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My dog's twisted nail, swollen toe. Can I treat it without surgery?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Male | unneutered | 3 years and 7 months old | 72 lbs

my dog twisted his nail and now his toe is swollen and pink. is there anyway to treat it without surgically removing the nail?

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jenny, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on May 10th, 2018

The nail seems attached but the nail bed is infected. The pink tissue seems inflamed but I would not jump to surgery yet. You can keep the area clean with soap and water and apply neosporin. the most important part is to stop him from licking it by getting an e collar or putting a baby sock over it. He does need to see a vet for antibiotics to see if it can heal as an open wound with that. IF that is not successful then they will go towards the surgery route

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