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I am sure everyone has had at least once in their life time
some damage on one of their nails. Remember the splinter
that slipped under your nail, the hammer that smashed your
thumb or just cracking on your nail which was slightly to
long? Ouch, painful, wasn’t it?
Imagine that all your nails were damaged and painful.....
sadly, that is what happened with Libby the Lurcher. She
was presented with a very painful disease that affects all
the nails called lupoid onychodystrophy. It is a not very
well understood immune mediated condition that causes loosening
and shedding of all the nails. As long as the nails are
attached, they cause continuous pain when walking.
So, when Libby arrived at the vets, we decided to remove
all the loose nails. Several diagnostic tests were performed
to exclude other possible causes of nail shedding and, once
we had the correct diagnosis, Libby was promptly put onto
specific medication.
Antibiotics were prescribed to treat secondary infection
and also anti-inflammatories for pain relief. We know that
it can take 4 to 6 months before the nails look back to
normal so some patience was warranted.
Before finally achieving a satisfying response in Libby’s
condition, we had to adjust the medication regime a few
times. After several months of daily pedicures, foot baths
and tender loving care Libby is doing extremely well. The
nails are looking much better and more important; she can
now lead a pain free life with just the occasional visit
to the manicurist!
Michele
Lampens MRCVS
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