Wounded foot?

my 75lb golden retriever/chow chow has been licking his feet for days, i thought he was just tending to some mud after recent rain but after he started limping i took a look.

it looks like skin has been thinly sliced off. there is some yellow looking stuff attached which looks like infected dead skin.

it smells repugnant.

what could have happened to my pooch? i have it wrapped with ointment right now and will call the vet tomorrow (it's after 5)

should i take him to the emergency vet clinic the next town over or does this sound like it can wait until morning?

He should be fine until the morning. You did the right thing to wrap it in ointment. I would recommend cleaning it with hydrogen peroxide, but there are three problems:

1) You have a big dog in pain

2) Dogs in pain can be slightly more aggressive (just trying to protect themselves) even if they are the most loving do to you in the world

3) With chow in him, I'm not sure how he'll react.

However, you know your dog better than I do, so you should decide if you want to clean it.

take it in and dont risk INFECTION

The vet's not going to be happy that you've waited this long because of the chance of infection and its much harder to stitch if stitches are required if its already started to heal.

However, you're only waiting overnight. What I'd do is clean it really well - if you use hydrogen peroxide you need to dilute it half and half with water. My vet told me that used straight it'll damage tissue. Then put some vaseline on it to keep the edges from drying out and wrap it up.