Hi, interdigital cysts are commonly caused by allergies, especially food allergies. Which brand of food are you currently feeding Oscar? Many bullies including my own are allergic to chicken, salmon, corn and grains. Two years a ago I switched our guys to Fromm's Beef Frittata, his was our fourth food switch. They have done really well on this food up until now, as they have started to shed more, and are licking their paws, although they aren't showing any other symptoms like hives, red and pink skin, itchiness, or red warm ears like chicken and salmon caused. I recently changed their food to the Fromm's Lamb and Lentil to see if a change in protein makes a difference. It's been a week and so far, there aren't any new allergy symptoms, other than the paw licking and it can take up to a month to see a difference or benefit to a food change.
what is the best way to get rid of interdigital cysts
Dog Veterinary Question
Dr. Welton, Dog Veterinarian
These types of cysts can be very difficult to get rid of, since they are not the primary issue, but a secondary manifestation of skin allergy. They actually are not cysts, but the result of furunculosis, a condition of the skin which clogs hair follicles and creates chronic infection. This leads to chronic focal thickening of the skin, which gradually produces a cyst like structure. Furunculosis is the result of allergy, so for the long term, if you can get over this issue, the underlying allergy must be addressed tp prevent recurrence.
First, let's discuss symptmomatic therapy. If dog is licking the paw with the cyst, this must be stopped first and foremost. All the treatment in the world will never work if the dog keeps licking. If there is licking, you must fit the dog with an elizabethan collar, which you can buy from your vet or from most pet stores.
Next, the foot with the cyst should be soaked in Epsom Salts dissolved in warm water for 10 minutes, 3 times weekly. Epsom salts can be purchased in the medicine section of any grocery, or at any pharmacy. Soaking flushes the pores and hair follicles, serving to unclog and disinfect them.
The cyst should be be cleaned thoroughly with benzoyl peroxide wipes. On a day when benzoyl peroxide cleaning coincides with an Epsom Salts soaking day, clean after the soaking. Cleaning with this solution provides more antiseptic activity, as well as modulates inflammation. You can get these wipes under the brand name Stridex pads in the skin care section of any grocery, or at the pharmacy.
Finally, to combat the allergy, I also additionally treat with the over the counter antihistamine, Benadryl, dosed at 1 mg per pound of body weight, administered orally, 3 times daily. I like to pursue this treatment course for 6-8 weeks while also on the antibiotic cephalexin. Since cephalexin can only be obtained by prescription, you would need to get this from your vet. It may be a good idea, since this gives you the optimal chance for success.
As far as getting to the bottom of the source of the skin allergy, a food trial is a good start to rule out food allergy. While corn, wheat, and other fillers and preservatives can be involved in food related skin allergies, animal source proteins that the dog has been regularly fed are most commonly implicated. Therefore, the food trial should consist of hypoallergenic diet that is filler free, preservative free, and has a primary protein source that is novel, that is, a protein source that the patient has never been fed. You should feed such a diet exclusively for 8 weeks, then see if less topical and oral antihistamine treatment is necessary to keep the patient comfortable, and even be eliminated altogether. If this occurs, then your solution is to feed the diet exclusively indefinately. Some of my favorite choices for prescription, hypoallergenic diets, are IVD Venison and Potato, and Hills Z/D Ultra. Your vet should have these for sale.
If ultimately food is found to not be an issue involved in the skin allergy, then it is assumed that environmental allergy is the main cause of the skin problems. You can choose to manage this symptomatically as needed in the manner I listed above, or, you can talk to your vet about allergy testing to identify the primary allergens causing the reactions. Once this is determined, the allergens can be isolated in an injectable serum, which is regularly injected to desensitize the patient to the offending allergens.
