# Incessant Front Paw Licking



## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

Gibbs has been incessantly licking the pads of his front paws since returning from Dana's parents.

Any thoughts?


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## goiter6 (Mar 6, 2010)

We just had Chewy at the vet for licking her paws. The vet said paw licking is a common symptom of an allergy.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Yup. Allergies are the most likely cause, though it can occasionally be stress induced. Where it's the pads of his feet, I'd try religiously wiping them with a hypoallergenic wet wipe every time he comes in from outside.


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## SJ1998 (Feb 4, 2013)

Another thought is a flea or tick. I have found a few ticks on my boy between his feet so I check him there after his walks and at night before bed. I also use a spray on walks in addition to the regular flea/tick control. I am very anti-pesticide with my dogs but the ticks are horrible this year.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

SJ1998 said:


> Another thought is a flea or tick. I have found a few ticks on my boy between his feet so I check him there after his walks and at night before bed. I also use a spray on walks in addition to the regular flea/tick control. I am very anti-pesticide with my dogs but the ticks are horrible this year.


Oh! I agree! I was assuming they had already checked his feet for anything visible/obvious. Fleas, ticks, a thorn, a grass awn... even a tiny slice on a paw pad can cause them to lick.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

krandall said:


> Yup. Allergies are the most likely cause, though it can occasionally be stress induced. Where it's the pads of his feet, I'd try religiously wiping them with a hypoallergenic wet wipe every time he comes in from outside.


Great advice! I noticed Scudder licking his pads the other day. We hike in all kinds of places so allergies to something he walked on is probably the cause!


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

krandall said:


> Oh! I agree! I was assuming they had already checked his feet for anything visible/obvious. Fleas, ticks, a thorn, a grass awn... even a tiny slice on a paw pad can cause them to lick.


It's not his pads, but between his pads.

We've had him checked and there are many things going on, so it's hard pinpoint. Gibbs was "off" when we got him back from Dana's parents and didn't seem like himself. The "easy" answer would have been to assume his mood or demeanor change was a result of change, but several things didn't seem to fit.

Here's the complete list of facts, some as reported by my in-laws:

1. He appeared to quickly adapt to staying at the in-laws and ate and played normally for 5 straight days.

2. The following Friday he didn't eat or drink well.

3. Dana and I picked him Monday and he was elated to see us, but didn't eat as well. Dana and I noticed he seemed lethargic that evening.

4. On Tuesday during the day, Dana called me to tell me he was still lethargic and didn't eat well. Not wanting to assume it was because of the change, we made an evening appointment at the Vets.

5. Our Vet trusted our observations and gave Gibbs subcutaneous fluids with some stomach medication.

6. As soon as we got home, Gibbs was himself - playing, jumping, etc.

7. He still didn't eat Wednesday morning and we noticed he stopped drinking. He was still playful in the morning, but became more lethargic during the day.

8. I decided to give him a bath and check his skin. I noticed a very tiny flea on his back leg and a bite on his hip. We use Frontline, but are changing to K-9 Advantix. He didn't appear to have any other fleas.

9. I captured the flea, circled the bite and went back to the Vets. All X-rays and bloodwork came back normal. She gave him an oral does of flea medication that will kill fleas within 10 minutes, gave him more subcutaneous fluid, told us to feed him boiled chicken and rice and switched us to K-9 Advantix.

10. He ate the boiled chicken and rice both last night and this morning, but still isn't drinking well. We were told that he might not drink as much because of the fluids.

Regarding the paw licking:

1. We were not immediately concerned with the paw licking and downplayed it to the Vet because Gibbs has always had a "fetish" with his paws. As soon as we brought him home, we noticed he'd "chew" on his front paws. It wasn't enough to cause any damage, but we thought it odd. We actually took him to the Vet to have his paws examined (when we first got him), and they were fine.

2. His paw licking was more noticeable this morning. I actually woke him up when I went downstairs to let him out. The very second he awoke, he licked his paws non-stop for about 5 minutes. That's when I noticed it and took it more seriously. I inspected his paws and noticed redness between his pads.

3. I immediately left a message for the Vet and posted this thread.

4. The Vet has left me message to come by and pick-up some anti-fungal wipes and/or medication because she thinks it may be a fungal infection.

5. I called Dana and she said he seems to be more of himself today. He's drinking a little more and playing.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Yeah, that sounds a little more complicated than either JUST allergies or JUST behavioral. It may take some sleuthing on your part. It IS possible for dogs to be so allergic to flea bites that they have systemic reactions to even a single bite. So I suppose it's possible that's what's going on. Steroids can settle a bad allergic reaction down, but that's the LAST thing you want to give if you suspect a fungal infection. That's probably why the vet wants to try the fungal route first. Was the grass very wet at your parent's house while you were gone? If his feet stayed wet a lot, that could have brought on a fungal infection.

As the vet told you, it's not uncommon for them not to drink as much when they've had sub-cu fluids, so unless that persists, I wouldn't worry about that part. You might want to try mixing water into his food to make sure he's getting enough fluid.


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

Yes, Henry had been doing this. My vet gave me a wash/soak to do with him.
For 7 days each night, each paw for 5 minutes I gave him a front-paw soak. It seemed to help.
Lately Henry's been licking again (but not as much) and I may do the treatments again.


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## Pucks104 (Aug 16, 2012)

Our oldest dog, Zoe, had an issue with her paw a couple years ago where she was continuously licking. Her paw was red and irritated between the pads. We figured out that it was from walking on grass that had been sprayed with lawn chemicals. We had to put an Elizabethan Collar on her for several days in addition to medicating the paw in order to give it time to heal.


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

I was also wondering about chemicals at the sitters house? I have never heard of a ten minute flea treatment.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

yeah could be physical or behavioral. let the vet check one option at a time. Good luck.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

One thing that my vet told me is that I should do everything possible to stop Kodi from licking, while we were sorting out what was causing it. She said that licking that starts because of itching can become an OCD-ish behavior, and if that happens it is VERY hard to stop. So when Kodi was itchy, I kept him near by, and I'd distract him from licking, any time I heard him start. Of course, I'm sure there were times when I wasn't home that he still licked, but I stopped it as much as I could.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

good point Karen, they get used to the endorphins released when scratching. Literally an addiction.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Fred does the OCD licking. He licks his butt, so I think he needs his anal glands expressed.... turns out they are never really full. He also licks the sheets, couch, my boyfriend and me. He was really bad at one point, but is not as bad these days.


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

Here's the latest

Aside from the paw licking, Gibbs seems completely back to normal. He's eating (boiled chicken and rice) and drinking normally. He seems to have his "spark" back. He's ignoring us when something grabs his attention, ringing the bell when he feels we're ignoring him, barking and growling at the right times and things. He has his "pant smile" back and is now bringing us his toys to play with. He even went to the door when the "TV Door Bell" rang. These were all the things that had been missing.

The lack of eating may have been as simple as deciding he didn't like his food. He had been devouring the Primal Raw Frozen Chicken. After 2 months we switched him to the Primal Raw Frozen Beef. The switch came while at my in-laws. I mixed the Primal Beef in with his boiled chicken and rice and he ate around the beef ignoring it completely.

Regarding the paw licking:

1. I doubt it's chemicals because, although not impossible, it's doubtful it would be confined to one foot between the pads. The chemicals would most likely irritate the pads on all feet.

2. Similarly, an allergic reaction would be more likely to affect the pads as opposed to in between the pads.

3. Fleas and ticks are a possibility, but I think our Vet is on the right track regarding a possible fungal infection. She gave us a "soap" to soak his paw once a day and wipes to wipe his paws twice a day.

4. He had his first soak tonight and it seemed to offer him some relief. He didn't fuss at all when I dipped his paw in the cup. He let me hold him for 5 minutes and just sat on my lap, which is the only thing out of character for him. He is by no definition a lap dog. He likes to be down on the floor, even when he wasn't quite right.


I will keep you posted.


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## Pucks104 (Aug 16, 2012)

Gibbs Mom and Dad said:


> Here's the latest
> 
> Aside from the paw licking, Gibbs seems completely back to normal. He's eating (boiled chicken and rice) and drinking normally. He seems to have his "spark" back. He's ignoring us when something grabs his attention, ringing the bell when he feels we're ignoring him, barking and growling at the right times and things. He has his "pant smile" back and is now bringing us his toys to play with. He even went to the door when the "TV Door Bell" rang. These were all the things that had been missing.
> 
> ...


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

Pucks104 said:


> Gibbs Mom and Dad said:
> 
> 
> > Here's the latest
> ...


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Great to hear he's on the road to recovery!

If it were an allergy, it would be most likely to see it between his pads, not on them, because the skin on the pads is much tougher. However, it's really unlikely that it would only be one foot. (I must have missed that part!)


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

krandall said:


> (I must have missed that part!)


You didn't. I was inadvertently typing in the plural. The redness is confined to his left front paw between his pads. He is primarily licking his left front paw.

I think we're on the right track, but we'll switch gears on Monday if there isn't any progress.

I'm going back to Primal Raw Frozen Chicken tonight, and hopefully he eats it. If so, the only remaining issue will be his paw.

I can't tell you how happy I was to see him patiently waiting for me to come downstairs with his tail waging and his "smile" when I opened his Pen.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

So I sometimes see Scudder licking his pads. Not a lot and its not causing any irritation. But I do notice his fur between his pads is reddish. Is that from licking? Or could it be from hiking and swimming in the ponds.


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

lfung5 said:


> So I sometimes see Scudder licking his pads. Not a lot and its not causing any irritation. But I do notice his fur between his pads is reddish. Is that from licking? Or could it be from hiking and swimming in the ponds.


I initially became concerned based upon how fervently Gibbs was liking the underside of his front left paw. I really noticed it when I came down to let him out on Thursday morning. Normally, he's waiting for me with tail waging as he hears me walk down the steps. On Thursday, he was sound asleep and only awoke when I opened his gate. The very instant he was awake, he looked down at his paw and started to lick the underside. He continued to lick for more than 5 minutes and I couldn't distract him with anything. I finally picked him up and gave him a "Paw Bath". I then got a flashlight and put him up high so I didn't have to flex his paw. It was only then that I saw the redness between his pads.

Our Vet seems primarily concerned about a fungal infection because of the following:

1. It's only on one paw.
2. On the paw that it is on, it is "everywhere" between his pads.
3. The hair between his pads is getting long and needs to be groomed. The significance of the the long hair between his pads is that it locks in moisture and moisture is the necessary breeding ground for fungal infections.
4. It was rainy in Pittsburgh last week and the early part of this week, so his paws were wet.
5. My in-laws twice gave him a bath without blow drying him.

We are taking him to the groomer on Monday and will get his hair trimmed.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

lfung5 said:


> So I sometimes see Scudder licking his pads. Not a lot and its not causing any irritation. But I do notice his fur between his pads is reddish. Is that from licking? Or could it be from hiking and swimming in the ponds.


The reddish is most likely from licking. With Kodi, I've rarely seen him lick his paws, but he started licking his butt continuously when this allergy problem hit. His (usually white) hair around his butt turned red, and eventually his front paws did too, so he was clearly licking them too.

Because of the pattern of the itching, we were pretty sure it was environmental, though we switched food just to cover that base too. Switching food didn't help... he ended up on Benadryl at least a couple of times a day for all of late spring/early summer. It is most likely grass pollen that was the culprit. When the grass pollen levels went went down, so did his itching. He's fine again now, but it will be MONTHS before all the red grows out on his feet and hiney.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Wow! Fred was doing the same thing! I will have to read back through this post to see what you did for Kodi. Fred kept licking his butt and chewing his legs. Not a ton but I would notice him doing it here and there. I kept taking him to get his anal glands checked but they were ok. Then I thought it was the food. When he is itchy I put hydrocortisone cream on his butt and give him a temeral p. ok, going back to read through this thread! Thanks

Ps. I guess I should start wiping Scuds feet!


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## SJ1998 (Feb 4, 2013)

The lab I had before my current one was a chronic paw chewer. We tried everything, diet change, medications etc. One vet suggested Prozac. Sadly, he had liver disease. No one thought to check for this and I guess it didnt show on routine blood work. he was my first dog as an adult and I never thought to question a vet. He had a lot of other symptoms too that we always thought were just the way he was. It took me a long time to get over it - he was only five and a half when he died - and its part of the reason I am suspicious of all the medications we give our pets. The specialist who diagnosed the liver disease couldnt determine the cause. The first thing I thought of though was the time when he was little and I took him for the first vet visit. The dog breeder gave me a record of all his vacs to take to the vet. The vet looked at it and said "I dont trust breeders, we need to repeat all of this." Who knows if that did it but I am sure it was not good to give a little puppy that many shots.


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## sandypaws (Aug 8, 2012)

Bailey had seasonal allergies as well and it showed up as paw licking. He was obsessed with it in the spring, summer and fall, causing the fur between his pads to turn red. It did seem, however, to be concentrated on one front paw only. We used Benadryl and/or Tavist at the time and Tavist worked best until the season passed and he was back to normal.

FYI, since moving 8 years ago, both Bailey, when he was with us, and Tyler, to this day, have had perpetually wet paws in the morning due to the sprinkler system in season and dew at other times and I have never wiped them off. Neither of them has ever developed a fungal infection. After reading this thread, I feel blessed!


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## Gibbs Mom and Dad (Jun 3, 2013)

FYI

My in-laws are beside themselves and blaming themselves for all of Gibbs problems. I only found out about it when Dana told me her Dad tried to give her money for the Vet's bill. I then found out her mother was crying.

I called them last night to try and "talk them down". I feel so bad for them. They did us a favor by watching our buddy for 10 days. He was happy and well cared for. I took a lot of time to let them know we don't blame for any of this.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

wow, I so sorry to hear of all of Gibb's issues!! I hope you are able to figure it out soon!!!

I also ALWAYS interupt and distract Tillie when she starts licking anything... it drives my husband crazy and I have to explain for the millionth time that it can easily become obsessive! sigh.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Gibbs Mom and Dad said:


> FYI
> 
> My in-laws are beside themselves and blaming themselves for all of Gibbs problems. I only found out about it when Dana told me her Dad tried to give her money for the Vet's bill. I then found out her mother was crying.
> 
> I called them last night to try and "talk them down". I feel so bad for them. They did us a favor by watching our buddy for 10 days. He was happy and well cared for. I took a lot of time to let them know we don't blame for any of this.


Awww, that's too bad that they blame themselves! Just as with kids, with apuppy, if something can go wrong while you're away, it will!


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