AboutPatti Expertise To date, I've owned 7 dogs, all of which have lived into old age.
Having cared for them in all stages of life, I feel I can offer sound advice to other pet owners, and people considering getting a dog.
I am knowledgeable about the AKC (American Kennel Club) dog breeds, training and exercise, caring for sick and elderly pets, feeding, as well as many holistic treatments pets can benefit from.
My only request is that you write me using standard English and punctuation.
Experience My life experience in this field is more like "on the job training" rather than an actual degree in animal welfare. You may benefit from my experiences over the past 30 years.
Aside from the dogs I've owned, I'm also involved in "breed rescue" and have fostered several dogs, all of which have been adopted to wonderful "forever homes".
I find helping people who want a dog very rewarding.
Question My friend has a 10 yr old Border Collie that has recently developed Interdigital Furunculosis (?sp) and her vet has recommended lots of steroids and benedryl. I have found little info on the web regarding this problem of open, weeping sores on his feet and hope you can help shed some insight on how it was caused and/or how it can be treated.
I've enjoyed reading your other responses and look forward to your advice.
~Melinda
Answer Hi Melinda,
Interdigital furuncles, are often referred to as "interdigital cysts", they are fluid filled, swollen sacs between the toes.
Along with the prescription medication, sometimes it helps to soak the dog's feet in Epson Salt or Massengale Douche solution and warm water 4-6 times a day. Pat the area dry.
Other things you can try are rinsing the paws with an apple cider vinegar (the unpasteurized, unfiltered kind) dilution (this stings, so make it very dilute if the sores are open/oozing), or giving apple cider vinegar in the food or water (some dogs don't like the taste, others don't mind it).
Raw honey would probably help but he'd lick it right off. Colloidal silver may help, a few drops on the sores a couple of times a day. But again, these are only palliative remedies to relieve the symptoms; they do not address the underlying cause.
Unless the underlying infection can be controlled, there is a strong likelihood of return of the cyst or development of a similar cyst in another location on the feet.
Allergies and immune mediated disease can be the initiating cause. Often, if this is the case, there will be other skin disease or chronic ear infections in conjunction with the foot problems. If Demodectic mange mites are present they can cause severe secondary bacterial foot infections as well. Whatever the cause, when these infections get bad, lumps form that look a lot like cysts but are actually granulomas (solid lumps). Since most people recognize the term cyst and few recognize the term granuloma, vets tend to mislabel these as cysts for convenience sake.
Surgical removal (excision) of the swellings is the usual outcome if a dog does not respond to medical treatment. Unfortunately recurrence at the same site or in another interdigital web is common.
Your friend might have some luck using a cortisone/ antibiotic powder, such as NeoPredef (Rx). The drying action of the powder might to help some. In general, it is necessary to use some sort of systemic medication (oral or injectable medication that affects the whole body) to control these types of problems.
The biggest mistake that people make when treating skin infections is not treating them long enough. If an infection responds to antibiotics and then recurs, it is a really good idea to use antibiotics for at least 6 weeks
and possibly 8 or more weeks, to try to eliminate the infection. If that doesn't work, it may be necessary to treat intermittently, or even to treat continuously, to control some skin infections.
I read that many dogs with this condition respond very well to Metronidazole (Flagyl Rx). It's a whole lot safer than using steroids. Your friend might want to discuss using Flagyl with her vet.
Some vets have success using Doxycyline on dogs who did not respond to treatment with other antibiotics. That also might be worth a try oo.
Cephalexin (Keflex Rx) is a general favorite antibiotic for skin disease, especially in older dogs. It's pretty safe for long term use, which is often necessary to control skin infections. It seems to be among the safer of antibiotics, although no medication is totally risk free.
The basic approroach to treatment I've read about is to start with cephalexin and then move on to the other medications on the list, except that cephalexin and Flagyl are often used together rather than withdrawing the cephalexin.
I don't know if your friend has tried these medications yet or not. It might be helpful to consult a veterinary dermatologist if this condition doesnt seem to be getting better with the course of treatment currently in use.
