Starting to get raw around the pads of her paws.

[Dom]

I have noticed that my almost 2 year Shep/Husky mix has been licking the bottom of her paws for around a month. This week the area has become raw all the way up to the first joint. It is only on her front paws. Is there an ointment at the drug store I can buy over the counter that I can try and use. I don't want to use anything that can be toxic to her because I know she will ingest some from licking.

I am not sure what the problem could be because it is only on her front paws. A few things have changed in the last three months however. My husband had surgery and I broke my ankle so my mom has been watching her at my house. My mom refuses to feed her raw so my dog hasn't been getting her evening raw meal. She has been getting her normal kibble for breakfast and evening. Also my mom noticed her scratching a lot lately and put one of those monthly chemical flea repellents on her (Advantage?) 2 weeks ago. I can probably count on one hand the number of fleas I have removed off of her in the past.

Should I take her to the vet or try something else first? It isn't bleeding and it doesn't have open sores but it is getting worse. Could dropping the raw feeding from her diet (for the last three months) cause the irritation on her paws, her itching everywhere else, and her shedding/dull coat??

Thanks!

[Dom]

I have been looking at some other threads here and saw Gout could cause swelling and redness between the toes. Are there any tests that my vet can run to find out if this is the cause? Is there something I should look for that may indicate Gout?

[Nicole]

Hi Dom. It sounds to me like allergies. A dog's histamine receptors are in its paws (like ours are in our nose) so when the body is in contact with an allergen, whether it be inhaled, eaten or contact, the paws are the first thing to get itchy.

Finding the cause is another issue. It could be the change from raw, the advantage or just plain old inhalant pollen allergies.

I would switch back to the raw and see if that helps. Since that has been the most recent change, it may be the cause. If not then you need to think about other allergens. Try some Benedryl...that worked for us but can make the dog drowsy...My dog is 100lbs and I gave 2 25mg tabs twice a day. That is a low dose. I forget the max dosage for dogs but if you google "Benadryl dogs" you will find it. Cool water is soothing but short lasting. Try to distract the dog from biting/licking the paws as best as you can.

I had a horrid time with allergies with my dog two years ago. Still am not sure what it was but am pretty sure it was a flea allergy. He almost ate his paws raw. You want to make sure that the paws don't get infected. Be prepared when you go to the vet that they will want to give steroids which in my opinion gives relief but doesn't deal with the cause. But if the paws are very bad then you should go to the vet.

We are having a major lightening storm now so I have to turn off my computer. I am sure others will give you some advice as well.

I don't know about Gout. Sorry.

[Dom]

Thanks. I am probably being a paranoid mom. Before I got Sadie I lost 3 dogs in the same year from age related (cancer/kidney disease) problems. When I got her I did a lot of research and have driven my husband completely mad with her care. He complains I bring home more "Sadie Sacks" than "Hubby Handouts"

Now that I think about it, it probably is fleas. The handful of fleas I have seen have been in the last month and a half. My mom has been coming over and she said her Pom is keeping them awake itching so much. Poor thing. I think she has brought the Pom over a few times when I was away.

I was looking on some other boards and someone mentioned boiling black tea, letting it cool then spraying it on the feet to stop the itch. I bought some tea today and am going to see how that works out. If the redness doesn't get any better then I will take her to the vet. I agree about the steroids. I don't really want to give her those because she has been having bad reactions just to her rabies shots. Mandatory in this state so she has to get them. I prefer to go "natural" with any remedies I give Sadie.

Has anyone ever used Eqyss Micro-tek spray on their dog with any success? I saw it mentioned when I was browsing other places. I don't take the reviews on the manuf site to heart until I know others not involved with the product have good reactions to it.

Thank you again for the reply. It calms my nerves some. Now I am going to go through my carpet with a magnifying glass to find those fleas! lol

[willow]

I can definitely tell you it isn't gout. My female Aussie has had gout two or three times and the symptoms she had is first licking/chewing just one of her feet, then swelling of the foot and limping, but localized to just the foot, not the legs.

My dogs are fed RMB's too and whenever I try to introduce some kibble back into their diets Kara starts itching/scratching and Buddy gets loose stool.

[Aussienot]

Could dropping the raw feeding from her diet (for the last three months) cause the irritation on her paws, her itching everywhere else, and her shedding/dull coat??

Yes. A bad reaction to the food is visually displayed in the dull coat, and physically displayed in itchy skin. That could well be the primary cause since the obsessive feet chewing is new. Other factors that can cause itching is the use of the external flea products and stress.

Most of the dog's itch receptors are in the paw pads. So the parts that itch may not be the feet at all, that's just where the dog 'feels' the itch.

Licking is also a comforting, soothing activity. An anxious dog can lick themselves raw to relieve anxious feelings. The repetitive action of the lick becomes addictive and turns into self mutilation if not stopped.

I'm doubtful the external products of any kind (natural or chemical) will help much since the cause is most likely internal. Give them a go, you might get lucky and it probably won't make the problem worse.

And whether or not you decide to drug your dog to offset the symptoms of an inappropriate diet is a choice only you can make.

Finn was extremely itchy when he first arrived. Feeding raw and eliminating all flea products helped heaps. And distraction and behavior modification helps a lot too. Just getting him up and playing with him or going for a walk can stop an itch fest.

[Dom]

Thanks everyone! Sadie's paws are looking much better and she hasn't been as "itchy" this weekend. ;D She is back on Raw in the evening. I am beginning to wonder if the "high quality" kibble she has been on since 12 weeks old is as high quality as they say. Although I am sure it is much better than the Alpo the shelter was feeding her.

I have tried different kibble mixed in with her normal kibble but everytime she will pick the new kibble out of her bowl and spit them on the floor. Last time I bought new kibble for her my husband asked me why all the kibble was laying around the dining room floor. Then without missing a beat he said "Oh those or triangles. You tried her on a new food didn't you?"

[willow]

I am glad Sadie is doing better.

Everytime I try to feed my dogs a "premium" dog food, Kara itches and/or her gout returns and Buddy gets loose stool and I really believe the premium dog foods with all their additives, even if they are vitamins, minerals EFA's etc. and are supposed to be good for them, are just too rich, so as soon as it cools off and I can go shopping, I am going to go back to a "not so good premium food" and try that and see what happens.

My dogs never had problems until I started experimenting with "premium" foods, and I have found the more expensive the food, the more problems they have.

[Dom]

I think your right Willow. Sometimes the "best" is not always better. Atleast for my dog. When Sadie was on Raw (prob 70%-80% of her diet) she did well. Well as long as I gave her no beef or venision. She gets watery stools and is lethargic if she eats that in any form. After I switched to 100% kibble she started having problems. She is always scratching which she rarely did before. She has developed the " doggie odor/breath" since too. Unfortunatley, I need to keep her use to kibble in case I need someone to watch her. Everyone that watches her refuses to handle the Raw. I can't blame them though.

Using the higher quality food is kinda new to me. My previous dogs where on whatever I could get in the grocery store. My Mom's Pom had a lot of skin problems before they moved in with us. I switched him to Sadie's kibble and everything cleared up. Now that they moved out, Mom switched him back to his grocery store kibble and his skin problems returned. I guess it just depends on the dog.

[willow]

I agree that whether they have problems on a certain food depends on the individual dog.

I just wish I could find a kibble...any kibble...that they did well on, because like you, I want them to be able to tolerate a kibble incase some one else has to take care of them.

It is always the same story. I get a kibble and they do fine for awhile and then the problems start cropping back up again.

I hate that doggy odor they get on kibble too! Even though I am still feeding mostly raw, I noticed Kara had the "kibble stink" yesterday.