My dog's paw pad looks injured. Is it a burn, blister, or infection?

Hello, and thanks for your question. It's difficult to tell in the picture where the injury is. I'm possibly seeing a small area with minor irritation on the edge of the metacarpal pad (the larger pad behind the toe pads), almost like a rug-burn type injury... If that's the case, it will be a bit sore until the tissue starts to heal, but there isn't much to do other than monitor for infection and protect it from further injury. You can apply a topical ointment such as neosporin, and sometimes they're more comfortable if you apply a sock or bootie when Blitz goes outside. Avoid long walks and running off leash for a week or so, especially on abrasive surfaces such as concrete or gravel. Monitor for redness, swelling, or discharge that might indicate infection. If you see any of these, or if Blitz seems uncomfortable enough to need pain medication, then it's best to bring her in to the vet. Of course, if there's further injury besides the suspected "rugburn" or scrape I described above, don't hesitate to question again with a description of the injury you're seeing, and maybe a close-up with an arrow to the injury in question... Hope this helps!

According to the photos it looks like a mild abrasion in the central pad that is healing. For now I would just monitor unless signs of infection (redness, pus, foul smell, pain) or if any lameness present then I would suggest to contact your vet.

Oh goodness! That looks sore! It actually looks like it could be an infection of the toenail bed, or a tumor of the nail bed. Soaking in warm water with Epsom salts would be a good thing to do tonight until you are able to get him to a veterinarian tomorrow. They may want to do a needle aspirate and/ or and x-Ray to help make a diagnosis. Best of luck and I hope he improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

It looks like poor Leo has blistered paw pads. This can be quite uncomfortable. Seeing where your location is, it is likely that Leo just came in contact with hot pavement. These will heal on their own. I would not try to peel the pads off. New pad will form and you may even notice pink pad that is raw looking once the old pad falls off. I would have your vet check the pads out to be on the safe side in case there is something more thst needs to be done. To prevent this, avoid long walks on hot pavement and use dog boots. Hope this helps! Please feel free to contact me with any further questions or concerns you may have

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I agree that this is possibly some kind of infection or perhaps a growth but this would require a veterinary evaluation to really know what's going on and what would be best to treat it with. Good luck and have a great day!

I would recommend that you have Mo examined by a vet. From the pictures, these don't look like blisters. They could be caused by allergies, foreign bodies, autoimmune disease, deep bacterial or fungal infection, etc. The vet may need to do a biopsy to see what the cause is so that Mo can receive appropriate treatment.

Usually a veterinarian would perform a cytology to distinguish between a bacterial and fungal skin infection - they would take a sample on a microscope slide and examine for organisms. It's also possible that Bini has a resistant bacterial infection, or she might have another underlying disease process like an autoimmune disorder contributing to her symptoms. In your picture her foot does not appear classic for a fungal infection. You may want to follow up with your vet to discuss further testing and treatment.