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My dog's nail quick is exposed and he's limping. Vet visit needed?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Large (61lb +) | Male | neutered | 6 years and 9 months old | 65 lbs

Dog's nail quick is exposed. It's been a day and he's limping (I have leftover pain meds that were prescribed to him from a previous surgery, so we can manage some pain). It's not a typical quick exposure as the outer nail has essentially been stripped off. Should I take him in and ask for surgical removal or just let it heal? Attached photo. His nails are normally all black. This is now a livid red.

4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Paula Simons

Veterinarian

Published on May 1st, 2020

Poor Russell. He definitely avulsed his nail. The remaining quick should not be removed and as long as it is not bleeding, it should not pose too much risk. The unfortunate thing is that these are very uncomfortable and can lead to limping as the quick contains lots of sensitive nerves. I would limit his activity for several days and do not allow him to lick it. It will slowly start to dry out and the nail may regrow. There's potential that the nail may not grow normally and will require more frequent cutting.

30Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Ricardo Fernandez, DVM
Veterinarian, Veterinary Oncology Resident
Published on October 30th, 2018
Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Typically these cannot be repaired per se. However, depending on how they look, sometimes they may benefit from having them cut shorter. In this case at this point I think there is really not much to do from a supportive care standpoint. I would recommend you keep the area as clean as possible and if she appears to be painful at all, I would recommend you have her evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment which would mean starting pain control medications. Good luck and have a great day!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS
Veterinarian
Published on April 26th, 2017
Poor Ellie! It can happen that the nail becomes cracked and separates from the quick. It can be painful, and in this case, it would be best to cut off as much of the nail as possible without cutting the quick. If you aren't comfortable doing this, you can have her seen by a vet in the morning to have it done. To keep from cutting the quick, you can cut back a little at a time until you are close to the quick but not too close. It's fine to keep cleaning it to keep it from getting infected, but she should be ok :-)
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on April 4th, 2018
Most likely the nail will fall off on it's own or the dog will chew it off. If you brought her to a vet clinic they would pull the nail off or trim it off with nail clippers. If you have dog nail clippers you can clip it yourself to speed things up.
It may bleed. If that happens you can use corn starch or something similar to stop the bleeding. Then bandage it for a day or two. Not a big deal. Hope this helps. Best wishes!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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