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bonami
03-Apr-10, 21:05
I own a 11yr old Shetland Collie which has in the last few months started chewing its paws and front legs to the extent that it is now through to the flesh. I have been at the vet who more or less said there is little that can be done about this problem. I have also talked to other dog owners who have the same problem and they say it is just something you have to put up with. Has anyone any ideas?

neepnipper
03-Apr-10, 21:32
Pets at Home sell an anti-chew spray which is ok to use on a dog, although not on an open wound, or how about putting an elizabetahn collar on for a few days, it may of just become a habit and this may break the cycle.

I'm surprised the vets arn't more helpful, found this for you, hope it helps.


A dog may chew his own paws for a variety of reasons. The most common are:



He has an allergy and his paws are itchy. It could be his food or environment. Have you laid a new carpet recently or made any other changes to his environment that could explain it?

He may have dermatitis. Yes, dogs get dermatitis as well.

He has cut or scraped his pads. Our rottweiler bitch Kira is always doing this with her front paws. She will then lick and chew at them until they are raw. We disinfect the area, which also tends to stop her from licking it so much! Then on walks, we boot her (Muttluks) until it heals.

He is stressed. Symptoms of stress in a dog include panting and salivating, diarrhoea, relieving himself in the house, excessive scratching or licking and loss of appetite.

He is bored. If a dog spends most of his time alone either in the house or in a yard, he can become so distressed that he will start to chew on his own paws :(
If there is no obvious sign of injury, I would suggest your first port of call should be your vet. He will be able to diagnose any physical problem and give you appropriate advice.

If your dog is stressed, can you think of any obvious reasons? Have you moved house, is your dog being teased by children, has there been any change of your dog's routine or circumstances? If you still can't explain your dog's behaviour, consider contacting a professional dog handler to advise you.

If your dog is stressed because he's on his own most of the time, then consider getting someone to come in 2-3 times a day to walk and keep him company. It is cruel to keep social animals like dogs away from human (pack) company for long periods of time. How would you like it!

Remember, your first stop should be to visit your vet. Once you know it's nothing physical, then you can start to look at your dogs lifestyle and make any adjustments you find necessary. Also, the quicker you get treatment, the quicker your dog will recover. Don't leave the problem and just hope it gets better as it usually doesn't. It gets worse!

Sarah
03-Apr-10, 22:46
We 'dogsat' a springer spaniel who would always chew her feet when she came to our house, without fail, everytime. We figured out it was the Shake n Vac we used on the carpet, as soon as we stopped using it, she stopped chewing her paws!

Liz
03-Apr-10, 22:48
I would highly recommend bathing the affected areas with a saline solution (one teaspoon of salt to a pint of boiling water then allowed to cool) and then follow this with Colloidal Silver.

Thankfully none of my Shelties have suffered from this problem although I know it is quite common with the breed.

Actually, a friend's Sheltie has this problem just now and I recommended the saline solution and colloidal silver which she has used and it has really cleared up.

Another thing which is really good to use on their paws after walks is Petkin Paw Wipes which you can get from Pets At Home.

If this doesn't help please get in touch with me again as there are lots of things to try.:D

kmahon2001
03-Apr-10, 23:27
I have the same problem with Milo. He licks and chews between his pads all the time. He even uses the back of his front legs to rub between the toes and pads on his back paws. It took a while to realise he wasn't scratching his front legs, but actually scratching between his toes and pads on his back paws.

It got really bad just after that load of snow we had in Dec/Jan had melted and so I had him up the vets with it - they said it could be an allergy and there's not much can be done. I started soaking his paws in warm water whenever we came back from a walk and the itching seemed to calm right down. Then the snow came back and all was well, no itching at all - didn't have to rinse his paws at all when the snow was down. Even when that second lot of snow melted, the problem didn't come back and I thought whatever it was had resolved itself until about a week or so ago when he started licking his paws again.

Corby seems fine - no itching at all, so it seems to me it probably is an allergy Milo has that Corby doesn't.

Could there be something being used on the land around here - some kind of pesticide or fertilizer or whatever, that dogs are allergic to?

Rictina
03-Apr-10, 23:49
We 'dogsat' a springer spaniel who would always chew her feet when she came to our house, without fail, everytime. We figured out it was the Shake n Vac we used on the carpet, as soon as we stopped using it, she stopped chewing her paws!


Yes I have heard this too with shake n vac, & also with febreeze.

fuzzypeg
04-Apr-10, 08:50
i had a rottie that always chewed her feet to the extent of ripping off her pads . my vet at the time said it was arthritis which was causing her trouble so we started to treat her with anti-inflammatories. she had to also put vaseline on her feet and wear little boots for a while. but it soon worked ,and although she had little flare ups now and then she was fine with another few days of tablets.

Liz
04-Apr-10, 12:57
There can be quite a few reasons why dogs will like and/or chew their feet and it can take some detective work to find out what is causing it.

All my dogs had problems in the Summer and discovered that it was nettles which were the culprit. Bathing in Aloe Vera Juice really helped or rubbing it with a dockin leaf.

Even a piece of grit or sand etc can set up an irritation. This is why I find the paw wipes after a walk to be so good.

The homeopathic remedy Sulphur is good for stopping itching.

bonami
04-Apr-10, 21:10
Thanks for all the replies. Tried most of them and the vet didnt recommend a collar says it makes a dog very nervous which leads to more problems. Tried washing his feet in salt and water but would be interested to know more about collidal silver mentioned by Liz must say I have never heard of it.

Liz
04-Apr-10, 22:13
I would never be without colloidal silver Bonami as it so useful for both humans and animals. Even plants!

The best I have found at the most reasonable price is available from www.ripley-wrinkles.com

If you do try it please let me know how you get on.