Licing Paw Pads
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| where do you live, you don't say, it warm there, that might have something to do with it. You said yeast infection, did he go overseas with you. |
| Are you sure it is a yeast infection? My dog constantly licks his paws and our vet said that it was possibly a food allergy and to switch foods. We haven't switched yet, but we'll let people know if it helps.
Also, I have heard that excessive licking can be because of separation anxiety and maybe your sheepdog was really upset when you left to go oversees and now is licking his paws because of that. Just a thought... |
| I live in NE Ohio. I did not know if this was sytemic. I don't think its seperation anxiety (although he is clingy), he did have other signs of an allergy. Yeast infection also present in ear (not canal), and a little redness on snout. Maybe I should try the hypo-allergnic food. |
| Sammy had been scratching heaps and licking his paws especially between his toes and the pads, the vet diagnosed a food allergy and gave him a cortizone shot to help. That was a week ago now and he is slowly improving, we had to switch foods and also add Evening Primrose Oil to his diet. |
| According to my vet paw licking is almost always an allergy. The steroid may temporarily relieve the itching but since the allergy is still present the itching will return. Allergies tend to be blamed on food, corn in paticular, when in reality dogs can be allergic to as many things as humans can and the old stand by "corn allergy" is not as common as people think it is.
Unfortunately the only way to really know is to have allergy testing done. This can be done through skin testing or blood testing. The blood tesing is the easiest. In my area it costs about $250.00 and is fairly specific in determining allergens. The dog must be off all steroids for at least 1 month before any testing. Have you tried giving him bendryl? 1mg per lb which is actually a higher dose than the human dose. That may help to tell if it is an allergy although lack of relief does not necessarily mean it is not an allergy. It could also be out of boredom and habit. |
| Lawns are a common allergen, but hardly seems like the time of year for that.
Something in the house? New carpeting, funiture, laundry detergent etc? Curing yeast problem isn't easy. Could there be an underlying factor such as bad teeth and gums? The statin drug was a good first step, but I suspect there's some underlying factor......allergies somewhere.....and yes, separation problems perhaps. You may have to put him on an allergy dog food or start with a rice and beef or chicken diet (hoping one of those isn't a problem) and then work back up. Maybe an additive in some dog foods? Wonderful mystery. |
Tasker's Mom wrote: According to my vet paw licking is almost always an allergy. The steroid may temporarily relieve the itching but since the allergy is still present the itching will return.
Great info! We have a sheepie with allergies to dust mites and mold. She scratched, licked and chewed so much it was awful.  From what I've read, the blood test does not accurately determine food allergies. Then our vet said that although the blood test reveled no food allergies, she still could have one.
We decided to try the allergy shots in September because it offered the possibility of long term relief. You have to give the shots for about 9-12 months to see a benefit. We are almost to the point to giving the shots every 2 weeks now... it will then go to every 3-4 weeks. We think one of Darby's problems about a week ago was the mold outdoors... she was starting to chew her feet again. We have had wet weather here... the ground is usually covered with snow but we hardly have any now and it's been raining. Yuck. With allergies, many meds simply cover the symptoms and don't address the real problem. But then you then have a possibility of allergy shots NOT working so it can be a tough call. For us, we had no choice because they are so bad. We used just plain Tavist (not Tavist DM) in place of a combination of two other vet prescribed allergy meds that just weren't giving her any relief. If the Benadryl doesn't help, ask your vet about Tavist also known as Clemastine Fumerate. If it might be something in the yard causing the problem, can you just put doggie boots like Muttluks on Gipper when he goes out? Might be a hassle but a less expensive way to address the problem. Good luck to you! |
The weather here has been usually warm, so the plants, trees and grass are already into their early Spring growth cycle. 80 degrees in January  No Winter to speak of, so everything will be bad this year.
We are already dealing with grass allergies. Allergy shots didn't work for my baby, so here are some of the things I do. I have some of those goofy rubber boots used for hunting dogs. A pain to put on, but Ben has quickly learned to accept them. He will hold up his paw for them to be put on and taken off. If he goes outside barepawed during a bad season, he gets his paws rinsed off in cool water. A dish pan works great for this. Towel dry his feet and he is good to go. The vet suggested an ice pack for those really itchy spots - supervised due to Ben's love to chew. It seems to help. Benadryl is great, as you can easily increase or decrease the dose as needed. |
| Someone else who had to resort to shots! Been hoping to hear experiences of others who've tried them. What were the allergies test for and how long/often did you give the shots before you gave up on them? Did you give them yourself too or go to the vet? |
| It's been a couple of years. They tested for everything common in our area (and it all blows in at some point).
Allergy shots are serious stuff. Our vet had us come in. I'm okay with it as the parent of a friend had a reaction to his shot and died. I am not great at animal CPR. We had to wait about 20 minutes in the office - which was fine with Ben, he loves that place. We tried for six months, with no noticable improvement. We still had to give the benadryl daily, occassionally bumping up to prednisone. In comparing it to the year before, there really wasn't any change. I take allergy shots myself. They work great for my asthma but have no effect on my sinus problems. Bottomline, if they work, it really helps. And it is worth a try. |
| We are on the verge of starting shots with Tasker...... it is a huge committment for something that may not work........ I just have not made the final decision. The most discouraging information was finding out that like people, allergies for animals can change yearly. So what you desensitize for this year may not be what they are allergic to next year |
| Thanks so much for the info! It sounds like your baby had it even worse than mine. We did the first series of 6 shots in the office with the 20 minute wait. The dust mite and mold serums couldn't be mixed so there are two shots required that we stagger on Monday's and Thursdays. We started with the dust mites, got through the first 6 shots then did the same thing with the mold. We continue them at home now and have been lucky that there have been no bad side affects. We monitor her for the first half hour after by checking her breathing, gum color, etc. I keep the doggie CPR instructions on the fridge.
The Diphenhydramine (Benadryl) didn't cool the itch so they added Hydroxyzine Pamoate but she continued to lick, scratch and chew to the point she'd draw blood. The Tavist was what finally worked for her. It was so frustrating and the only other option we had was to start steroids. We have a history of severe asthma in the family so I wanted to avoid them. If the shots don't work, we'll have to use them if it gets bad again. For now, we use a Honeywell true-hepa air filter, dust/vacuum regularly, launder any cloth stuff like bedding and toys periodically to try to keep the house as allergen free as possible. She isn't on any antihistamines or allergy meds now so I think it's working. Keeping my fingers crossed! Thanks again for the info. If we find the mold outdoors is causing problems again, we'll just go to the doggie boots. Problem is, this sheepie-girl loves to play in the dirt  |
| Hi Ginny-
Have you found out what allergens are causing the problem? It is so difficult to decide what's best. I'll be disappointed if I find after a year they didn't work. Our son had allergies as a kid and we chose NOT to do the shots because another family member had poor results. Maybe if he'd been chewing on his feet we would have 
It will be about 8 months before we can tell for sure if they work. I guess we're in it for the long haul. |
| No, we went in a couple weeks ago to have the blood drawn for the allergy testing and decided to make a last ditch effort with steroids to stop the itching. It was a miserable failure. Unfortunately you cannot have the blood drawn for one month after a steroid injection so I'm courting the days til we can go back. We had blood drawn at the time, hoping that it was perhaps a thyroid problem. Tasker is 9 years old and this has started suddenly so Thyroid seemed more likely than allergies.
But, the thyroid panel (and all the other costly blood work) has come back normal) so we are back to the allergies. It is fairly certain that this started with a flea allergy last fall, we went on vacation to the beach and for the first time EVER got a terrible flea infestation which we brought home. We have not been able to 100% eradicate the fleas, every few weeks out of no where a flea appears on one of the dogs. Apparently they can lay dormant for MONTHS and MONTHS. Both dogs are treated so if one appears and bites one of the dogs it quickly dies. But if his primary allergy is fleas ONE FLEA BITE EVERY THREE WEEKS is enough to keep the cycle going. I have doused my house in pennyroyal oil and lavender, it is simply not humanly possible to spray any more chemicals but somewhere somehow the little buggers keep popping up. It may not even be the errant flea. It could be almost anything. Soooooo, as soon as the Calender says the time is up we will test and see. We just switched to SALMON and rice food.......... Do you know what Salmon farts smell like???????? |
Quote: We just switched to SALMON and rice food.......... Do you know what Salmon farts smell like????????
HA! Well, actually, now that you mention it... YES, I do! We are in the process of switching all of the girls over to Purina ProPlan Extra Care For Sensitive Skin and Stomachs- Salmon and Rice. 
I know this is all frustrating and maybe the answer will come when all the fleas can be eliminated. It might be cheaper too compared to allergy shots. Have you talked to your vet to see if their is something that will work to rid them from the house? When each of our sheepies arrived, they all had fleas but we treated the entire pack immediately with Frontline Plus before it became a problem in the house. I washed blankets, rugs every couple of days and vacuumed daily hoping I got them all. (Be sure to either empty the vacuum outside in a plastic bag so the little buggers don't find their way back into the house or on the dog.) We don't have or even treat for fleas unless a new dog comes in so I don't have much experience. I thought the vet mentioned something you could use in the house if they were a problem but I can't remember. Anyone out there know of anything? |
| I know it's a little off the subject but there is an interesting article on "Managing Fleas without Poisons". I never heard about the flea traps before. Anyway, here's the address- http://www.pesticide.org/fleas.html
I've also read that you have to be careful that you don't mix certain flea products. |
Jaclin, your new avatar is so cute  Totally off topic  |
bestdogsx4 wrote: Jaclin, your new avatar is so cute
Totally off topic I was thinking the same thing! I hope you'll share some pics in the gallery. |
| Tee-hee
Thanks  That's Panda and Emma... the silly girls were running around the yard together with that stuffed fish yesterday. Gotta love them sheepies! I love to watch everyones Avatars as they change. It's neat that this option is available. |
6Girls wrote: Quote: We just switched to SALMON and rice food.......... Do you know what Salmon farts smell like???????? HA! Well, actually, now that you mention it... YES, I do! We are in the process of switching all of the girls over to Purina ProPlan Extra Care For Sensitive Skin and Stomachs- Salmon and Rice. I know this is all frustrating and maybe the answer will come when all the fleas can be eliminated. It might be cheaper too compared to allergy shots. Have you talked to your vet to see if their is something that will work to rid them from the house? When each of our sheepies arrived, they all had fleas but we treated the entire pack immediately with Frontline Plus before it became a problem in the house. I washed blankets, rugs every couple of days and vacuumed daily hoping I got them all. (Be sure to either empty the vacuum outside in a plastic bag so the little buggers don't find their way back into the house or on the dog.) We don't have or even treat for fleas unless a new dog comes in so I don't have much experience. I thought the vet mentioned something you could use in the house if they were a problem but I can't remember. Anyone out there know of anything? We are using the same food!!!! The point is there really is no way to completely eliminate fleas. I vacume EVERY DAY, bedding gets washed twice a week, both dogs are on frontline (I am switching to advantage) and the house is technically "flea free". But I live in the country and FLEAS ARE EVERYWHERE. No matter how flea free the house is the moment the dogs go outside a flea can hitch a ride inside. In the winter no matter how flea free you THINK your house is if you have animals chances are there is a stray flea. You do not ever really notice it because if your animals are on frontline (or advantage) the flea gets on the animal and dies. BUT if your animal is allergic one flea is enough to set off an allergic reaction that can last for weeks. So one flea turning up every few weeks can spell disaster!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not a pretty picture!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
| I called Purina last week to help me decide which variety would be best and to verify they test for the aflatoxin. I've decided to stick with the big food companies. We'll transition them over to all new food by next week.
We haven't had a problem with fleas so I'm ignorant on the subject I can see what you mean though. And I've heard that just one bite can cause an awful lot of problems with sensitive dogs. Have you tried the flea trap things or don't they help? |
6Girls wrote: We haven't had a problem with fleas so I'm ignorant on the subject
I can see what you mean though. And I've heard that just one bite can cause an awful lot of problems with sensitive dogs. Have you tried the flea trap things or don't they help?There really is no such thing as a "flea free home" . All it takes is one itty bitty egg hiden in the far reaches of the base board or deep down in the fiber of the carpet. In 99.5% of homes the flea would hatch, hop on a treated dog, die and no one would ever be the wiser. That cycle could repeat itself multiple times over the winter and animals and owner could live happily through the winter in the fantasy land that THEIR house was flea free. In the house that has the dog that is "allergic" every flea bite, even if it is weeks apart sets off a systemic response that can last for weeks and cause itching all out of porportion to the itty bitty critter. At least that's the story told me by my vet |
| So you go with the traps (and lite chemicals?) to try to catch'em before they hop on. You go with the topical to try to kill'em once they've hopped on and before they bite. Then the Program just in case one bites and gets away with it, so that any eggs laid won't hatch.
Sound like a plan? |
| Sounds like a great plan, Ron! Hope I don't have to try it though.
We just haven't had to treat any of them after the initial treament when a new dog entered the pack. We've had an unusually mild winter so far... watch me have to eat my words now!
When we bring in a new puppy, I give them a bath, dry them, then I go over them with a comb and remove/kill the fleas I do find. Then apply Frontline. Three of our sheepie-pups came from Texas and one from New Jersey... all arrived with fleas. Our yard is completely fenced (actually by 1-3 fences) and we don't take our dogs to dog parks (just don't have one in our area) which can be another source of re-exposure. Jeez... we've got enough dogs for them to play with within the pack. We also ripped up all the carpet in the house a few years ago and put down either tile or wood flooring. I just never felt that I could get carpet clean. How about Sentinel heartworm meds? It's supposed to protect against worms and provides flea control. |
| Yeah, that's the same thing for fleas as in the Program pills.
Try this page if you haven't already: http://www.oes.org/page2/5804~How_to_ge ... fleas.html |
| Okay... Program=pills. Gotcha.
Thanks for the info & link Ron. Hope I don't need the info |
| We've had a problem with Harry since we moved in to our new house with extremely excessive licking. We had him at the University for testing (!) and they found it was a yeast infection, which is now being treated. They pointed out that the reason he had the yeast infection is because of the excessive licking creating a warm damp environment for the yeast to live. (Such a chicken/egg situation!). Further testing showed he has a dust mite allergy, which does tie in with the house move. We previously had laminate floors and now they are all carpet. We had two solutions - 1. years of treating it with medication including steroids, or 2. remove flooring. Guess which we've gone for?! Yup, laminate goes down in a few weeks! Pricey option but worth it. I have eczema and would rather the causes were entirely removed, thus avoiding the irritation, than have to treat the irritation. Going to go and sing in the street now to try and pay for them!!! |
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