Mumsie Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Hello everyone I am hoping that someone may have some ideas on stopping our 4 y.o. Jack Russell Terrier from constantly licking his paws! We have an older Jack Russell (11 y.o.) and she has never displayed this obsession. Both dogs are bathed regularly in an antibacterial wash, they only have Eucanuba Vet kibble, the older dog has baked dog bones for a treat and the 4 y.o. has 1/2 a fresh chicken wing. He is also on steroids - 1/2 or 1/4 a tablet every second day depending on how much he licks. I work from home so loneliness is not an issue - they are walked for approx 40 minutes each day with some time off the lead. Our older dog will run on the grass however the younger one avoids the grass as it appears to hurt his feet. We have tried using a plastic collar - he stilled managed to reach his back feet. We have tried tying cotton baby booties on his feet - he takes them off. we have also given him sardines in oil with his kibble to see if that helps. We have tried to restrict his diet to no artificial ingredients - however the steroids make him very hungry and he is constantly looking for food. They sleep in our bedroom in their own beds and we often hear him licking his paws - it is driving us insane!! His feet are always moist from licking, very red and even look swollen however there is no smell. I would sincerely love some advise on this matter thanks Leone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmolo Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Poor little dog Sounds very uncomfortable- have you tried a raw only diet? What is the shampoo you use- i woudl be going for soothing rather than anti bacterial unless there is a secondary infection? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julesluvscavs Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 (edited) Hi Leoni In our Cavs case they will lick their paws obsessively if their anal glands need cleaning out (sorry if TMI) However my last dog Jenna (a red heeler x) would also, and there never seemed any apparent reasons either.. If you do a search on dol for paw licking, I am sure there will be quite a few threads from other owners about it also. Edited February 22, 2010 by JulesLuvsCavs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdierikx Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 What kind of temperament does your little fellow have? If he's a nervous or timid type, he may be licking for that reason. I had a Rottie that would lick his paws obsessively if he was worried about something... T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumsie Posted February 22, 2010 Author Share Posted February 22, 2010 Poor little dog Sounds very uncomfortable- have you tried a raw only diet? What is the shampoo you use- i woudl be going for soothing rather than anti bacterial unless there is a secondary infection? We have tried many different combinations of different foods - what would you suggest for a raw diet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 (edited) Have you actually worked out WHY he is licking? If it is not allergy, I'm wondering why he is on steroids and why he is bathed so often? I'm not being judgemental or critical, but I would prefer to see whether we can know if this is a behavioural thing, or whether there is actually an allergy/skin issue. There are other things that you might do, but what they are will much depend on the cause for the licking in the first place. Edited February 22, 2010 by Erny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumsie Posted February 22, 2010 Author Share Posted February 22, 2010 What kind of temperament does your little fellow have? If he's a nervous or timid type, he may be licking for that reason. I had a Rottie that would lick his paws obsessively if he was worried about something...T. He is a very happy little fellow, loves to play, run around, loves his cuddles, is very sociable when meeting other dogs while we are walking and continues licking even when the whole family is together! I have tried distracting him when he is licking by giving him different toys to play with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumsie Posted February 22, 2010 Author Share Posted February 22, 2010 Have you actually worked out WHY he is licking?If it is not allergy, I'm wondering why he is on steroids and why he is bathed so often? I'm not being judgemental or critical, but I would prefer to see whether we can know if this is a behavioural thing, or whether there is actually an allergy/skin issue. There are other things that you might do, but what they are will much depend on the cause for the licking in the first place. thank you for replying - he is on steroids as it does seem to lessen the itch. The days he has 1/2 a tablet there is a noticable difference and he licks a lot less - however long term steroid use is not recommended. He also goes through stages of extended scratching - to the point where his mussle (nose) bleeds We usually bath him in a tub with malaseb in the water to stop any germs that may be building up in the moist area on his paws (they soak while the rest of him washed) and the rest of his body is bathed in various shampoo's that are suppose to soothe irritated skin. It doesn't appear to make a difference if we bath him weekly, fortnightly or monthly - we have tried them all. We live near a reserve and bush so are very vigilant with flea and tick treatment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Thanks LeoneH. What is his skin condition like? Is there apparent damage/hair loss/inflamation? Has your Vet done any skin scrapings? Does your Vet believe it is a contact or food allergy? Just trying to find out what you've done and what you already know and to get a 'picture' in my mind. Not that I'm a Vet, so anything I might offer by way of suggestion is only that, and would only be based on my own experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumsie Posted February 22, 2010 Author Share Posted February 22, 2010 Thanks LeoneH. What is his skin condition like? Is there apparent damage/hair loss/inflamation? Has your Vet done any skin scrapings? Does your Vet believe it is a contact or food allergy? Just trying to find out what you've done and what you already know and to get a 'picture' in my mind. Not that I'm a Vet, so anything I might offer by way of suggestion is only that, and would only be based on my own experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mumsie Posted February 22, 2010 Author Share Posted February 22, 2010 Thanks LeoneH. What is his skin condition like? Is there apparent damage/hair loss/inflamation? Has your Vet done any skin scrapings? Does your Vet believe it is a contact or food allergy? Just trying to find out what you've done and what you already know and to get a 'picture' in my mind. Not that I'm a Vet, so anything I might offer by way of suggestion is only that, and would only be based on my own experience. The remainder of his coat, ears and tail are totally clean with no sign of flaky skin, sore spots (hot spots) or patchy hair. I know certain processed foods make the area around his mouth "red" so we stopped all those foods. the vet did suggest a scraping however he felt it would be costly and prove little. thank you for taking this seriously. We have even tried tablets that were over $100 per month but they didn't make any difference either, however the vet had had some success with his own dog with the same issue on the tablets. Leone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Licking paws and legs aren't uncommon. Some older dogs lick their legs (joints) where they are sore and some dogs lick their feet and legs due to allergic reactions. A skin scraping isn't expensive, ask your Vet to quite it, I think it cost me $40 last time I had one done, they look at the slide under their own microscopes so there isn't a need for it to be expensive. The tablets that cost a lot, was that Atopica? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytmate Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Given that it is on his paws, a contact allergy is possible. When determining the cause of possible allergies, there is a process known as elimination. You go back to basics and remove all possible allergens, and then introduce each new thing very slowly, one thing at a time, to see what could be causing the problem. You can start off on a basic chicken diet, wash off all shampoos with water, and wash bedding in a basic white laundry soap and rinse well. Then if you can keep your dog on lead to reduce it coming into contact with vegetation for a few weeks, you can see if it makes any difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 (edited) The remainder of his coat, ears and tail are totally clean with no sign of flaky skin, sore spots (hot spots) or patchy hair. I would stop the frequent bathing. By the sounds of it, he doesn't need it. Ok - sorry, a couple more questions, but I am narrowing my line of thinking down, so bear with me ;). Just to clarify - only his back feet are affected? Or did you mean that with an Elizabethan Collar, he could still reach his back feet, but not his front? Do you find he licks more when you are not home, or that it makes no difference whether you are home or not? Edited February 22, 2010 by Erny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Daisy Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Could it possibly be a grass allergy? I used to groom a malt x who was allergic to grass and had to wear little booties outside. Maybe try giving him a tablet, not taking him for walks for a couple of days and putting some booties on when he goes to the toilet. If it gets better great. If not, at least you have eliminated it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdierikx Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Could also be allergic to carpet or the floor cleaning products, etc... T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jr_inoz Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 sounds like an allergy to grass (or similar) my dog is allergic to kikuyu - will bite and lick her paws after being on it. I changed my small amount of lawn at home to cooch and she is much better. Can't avoid the kikuyu altogether but can minimise the contact. Antihisthamene from the vet and a topical spray helps when things get really bad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSoSwift Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 Sounds allergy based to me I would also consider getting a second opinion from a different vet. Not to say the first one isn't on the right track, but a fresh set of eyes and experience can't hurt. Skin scraping is not very expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mutt lover Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 My old dog does the same thing the vet told me it was an allergy like people getting hay fever this time of year! I give her an antihistamine tablet which seems to help a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted February 22, 2010 Share Posted February 22, 2010 It certainly sounds like an allergy to me. I would also suggest a second opinion- and maybe ask if an antihistamine can be tried ? If an anti histamine heps- then that is terrific! if not - then you need to look further I had a dog who used to lick paws a lot- he was allergic to grass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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