Licking Paws?
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| Oscar is doing the same thing, and I am afraid that it is allergies. Does Hendrix have any hair turning brown between the pads of his feet? Is the skin red and scaly looking underneath the brown hair? That's what is starting with Oscar.
I noticed that we are both in Northern Illinois, so it might be related to something blooming or blossoming, or some type of spring mold. Oscar is on Benadryl (diphenhydramine), and I've begun washing his paws more frequently in an oatmeal shampoo to help with the itching. Hopefully the symptoms will abate when the spring season ends. Our first sheepie, Quincy, had all kinds of allergies as well, which manifested in skin infections, as well as the paw licking, and hot spots between the pads of his paws. We had him tested, and then I did the allergy shots with him, as well as Benadryl and Cephalexin (antibiotic) pulse therapy which he received every weekend to keep the skin infections under control. I did the shots for three years with no noticeable improvement, so I didn't bother to go down that path again with Oscar. I hope that Hendrix is just going through a temporary paw licking phase, but if it's allergies, it is certainly manageable. Good luck, and feel free to PM me if you want to chat. Laur |
| I am from norther Illinois also. My dog izzie isn't having a problem...
However every spring and fall when the weather changes I have problems. I don't think it is allergy related, but my hand and feet will peel and itch occasionally. I saw a doctor when I was younger and he said the back and forth of the weather (when it warms up for a few days and then gets cold again, or opposite) can irritate sensitive skin. I don't know if dogs can experience the same effects, but that is a possibility. Amanda |
| Laur - Thanks for all the helpful input! I'll check his paws for any discoloration and let you know. I'll also try the oatmeal shampoo on his feet. Do you think it's worth getting any anti-itching spray?
Allison |
| walter licks his paws all year long (we are also from northern illinois!). i have tried allergy medicine and it has not worked. i got an anti itch spray but i really dont think it stops the itching, i think it just tastes bad so it stops him from licking, so i only use it when its driving me crazy.
if you find a magic cure let me know! |
| Suggestion: Try changing your dogs' DIET. Duds licked his paws like crazy until I eliminated all grains. He gets a fish and potato kibble now, and hasn't had a problem with itchy ears or feet. ~Katie. |
| Dixie is licking her paws, and chewing herself all over. We are going onto a special food, and am picking it up tontie. I think it is fish and potatoe, too. Royal Canine, I think? Ordered in by the vet.
We've got to do something. |
| i think i am going to try switching his diet again. we switched wally's food a lot about a year ago because he used to throw up when he got too much beef... and we finally settled on nutro lamb and rice because it was the only thing that didnt make him sick. the vet thought it was the grass, but the allergy medication didnt work.
can you get royal canine at stores or just through the vet? are there any other brands that anyone recommends? |
| Royal canin can be bought at pet stores, too - unless it's the prescription kind. I think they do make a kibble that has either a beardie or an OES on it. The food I get is the Natural Balance fish and potato. There are no grains in it at all, just potato. I think they also make a duck and potato, too. Now, there are other high-quality fish and potato kibbles, but they also sometimes have grains in them - oatmeal, barley, (brown)rice, corn, etc. Wellness, Solid Gold, and Nature's Recipie are some, but they have grains in them along with the potato. Read the labels carefully!!! If you know what specific grain gives them trouble, then you can just avoid that one, but since I don't know - I don't bother with any. Innova also makes a grain-free food called EVO that's 42% protien. Solid Gold has something similar (no grain, high protien) called Howling at the Moon. (that I haven't been able to try yet) I mix a little bit of the "high-octaine" kibbles in when he's been working hard. Finding a commercially produced kibble without grains has saved a little $$ by not having to get those prescription foods at the vet's. I do cash in on the coupons for the free prescription foods when they send them in the mail. heehee ~Katie. |
| Can it really be his diet? He's had the same Iams Adult food for 5 months now. |
| Maybe it is just buillding up in his system (the allergy) and along with the coming of spring it's gotten worse...just musing... |
| From what I have been reading allergies mostly show up after the age of 2.
The Royal Canin I got is the prescription kind. It is specially formulated for skin problems, as right now Dixie's skin is a mess. I would post pictures but she looks awful. We have shaved large patches on her, and may have to shave her right down this weekend. She goes through T-shirts like crazy, because when she scratches she tears holes in them, so we put another one on. We are running out! And if she gets shaved, we will need to put sweat shirts on her 
I checked the ingredients, and there is only chicken fat, fish meal and rice..no grain at all. Hopefully it will help. |
I had no idea thats why they licked their paws - I thought ahh ollie starting to clean his paws. better check out his feet when i get home later - its only his front feet he chews and its all the time - god I feel like a bad parent 
Thank god I read this post !! |
| Hi Allison!
Just like humans, dogs can develop allergies at any time, ingested or inhalant, so even though Hendrix may have been eating the same food for months, it is possible for him to have become sensitive to something he's eating. Oscar suffers from Inflammatory Bowel Disease, so we've switched his food so many times I've lost count. Right now he's on Hill's Science Diet Z/D Ultra, but we are soon going to be revisiting his food as he's still having tummy problems. Oscar's IBD and paw licking might both be related to a particular food, but we have yet to isolate it. You might want to look into a new food that limits the protein and carbs to one source each, like the duck and potato mentioned by Katie and Bosley's Mom, as that may just do the trick. Fingers crossed, and keep us posted on how Hendrix is doing. Laurie |
| Kayli just started the insane licking yesterday. Her allergies don't usually start up till July, so this is frustrating.
Last weekend, at a lecture about arthritis, I learned that licking could also be a sign of arthritis, the theory being that the area hurts, so they lick it to make it feel better. |
floofdog wrote: Last weekend, at a lecture about arthritis, I learned that licking could also be a sign of arthritis, the theory being that the area hurts, so they lick it to make it feel better. Yes. Our first guy did that, licked his "wrists". Upon examination, the Vet said he had some arthritis in there. 
Try some pain reliever if the antihistamine isn't working. |
| Upon further review, we looked closely at Hendrix's paws and it seems his skin on his paws is peeling. Looks like dry skin, is there a lotion to put on it? I'm going to call the vet and opefully I can just put something on it instead of yet another visit.
Anyone else have this happen? |
Allegies are so frustrating. We've been giving Darby allergy shots since September. We did the annual blood tests a few weeks ago through Dr. Dodd's lab this year and she mentioned high Eosinophils in her report which is indicative of either parasites or allergies (it was also high the year before). I wish the cause was parasites because that's much easier to fix. 
We now feed Purina ProPlan Extra Care for Sensative Skin and Stomachs- Salmon/Rice/Oatmeal. We had tried so many different kinds for all of them- Solid Gold, Wellness, Nutro, Iams, etc. but this one seems to agree with all of them. Darby is allergic to molds and dust mites... I think the mold problem is the worst for her. Our vet too said that allergies will often appear around the age of 2 years. She's been fine throughout the winter... I'm bracing for another round of intense scratching, chewing, licking because the weather is turning warmer here in Michigan so the mold problem may again be an issue. This sheepie-girl would scratch until she bled and her leg/foot fur had turned pink. A couple of weeks ago she started licking/chewing her feet again. Throughout the winter I had clipped her foot fuzz level with her pads. But it had been muddy outside and since her problem is mold, I clipped the fuzz down real short so her feet could easily be washed/dried and the mold/mud wouldn't stay in contact with her skin. I then applied Bag Balm in between the pads and she's been fine since. Note though that some vets recommend leaving the fur long if there is an environmental allergen... a friend has a sheepie that may be allergic to pine straw and her vet suggested she NOT clip the fur short so it will act as a barrier. Good luck to everyone dealing with allergies. |
| Had the same paw licking situation with my Indiana. This might be a useful website to cover the possible explanations and treatment.
http://www.dachshund.org/health_paw_licking.html |
| My dog Francis had the same problem. It got pretty bad and he ended up getting sores and licking all the hair off. there are actually a variety of creams and sprays you can get. me and my girlfriend eventually ended up trying this ointment called Dermapaw. it came out about a year ago and gets the job done wonderfully, its pretty cheap too. after a week he stopped licking and by two weeks he was totally fine, hair starting to grow back and everything. you can google it, or heres the website. just remember that this could be a combination of many things, including boredom and allergies. so while creams and ointments can help it, i would advise trying to pin point what exactly is triggering it. For Francis it was some plant in our backyard that he was allergic to. goodluck! [www.dermapaw.com]
~Dorian |
| Licking paws can also be a fungal infection in the pads and/or toes. OES have so much fur in between the "toes" when they get wet, between the toes stays mosit and fingus can grow. You won't see the fungus. Excpet for maybe some pinkish/red - which is a combintation of their salvia and licking and the fungal stuff. My vet said it was allergies and I INSISTED he take a culture and it came back positive for a yeast infection. Took some ketoconzole ( spelling) and everything was fine..
I now dry their feet when wet. Apply some corn starch - especially between the toes. So far so good.... |
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