Cleaver is a 7 year old with a tough name, but a soft heart. His parents brought him to SASH to visit our specialist dermatologists, Drs Philippa Ravens and Sophie Tyler, after they noticed he had a very sore and swollen paw.
After an examination and running some tests, the Dermatology team diagnosed Cleaver with pododematitis, which is when the skin of the feet become red and swollen. It can be itchy, but then become painful. In Cleaver’s case, the sores also became infected with a strain of antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Pododermatitis is relatively common in dogs and can be caused by a number of things. For Cleaver, it was found that an allergy was likely to be the root cause. Dr Sophie prescribed a combination of targeted antibiotics, anti-inflammatory medications, and a special diet to help the paw recovery and to reduce the allergic reaction.
After Cleaver completed his course of medication and remained on a strict low allergy diet, his pododermatitis improved dramatically. In fact, Cleaver’s parents brought him in for a recheck, and he was happy to show off his perfect looking paws.
