Paw Licking

[corie]

I've noticed recently that after going to bed, my dog will lie there for a good 10 minutes licking the pads of both front paws, to the point he'll get wet spots on his bed under his paws. I've checked all four feet without any fuss, in between the pads, have stroked the pads myself with the flat of my finger, which he took as a cue to start licking my hands too. There doesn't seem to be any clumps or bleeding, though his nails could probably do with a clip soon. The skin between the pads seemed a little red, but I'm not sure if that was due to licking or not. He doesn't walk/run/play with a limp or any slower than he used to, the only thing I've noticed is that his pads seem dry to me (not sure what to compare to)?? He also likes pawing you for pats, and when you just pat/stroke his paw he'll happily sit there too. He's an ACD x. Is this normal behaviour, or should I be checking with a vet?

And just today, when I was with him just before bed, he started... The only way I can describe it is hiccups. :laugh: Can dogs get hiccups? It passed within a minute, and he didn't seem distressed about it at all, didn't even move his head from his pillow.

Edited June 14, 2013 by corie

[Rosetta]

Yes dogs certainly do get hiccups - nothing to worry about. He may have some inflammation by the sound of it. You could get the vet to have a look and in the meantime try some Curash (baby cream) on the red areas between his pads if he is OK with you touching his paws.

[LisaCC]

My partners ACD does the exact same thing! She has dry paws as well but apart from that the vet says they are fine. When they are very dry we rub some sorbolene cream into them and it helps. Apparently she has ALWAYS licked her paws, especially at night. We try to discourage it, but it doesn't always help.

I personally think my partner doesn't work her brain enough, so that may be related to it. She is worse on particularly 'boring' days.

I've have had some success with teaching her new tricks, it seems to help for maybe one night. Currently attempting to train him to do it though

Edited June 14, 2013 by LisaCC

[julesluvscavs]

One dog I owned in the past licked his paws heaps because of allergy issues. He had to have treatment for it.

When our current dogs (Cavaliers) do it, it mostly means they need their anal glands cleaned

It can be because of a few different reasons including boredom or because theres a sore or grass seed stuck in them..

[corie]

Yes dogs certainly do get hiccups - nothing to worry about. He may have some inflammation by the sound of it. You could get the vet to have a look and in the meantime try some Curash (baby cream) on the red areas between his pads if he is OK with you touching his paws.

Curash, got it. :) I've read about inflammations, it was a worry when I saw that the skin was red too.

My partners ACD does the exact same thing! She has dry paws as well but apart from that the vet says they are fine. When they are very dry we rub some sorbolene cream into them and it helps. Apparently she has ALWAYS licked her paws, especially at night. We try to discourage it, but it doesn't always help.

I personally think my partner doesn't work her brain enough, so that may be related to it. She is worse on particularly 'boring' days.

I've have had some success with teaching her new tricks, it seems to help for maybe one night. Currently attempting to train him to do it though

That's good to hear! Well, not the being bored part :D I haven't been able to spend as much time with him lately, definitely could be why. Shall try some more tricks more often then, before I move completely onto the cream. I might try and snip some of the hair growing out between his pads as well as an extra precaution.

One dog I owned in the past licked his paws heaps because of allergy issues. He had to have treatment for it.

When our current dogs (Cavaliers) do it, it mostly means they need their anal glands cleaned

It can be because of a few different reasons including boredom or because theres a sore or grass seed stuck in them..

:laugh: We're feeding VAN at the moment, so I hope it's got nothing to do with his anal glands! Probably deserves a mention also next time we head to the vet's though.

I thought about the grass seeds/a sore, but I thought that since he didn't flinch at all when I went inspecting that it might not be it?

[minimax]

My pug went through a really annoying paw licking phase, I used canesten on them for a few weeks and she's pretty much stopped now.

The noise would drive me nuts! If I put my hand over her paws she would lick my hand, then just carry on licking her paws when I moved my hand lol

[corie]

My pug went through a really annoying paw licking phase, I used canesten on them for a few weeks and she's pretty much stopped now.

The noise would drive me nuts! If I put my hand over her paws she would lick my hand, then just carry on licking her paws when I moved my hand lol

He's not too loud about it, most of the time I feel like I'm actually the one interrupting his 'alone time' :p

Did you use canesten for the yeast, or for it to act as a soother? It's okay for dogs to ingest small quantities?

Will still see a vet before I try applying anything, but thanks for all the feedback!

[minimax]

My pug went through a really annoying paw licking phase, I used canesten on them for a few weeks and she's pretty much stopped now.

The noise would drive me nuts! If I put my hand over her paws she would lick my hand, then just carry on licking her paws when I moved my hand lol

He's not too loud about it, most of the time I feel like I'm actually the one interrupting his 'alone time' :p

Did you use canesten for the yeast, or for it to act as a soother? It's okay for dogs to ingest small quantities?

Will still see a vet before I try applying anything, but thanks for all the feedback!

I used the canesten because I suspected some sort of fungal type thing. She had previously been on anti-biotics for it and a steroid spray, neither of which made a scrap of difference.

It's fine for them to ingest a bit, but I put it before dinnertime so she was occupied for a while so it pretty much had soaked in enough by the time she was walking around, and she wasn't interested in licking it. I'd put a tiny bit on before bed as well, and try to get her not to lick it off.

[corie]

Just an update - he's been picking up a trick a day, but I also noticed (belatedly) that he was doing a lot of skidding around on the carpet indoors - can dogs get carpet burn? Either way, put a stop to that, and with the addition of the tricks, the paw licking has decreased greatly.