The nails should be kept short and the pads should be checked daily for signs of excessive wear or even tearing. Like a person who walks barefoot, the dog needs to build up a toughened area over the pads to prevent cracking and bleeding. If either of these symptoms does occur, gently wash the feet with warm water, apply antibiotic ointments, wrap the foot and allow the dog several days to recuperate. The pads of the feet can heal slowly and with a certain amount of difficulty due to the dog walking on the injured area. The pads will flatten and stretch with each step causing the injured areas to reopen and start to bleed again.
Pads are susceptible to excessive cold or heat.
If you live in areas where snow and ice are common in the winter or high temperatures in the summer, take extra care of your dog s pads. The heat off the concrete can burn them during the summer and frost bit during the winter. Another thing to remember is to not feed or allow your dog large quantities of water before starting out to exercise. Bloat causes the stomach and part of the intestines to actually turn or flip in the abdomen. If this happens, blood supply is cut off to the area and death is the most common result.