My dog keeps biting his paw. Is it an interdigital cyst? Home remedies?

This could be a few different things. It could be an infected cyst, it could be an infection from her licking or it could be a foreign body. I recommend placing an Elizabethan collar on her and taking her to your veterinarian. You can wait until tomorrow for the vet as long as the ecollar is on her today due to the holiday. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

This sounds like an infected interdigital cyst. These are common in dog’s paws. They usually need oral antibiotics to heal these infections, so I would take her in to your veterinarian for an exam and treatment. In the meantime you can soak the paw in an antibacterial solution, and use a cone to prevent her from licking the paw. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Toffee.

This is an interdigital infected cyst. You can soak it in warm water with epsoms salt to help get the area to drain. Generally I treat these with antibiotics and prevent licking by using a restraint collar. With treatment this should heal in a week or two. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Baxter.

While an interdigital cyst is a possibility, it cannot be diagnosed based on visual observation alone. The other possibilities to consider include: foreign body, benign tumors such as histocytomas, malignant tumors such as mast cell tumors, or a simple bacterial or fungal infection. I would advise you to have it evaluated by your veterinarian. Ask about a fine needle aspirate to remove cells in order to determine if they are cancerous. And apply an E-collar to prevent licking.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This lump you describe could potentially be something like an abscess for example. However, other things are possible. If there is really an abscess, this should not be treated at home. I recommend that you have him evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. If an abscess was noted, further local therapy with drainage and antibiotics would be recommended. Good luck and best wishes!

This is called pododermatitis. There are interdigital cysts between the toes that can get infected. I recommend soaking the feet in a warm epsoms salt twice daily to draw out the infection. Also use a cone to prevent Opie from licking his feet. If the sores are not drying up and healing then he should get a veterinary exam and mostly likely they will prescribe a course of antibiotics. Feet can take several weeks to fully heal. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Opie.

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I see the area you are referring to, it appears to be a dark, slightly raised area between her toes. This definitely looks like it can be a cyst. Unfortunately, cysts can be very difficult to treat with antibiotics as the area can always get wet and is in contact with the ground, etc. You can definitely go for a second opinion - another treatment option would be to remove the cyst (this would have to be done under general anesthesia), but may cause PJ even more discomfort. Some vets will recommend a prolonged course of antibiotics as well as topical treatments or Epsom salt soaks. Underlying causes such as a yeast infection or mites living in the hair follicles should be ruled out as well.