You can speak to the vet about doing a culture on his infected toe, but it may be in the end that removing the toe is best. I'm sorry I can't give you an exact answer, but I hope this was helpful!

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