broken duclaw! help!

You'll have to take her to the vet -- likely the vet will remove it.  At least the nail.  Dewclaws are one of those things I typically have removed when spay/neuter/teeth cleaning times arise -- they can too easily get snagged on something.  It IS painful and there may be skin caught in that crack. 

Emma had to have hers removed when she was... just over a year old. She'd torn them 5 times, and they kept getting infected. Dewclaws are nasty little things. I hate them. Given the choice, I'll have all dogs without them, from now on.

Definitely do take her to the vet. That hurts! 

I would take her to the vet and have it removed. I think all puppys should have them removed when they get their first shots.

jennie_c_d

Dewclaws are nasty little things. I hate them. Given the choice, I'll have all dogs without them, from now on.

Wow, really? Cherokee has front dewclaws... I've had her for 8 years, and she's never had an issue with them, plus she USES them. When she chews bones, she uses those dewclaws like crazy to hold on. I don't know what she'd do without them.

Dewclaws should *not* be removed at first shots. They should be removed at 3 days, the same time as the tails are docked.

Mine never used their dews. Teenie still has hers, just so she can be a bigger pain in my butt, LOL. I haven't had hers removed, because she has bigger things that take priority, and she gets cold under anesthesia, within about an hour. She can't stay under for too long. Her teeth and her lumpy bumpies are way more important than her dews. 

Dew claws are used. If you watch a Border Collie go through a tight turn you will see them in use. I have three Border Collies, two in agility, and neither has ever ripped a dew claw. That being said if they continue to get torn or are an issue then have then removed. They do just fine without them.

Oh, I don't care for docked tails either but that's for another post. 

Depends on what you intend to do with the dog -- and they can easily get in trouble with them, but it's all in what the dog does. 

But they are not something to be removed during 'shots'.  They are like little vestigial fingers -- usually I've had them removed when the dog is spayed/neutered, etc.  It heals easily then -- but it's not something to have removed without anesthesia or when very very very very young.

calliecritturs

but it's not something to have removed without anesthesia or when very very very very young.

I know that you need to put the dog under to remove them when they are older but why can't you remove them when they are very..... young.  Breeders I know remove them at birth.  No pain, hardly any blood and only takes a second.

timsdat

but why can't you remove them when they are very..... young.

You can. Callie just doesn't choose her dogs til they're older. I didn't have a choice on my dogs, either. I got Emma at 9 weeks, tail and uterus removed, dewclaws intact. I got Teenie when she was way old, uterus gone and dewclaws firmly in place 

 thanks for all the great advice guys!

Zoey's doing much better, and the dr gave me some antibiotics for her in case it was infected (it was a bit swollen) and she's licking it a lot less. i also put 2 drops of iodine to help.

My boyfriend's mom is a vet tech at the animal hospital here in our town, so she took a look at her and said it should be fine to just let her heal herself.

If it becomes a problem between now and when she's spayed i might consider having them removed, but only if it's a problem (which it hasn't been till this one time)

thanks everyone :) 

Ok so maybe I said it wrong, maybe not have it done at their first "shots" but when people have the tails docked and other things removed have that done at the same time. The way I feel if you don't care for the dewclaws have them taken care asap when the puppy is young. I personally do not like them. Every dog I had they were useless and some stick out and get in the way.

I had Luke's back dewclaws removed when he was neutered on the advice of my vet.  I told them that he regularly came to the barn with me and was running through tall grass and they said it would be in his best interest to have them removed.

The fronts stayed in place, though, because they are the "fixed" type, not the floating variety that tend to rip easier and cause more problems.  Three and a half years later I have not had a single problem with Luke's front dewclaws and honestly, I do think that he uses them.  He does a lot of tight/fast turns for agility, frisbee and fetching and I know those nails dig in deep at times.

If given the choice, I would want for the dewclaws to be removed when the puppy is only a day or so old.  The healing is just so much faster.  I had some issues with Luke's rear paws taking forever to heal after his DCs were taken out.  It wasn't fun.

Pawgirl

Ok so maybe I said it wrong, maybe not have it done at their first "shots" but when people have the tails docked and other things removed have that done at the same time.

Why would you have puppies under a week old vaccinated? What idiot vet does that? 

I honestly think that if you own a dog and you plan on keeping it as a companion animal and nothing else, then it might be a good idea to get the dew claws removed.  Many dogs have them removed as puppies, but if you plan on using a dog in some kind of sport or activity, you might consider leaving them on. 

 If Zoey keeps having problems like this, maybe it would be a good idea to get her dew claws removed.