dog chewing/licking feet

crally

I have a tiny dog that licks her paws, have had her at two different vets. use malsec dog shampoo and SOA soap. She also scratches her ears with her feet but all 4 feet are being chewed! any advice appreciated

trad

I had my westie to a vet for major surgery. We mentioned this in passing about constant paw licking.

His opinion was that it was a food alergy and his recommendation was to change her diet to a rice and fish diet.

Dog now rarely licks her paws, it worked for us.

As to the ear scratching it is what brought us to the vet. Our dog had a major inner problem that required invasive and expensive surgery so I'd suggest that you hve the ears looked at.

Its also a nervous tick that some dogs get which can lead to hot spots.They simply lick themselves raw. Our dog used to do it. Now he knows not to. But for a while he actually started licking another dog instead.

DogsFirst

Itching paws is the first sign of a food intolerance (not necessarily an allergy but thats another post!). This is entirely reserved for dry fed dogs and caused by either gluten (wheat / barley / rye) or cooked protein (chicken and beef), in that order. To get over the itch you need to remove these from the diet. This invariably means moving to a fresh diet. Plenty of posts and posters on here how to do it and success stories once the move was made, which are encouraging!

In mean time (even if you change the diet it can take one or two weeks to totally dissipate) there are things you can do that do not require the vets where you will be prescribed antibiotics and steroids. Steroids will certainly quieten the immune reaction (itch) but they do not tackle the issue, which is the wrong food going in each day.

His excessive licking moistens the area can encourage the red fungus Malassezia pachydermatis to grow. This is a yeast that is commonly found in the ears, vagina, anal sacs and rectum of healthy dogs. To prevent fungal build up, trim away hair and try the following home remedy, which is the best anti itch, anti fungal cure for your dogs itchy paws.

Put two egg cups of boiling water in a cup, and added 1/2 teaspoon boric acid (available in any good supermarket). The boric acid dissolves (might need a zap in the microwave). Add two eggcups of apple cider (this dries up the area after). This mix makes 4 oz. of a 2% acetic acid plus 2% boric acid solution. Give a bone to chew after to allow the ointment to settle in without him licking it off. This cure is more effective than any of the over priced creams and ointments available for dogs. Also reccomend regular baths of cool water with fresh aloe vera and calendula, two of the best anti-inflam, anti-microbial herbs out there, available in all natural shops.

But get him off gluten and cooked chicken / beef, the number one two and three allergens in dogs.

Rocket19

Well, first thing you should do is rule out both fleas and allergies! Also, is there any possibility the dog's paws could be injured. Any reason why her paws could be irritated?

Also, one of our dogs will sometimes chew her leg/paw if she's nervous or stressed, so that is also a possibility.

crally

Thanks so much for the replies. I am feeding her boiled white rice with broccoli and sardines, hoping this is sufficient until i get Burns Salmon and rice, i dont know of any other brand that does fish/rice. i will also make the solution with boric acid in it, thanks you have all been very helpful. I feel that it is started by her ears as she scratches them. i have had her at two different vets with no joy.

ABajaninCork

Arden Grange does a fish version of their food.

meoklmrk91

What age is she? Sometimes dogs will lick their paws if their are in pain, could be a sign on arthritis.

crally

If beef/chicken and gluten sets it off is Arden Grange lamb with rice which states it has no gluten ok? I dont know what age she is as she is a rescue but she is young judging by the speed she flies around.

maria316

just back from my vet this eve which i thought was just for a booster mentioned my dog was constantly licking her paws. I had thought this was suzie wanting to be clean turns out she has an allergy and this is why licking her paws and scratching her ears. I feel silly for not knowing this. Def get it checked out - on new food now and got the mas shampoo.

DogsFirst

crally wrote: »

If beef/chicken and gluten sets it off is Arden Grange lamb with rice which states it has no gluten ok? I dont know what age she is as she is a rescue but she is young judging by the speed she flies around.

Humans are advised to eat maximum one matchbox of processed meat a day. This is because cooking denatures meat protein, making it more antigenic to the gut and ultimately harder to digest. Think over cooking a nice bit of steak. The body doesnt like this and triggers the immune system to clear up the problem. This way an intolerance develops, but it takes time.

If you cook any meat your dog will very likely develop a reaction to it. Chicken, beef, lamb, fish, doesn't matter. Food intolerance was first diagnosed in the 1920's by a fella called Day who found he was allergic to cooked fish and not raw. Processed meat is bad for us and very bad for your dog, made an awful lot worse by their gluten intolerance, food chemicals and shattered immune systems (lack of vitamins, excessive boosters, teeth plaque, antigenic food).

The answer is a fresh diet. Any vet that moves you to another processed food, rice based with lambs toenails or token fishscales, doesnt understand the problem. Which is fair enough as dietary intolerance and what to do is not mentioned in their 5 year degree. Faith is places on the "pioneering research" by food manufacturers. Which is understandable in a way, no human can learn everything about one animal in 5 years, from anatomy to physiology to behaviour to oncology to nutrition etc etc etc, let alone many animal groups. Each field requires a specialist and vets are not specialist. They are multiples more general than your local general practitioners. No offence to vets, they work very hard and love animals, and not all take home whopping pay checks. But they must face facts. Shortcuts must be taken and they know next to zero about curing food intolerance, only calming the symptoms.

Have I gone off on one again?!!