Sophie Bear's paw pads are damaged - is the dog walker at fault?

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Today was their first day with a new dog walker. She took them to a dog park, even sent me a video of them playing. I was so happy that they were having fun with their new friends. When I got home Sophie greeted me with the usual enthusiasm, running down the stairs to get to me (she sleeps on my bed when I'm not home :). Then I went to take them for a walk. Sophie was stalling at first, not wanting to walk, which was unusual. She was sniffing at the ground like she was distracted by something but there was nothing there (did she not want to admit that she was hurt?), then as I encouraged her, I noticed she was limping. But not in the usual way that dogs limp when one of their legs are sore. Rather, she was walking like she did the first time I put boots on her feet. She didn't want to put her feet on the ground. I couldn't see what was wrong because it was getting dark outside so I just picked her up and carried her home. I put her back down on the grass but she was still walking that way so we went inside. I looked at her feet under the light. There are small pieces of paw pad on all her feet that are missing and you can see the tender flesh underneath. It's not the whole pad, just small pieces, pretty much on all the paws.

I did a search on here about what to do with torn paw pads (or rather, worn away paw pads??), so I got some good info: keep them dry and clean, don't let her walk on them too much, they will heal quickly, socks help... (Love the new Google search feature!).

My question is, should I be concerned about my new dog walker? She seemed so great otherwise. Do these things just happen sometimes or was there something she could have done? I did notice in the video the dogs were running across the paved pathway chasing each other which is what I'm thinking was the problem. I probably wouldn't have let them do that for too long but then the video is like 15 seconds so who knows how long they were on the pavement for.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I wonder if your doodles walk on pavement much since I recall you are near a wooded path. The paw pads might not be toughened. But I certainly would talk with the dog walker and find out details and let her know the problem. See what she says and go from there.

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Thanks F. Yes, we do walk on the wooded trail most days but they also get a walk around the neighbourhood too on the paved sidewalk.

[Donna K & Quincy]

Sherri, I'm sorry poor little Sophie is hurting but they do heal quickly and you are most likely right, playing on pavement is the reason. We had this happen with Q once when we played fetch with him on a paved surface, he didn't actually wear parts of the pads off but they did blister and bleed. I would guess your walker is unaware of the damage that playing on pavement does. I don't think it happens just with reg walking or running but when they are coming to sudden skidding stops and the pads become abraded. Feel better soon Sophie.

You are so right the new search engine rocks.

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Thanks Donna!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

If you did a search, you probably saw some of the posts I made about this happening to JD. The first time it happened, it was also at the dog park, the very first time out in the spring, and JD did a LOT of hard running. He gave me no sign at all that he was having any kind of pain or that there was anything wrong with his pads. We left because I had had enough; honestly, I think he would have kept running for another hour. When we got home 45 minutes later and he jumped out of the car, he kind of stumbled and then wouldn't walk. That was the first sign he gave me that there was anything at all wrong with him. I looked at his feet and was shocked to discover that all of the pads were completely gone on both front feet, nothing there but bloody circles. I had never heard of such a thing happening and had no idea it was even a possibility. And he was never on pavement, except in the parking lot, walking to and from the car.

The point of this story is: should anyone be concerned about me as a dog owner, lol? Was I at fault? Certainly I felt horribly guilty, but why would I have been checking his paws when: A. He was running and running and going back to run more with no signs of a problem and B. I had no idea such a thing could happen, so why would I have checked? Honestly, I would not blame or be concerned about the dogwalker. I would talk to her about it to be sure she is aware that this can happen and so that in the future she can take steps to prevent it. But if it could happen to me, it could happen to anyone. 

Hope Sophie's paws heal quickly! 

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Thanks Karen. I have seen your posts about JD before and realized that if it can happen to you, it can happen to anyone for sure, as you are the best dog mom I know (well, you and all the other awesome ladies here on DK ;-)

I guess I'm just upset that this has happened. It has never happened before and it happened today on her first walk with someone I thought was awesome. It's a bit disappointing. I wouldn't have wanted to continue on with her if it would be considered irresponsible to do so. What if something else happens next time? I know I owe her another chance for sure, I guess I'm just a little more nervous now.

I will definitely talk to her.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I don't blame you for being upset, it's an upsetting thing when our babies get hurt, especially when it could have been prevented. But I would definitely give this dogwalker another chance, after speaking with her. I'm sure she will feel horrible when she learns what happened, and hopefully will be extra careful in the future. 

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

I'm sure you are right. For now though I think she should take a few days off to heal.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Absolutely. 

[Diana Erhart]

The trainers where Charlie goes to daycare say that sometimes, especially dogs new to daycare, the pads will got sore and raw at first if they play too much.  They have part of the park with artificial grass, part regular grass and then a swimming pool.  They say that they have to watch the newer dogs for a few times to make sure their pads are ok.  It could be that they were just running more than usual and on a surface that their pads are not used to.  

[Katie and Sophie]

I would say its nothing more than running on surfaces that their feet aren't used to. Its a bummer, but it happens. Soph has the most sensitive paw pads in the world so we always use paw pad wax as a preventative measure.

[Kris and Sawyer]

Poor Sophie! You've probably read this in your research...but we've had success with Musher's Secret. It also works well on your own cracked skin in the winter! :-)