Use a Moisturizer or Balm to Keep Your Dog's Paws Supple
If dryness is the reason for your dog licking its paws, then a simple moisturizer or balm might be the best solution to stop this dog behavior.
Your dog may stop licking with one taste of apple cider vinegar. Applying an apple cider vinegar solution to your dog's paws can be a temporary fix while you get to the root of the problem. Massage a 50/50 mix of apple cider vinegar and warm water into your dog's paws.
If your dog has itchy paws, allergies may be the cause. Allergies are common and can be caused by the environment, food, or an irritant that comes into contact with your dog's skin. Redness, dark pigmentation, or brown staining on the paws from constant licking may be signs of allergies.
Treatments may include topical therapy such as shampoo washes, foot soaks, or wipes for secondary bacterial and yeast infections. Oral antibiotics and anti-fungals may be required for more severe cases.
Yeast infections (yeast dermatitis) often affect the skin between a dog's toes and other skin folds, as seen in itching, redness, a greasy discharge, and occasionally a brown discoloration of the dog's toenails. You may notice excessive licking and red toenail beds in your dog's feet, which comes from the licking.
Paw inflammations often arise from different kinds of infections. These can either be bacterial, fungal, parasitic, or viral in nature. Examples of these conditions include: Bacteria – pyoderma, furunculosis, staphylococcus, pseudomonas, actinobacillosis, actinomycosis, mycobacteriosis, nocardiosis.
If the paw pads and feet appear normal, the licking could be due to a skin condition (dermatitis), which often is the result of bacterial problems, allergies, or food sensitivities. Your dog could develop dermatitis by being allergic to chemicals used in your yard, deicing products, or certain types of grass or weeds.
To apply betadine on your dog, gently wipe the wound with a washcloth saturated with the betadine solution. You can do this up to twice a day for minor sores or skin infections. One great thing about Betadine is that it is completely harmless if it's ingested.
How do I Treat My Dog's Irritated Paws? ACV will soothe the irritation on paws that are infected by bacteria due to excessive licking and scratching. Soak the paws of your pooch in two-part water to one part Apple Cider Vinegar bath for 5 minutes.
Dogs lick their paws as part of self-grooming routines, however excessive licking could be a red flag. While paw licking is a common behaviour, some additional reasons your dog is licking their paw include anxiety, stress, obsessive behaviour, flea allergies or boredom.
Prevent Your Dog From Licking The Injured Paw
Many clients ask us if they should let their dog lick his cut paw. Although some licking can help to kill bacteria, excessive licking can cause the wound to reopen and potentially become infected. You should not let your dog lick his cut paw.
Savlon's Antiseptic cream is a form of topical medication that can be used for minor-wound care and cuts. It helps with the healing process and prevents infections from developing. If there is a scrape or cut on your dog's skin, you should be able to use this over-the-counter antiseptic cream as a one-off.
Apply a non-stinging antiseptic solution to the area. Chlorhexidine is cheap, extremely effective, and readily available. A 2% solution limits tissue irritation, but 4% solutions are also commonly used. Povidone-iodine solution is another good option.
If your dog has cuts or wounds, or yeast (if your pet's feet smell like corn chips), Betadine® is the very best solution. If your pet's paws are just irritated, consider adding chamomile tea bags to the soak water, which has natural soothing properties.
If a yeast infection is present in the paws (one of the most common areas), the paws will become red and itchy, and there may even be a brown discharge present in the nail beds. Dogs with a yeast infection in their paws may lick their paws more than normal, and hair loss may occur as a result.
Sudocrem. This can be used in dogs and cats in small amounts. Sudocrem contains zinc-oxide which is highly toxic to birds. Zinc-oxide is also toxic to dogs and cats if ingested in large quantities, but applying a thin layer of sudocrem to sore or irritated skin is generally safe and can be beneficial.
If you think your dog may have an allergy or a small cut, consider checking and cleaning their paws thoroughly to see if the redness subsides. However, always call your veterinarian for a physical examination if symptoms persist or worsen.
When dogs lick their paws excessively, a build-up of porphyrins from the saliva turns the fur around the area pink or rusty red. Over time, the stains can turn a darker brown. While the staining is only unsightly, excessive licking is often a sign of an underlying medical or behavioral issue.
Paw pads can take anywhere from 14 to 21 days to heal, but it depends on the wound and the reason for the bleeding. Deeper punctures will take longer to heal than cracked, dry paw pads and may require your dog to take it easy for a few days so as to not put too much pressure on the paw.
Once injured, paw pads heal slower than other areas of the body. Even a small cut can take weeks or months to fully heal because dogs continually bear weight on their paws, which causes healing skin to tear, reopening wounds.
Because of its antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, apple cider vinegar can help soothe the skin and eliminate possible irritants that may be causing the dog to lick.