Licking paws

[Roberta]

My Shih Tzu keeps licking the bottom of his paws. He is 2 yrs old, and I got him from a rescue organization. I have tried "Yuuk" on him, but that doesn't stop him. What to do?

[Moo]

Kirby does this every summer. It's an allergy.

Check the paws, between the pads, and everything... See if you can find a rash or obstruction.

[Deb's Tiny Dogs]

Miko is constantly chewing and licking his paws. I'm guessing it's an allergy and may switch his food to one without wheat, barley, soy, dairy, corn and caesin (sp?). These are the prime allergic offenders.

[Moo]

I guess I'd better specify. Kirby's allergy is seasonal... Pollen, grass and the like... Like the annoying hay-fever I get.

If you don't find anything, it may be a habit from when there was something there. Stop it anyways... Maybe you can get her to wear a sock on that foot.

[doglady]

I remember a Collie I use to have had this problem. Been tryin to think what was the cause and what I did to cure it. I know in the winter the salt they put on the roads was causing him to get red inflamed feet between the toes. I remember cleaning them out all the time and putting a salve of some kind on them. I sure hate gettin old...can't remember a thing.ggrrr

[weezyNollie]

Sounds like allergies to me too.

My dogs both chew/lick their paws. I recently switched from chicken to a lamb based diet. Giving it a couple weeks to see if it does anything. If not, i might try an oat diet as opposed to the rice based one I am on now.

I would ask the vet what they think.

Avoid letting the dog lick TOO much. Can cause a lick granuloma.. which is icky and harder to fix. Easier to prevent.

[sheplovr]

If it becomes like ears kinda a bacterial or yeast type of thing the following will stop it as it did for Oceana ears, then she started on her feet. I bought Flint River Ranch for Sensative skin, nothing worked till I got this mix, worked like a miracle for I battled this over a year even with vets I hate to go to. Dog feed that has wheat or corn in is really bad for dogs. They are the main reason dogs get problems including digestive ones.



Blue Power Ear Treatment

INGREDIENTS:
16 Oz. Isopropyl Alcohol
4 Tablespoons Boric Acid Powder
16 Drops Gentian Violet Solution 1%

Mix together in alcohol bottle and shake well. You will also need to shake solution every time you use it to disperse the Boric Acid Powder. To use, purchase the "Clairol" type plastic bottle to dispense solution to affected ears.

TREATMENT: Evaluate condition of ears before treating and if very inflamed and sore do not attempt to pull hair or clean out ear at all. Wait until inflammation has subsided which will be about 2 days.

Shake the bottle each time before using. Flood the ear with solution (gently squirt bottle), massage gently to the count of 60, wipe with a tissue. Flood again on first treatment, wipe with a tissue, and leave alone without massage. The dog will shake out the excess which can be wiped with a tissue, the Gentian Violet does stain fabrics.

SCHEDULE OF TREATMENT
Treat 2x per day for the first week to two weeks depending upon severity of ears
Treat 1x per day for the next 1-2 weeks
Treat 1x per month (or even less frequently, depending on the dog)

All of these ingredients should be available at a pharmacy. The Boric Acid Powder soothes the ear. The Gentian Violet Solution is an anti-infection agent. The solution appears to work well on any and all ear problems from mites to wax to canker. After the second or third you can clean out the ear with a Q-tip or cotton balls. Their success rate for this treatment is 95-99%. Those who do not succeed have usually not done the treatment long enough or have not been regular about it.

Dogs on the verge of ear canal surgery have been returned to normal with only the regular follow-up treatment to keep the ear healthy. If an infection seems to be remaining in the treated ear after the above course of treatment, you may also have some Pseudomonas bacteria in the site. This can be eradicated by using a gentle flush of raw apple cider vinegar and water (warm). Use 2 Tablespoons of vinegar to one cup of water, 2x per week.

They have found the Blue Power Solution to be effective for treating fungus-type infections on the feet and elsewhere on the dog, for cuts on dogs or people, and for hot spots. You may find other uses for this simple anti-infective agent. Remember it is for external use only and be careful not to get into the eyes.

[Blaze]

I'm just going to be an echo here but it does sound like an allergy. Check out if there is anything bothering him environmentally as well as food wise. Lilly has had itchy paws in the past and I just gently washed them with Epsom salts to relieve the itch, it worked well and I later found out it was caused by something in the garden.
I hope your little one feels better soon!

[Blaze]

Oh and for the Epsom salt baths you add 1/2 cup of epsom salts per 1 gallon of water. Soak the affected paw(s) for 5-10 minutes, 2-4 times a day. It provides temporary relief from the itchy feet.
But make sure that he doesn't drink of the solution since it can cause diarrhea and stomach upsets.

[Aria]

u need to get him to change diets. that " licking" is the first sign of food allergies. You need to switch your dogs food to weither Eucanoobas Fish and Potaoes, or Sceince diets Z/D either low allergin or Ultra. Also a bath in malaseb or Sulf Oxy dex ( by at vets office) will help with the itching