# Chewing at his feet?



## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

My dog chewed his feet to death until I put him a on a grain free food... Your dog is definitely exhibiting some sort of allergy.. I would definitely think about switching his food to something a little less grain heavy (The food you mentioned is grain HEAVY). Something you can get at a Petco is Natural Balance.. they have many great grain free formulas that many with allergic dogs have great success with. One that comes to mind is Sweet Potato and Venison... another is a Potato and Duck formula. Good luck!!


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

Its really hard to say exactly what it is until you have some time to notice a pattern. 

Lucky will get itchy raw feet and be more inclined to get ear infections during the spring months when the grass and ground is wet. His feet are perfectly fine most of the summer (when things are parched) and during the winter. So for him its either chiggers or yeast....whatever flourishes during the warmer wet times.


IN the winter and late fall, I have a mostly problem free boy. So in short FOR HIM food isn't the issue.

If you want to try a different food, get one with very few ingredients. Purina Lamb and rice has a whole bunch of ingredients so its not considered an "allergy" type food.

When Lucky gets raw between his toes that means he's making it worse with his licking. I either use some panalog between his toes and put one of my kids sock on his foot or I give him him prednesone (sp?) for a couple of days. Prednesone is not something I like to give as it has side effects but it brings down the inflamation and sometimes that is all that is needed.

I know that when they are so uncomfortable to lick their feet raw it just kills us to watch. I hope you get it resolved soon.


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## Victorialands (Dec 2, 2008)

I would look into switching his food. You may have to try a few different ones, what works for some dogs may not work for yours. Since he is new I may also suggest anxiety. That is what my trianer told me it could be when Sasha started that, but when I switched her food she was fine. It is a sign of it though, any kind of self distruction can be axiety driven.


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## cmichele (Jan 16, 2009)

When Leila got her 2nd puppy shots she had been chewing her feet like crazy. Whining and everything. I told the vet about it and asked about allergies. I was all stressed about changing her food. It turns out she had a banana Cheerio stuck in her paw. I felt like such a ditz.

Good luck!


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

cmichele said:


> When Leila got her 2nd puppy shots she had been chewing her feet like crazy. Whining and everything. I told the vet about it and asked about allergies. I was all stressed about changing her food. It turns out she had a banana Cheerio stuck in her paw. I felt like such a ditz.



LOL!! Well um.. atleast you figured out the problem before making any drastic changes


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## Finn's Fan (Dec 22, 2007)

Wisconsin in winter shouldn't crate environmental allergies from the great outdoors, I wouldn't think. I would try a food switch (I agree that Natural Balance Venison and Sweet Potato might be a good one to try) but also check the surfaces that Benny is on indoors. Do you have any wool rugs? Wool can make some dogs have itchy feet. Have you washed his bedding in a detergent with lots of scent added? That can be the culprit for some dogs. If you do switch foods, give it more than a few weeks to see changes. In the meantime, you might soak his feet in an Aveeno bath or some other soothing treatment and put an elizabethan collar or socks on him to prevent bleeding. Good luck....it can be very frustrating getting to the bottom of the itchies.


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## Celeigh (Nov 29, 2007)

I don't live in the snow, but could it be salt from deicing? I hear that is very irritating and must be washed off. Also how old is Benny? How much Benedryl did you give? Generally they can have as much as 1mg per pound of dog.


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## RavenWolf (Feb 20, 2009)

Finn's Fan said:


> Wisconsin in winter shouldn't crate environmental allergies from the great outdoors, I wouldn't think. I would try a food switch (I agree that Natural Balance Venison and Sweet Potato might be a good one to try) but also check the surfaces that Benny is on indoors. Do you have any wool rugs? Wool can make some dogs have itchy feet. Have you washed his bedding in a detergent with lots of scent added? That can be the culprit for some dogs. If you do switch foods, give it more than a few weeks to see changes. In the meantime, you might soak his feet in an Aveeno bath or some other soothing treatment and put an elizabethan collar or socks on him to prevent bleeding. Good luck....it can be very frustrating getting to the bottom of the itchies.


I can't think of anything in the house that would make him itchy, I have all hard wood flooring. he's aloud up on the couch and the foot of the bed so he doesn't have his own bed yet... He couldn't be allergic to the cats could he? (Sorry if that's a stupid question)



Celeigh said:


> I don't live in the snow, but could it be salt from deicing? I hear that is very irritating and must be washed off. Also how old is Benny? How much Benedryl did you give? Generally they can have as much as 1mg per pound of dog.


Benny is a little over a year and a half, and the vet said I could give him up to 50mg. So far him getting hyper seems to be an isolated incident, as he has been OK the last couple of times. I think I'll look into the Natural Balance food.


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## K9 Passion (Jan 2, 2009)

Remember, even when switching foods, those allergens from the previous food/treats can remain in the system for 3-6 months, so don't expect to see an immediate change - patience is important. And, if you do choose a grain-free food, you would want to eliminate EVERYTHING else in ther diet that may contain grains. I do not agree with the suggestion of Natural Balance, but that is all I will say so I don't upset people.

Gluten, which is found in grains, is something that many people & dogs are allergic to. There are so many factors that need to examined when trying to pinpoint potential allergy problems. Best wishes.

P.S. Put an e-collar on the head to prevent biting at the paws until you can determine the root cause. It will prevent the skin from becoming more aggravated from biting/licking at them.


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

K9 Passion said:


> I do not agree with the suggestion of Natural Balance, but that is all I will say so I don't upset people.



Curious why not? I mainly suggested it because I know its a fairly easy to come-by food that can be found at Petco rather than a specialty holistic type store, that I know many dogs find allergy symptom relief with, but have never fed myself, so perhaps there's something better you can recommend?


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## K9 Passion (Jan 2, 2009)

missmarstar said:


> Curious why not? I mainly suggested it because I know its a fairly easy to come-by food that can be found at Petco rather than a specialty holistic type store, that I know many dogs find allergy symptom relief with, but have never fed myself, so perhaps there's something better you can recommend?


I will not make any recommendations, but one of the reasons why I do not like the Natural Balance Duck/Potato is because it's *WAY TOO LOW* in protein & fat for extended feeding. I don't mind when it's fed as a transitionary/temporary food, but it is not ideal for extended feeding. One of my clients went back to this food due to cost & I told her how important it is to supplement their daily meals with additional sources of protein (eggs, raw bones, etc.) & fat (organic extra virgin coconut oil). 

Per my veterinary medical books that I used to complete my canine nutrition program, the average family dog should consume a food containing at least 25/26% protein & at least 15/16% fat. Natural Balance Duck/Potato contains 21% protein & 10% fat. That is a huge red flag for me - huge. That food just doesn't contain enough meat, which is why it's fairly inexpensive. I would worry about future problems as a result of protein deficiencies, & fat is very, very important for many reasons...

I don't talk in-depth about nutrition on here because no one wants to hear what I have to say, LOL.


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## RavenWolf (Feb 20, 2009)

K9 Passion said:


> I will not make any recommendations, but one of the reasons why I do not like the Natural Balance Duck/Potato is because it's *WAY TOO LOW* in protein & fat for extended feeding. I don't mind when it's fed as a transitionary/temporary food, but it is not ideal for extended feeding. One of my clients went back to this food due to cost & I told her how important it is to supplement their daily meals with additional sources of protein (eggs, raw bones, etc.) & fat (organic extra virgin coconut oil).
> 
> Per my veterinary medical books that I used to complete my canine nutrition program, the average family dog should consume a food containing at least 25/26% protein & at least 15/16% fat. Natural Balance Duck/Potato contains 21% protein & 10% fat. That is a huge red flag for me - huge. That food just doesn't contain enough meat, which is why it's fairly inexpensive. I would worry about future problems as a result of protein deficiencies, & fat is very, very important for many reasons...
> 
> I don't talk in-depth about nutrition on here because no one wants to hear what I have to say, LOL.


I would be interested! I know nothing about what to look for or what would make one food better than another. It would be nice to know what to look for so I can evaluate different foods and be able to find the best food that I can afford. I know from experience that more expensive or name brand doesn't always mean best product. 

I already have one pet (cat) that, do to a very sensitive stomach, is on an expensive diet. I really can't afford to be paying much more than $20 per bag for dog food. It would be nice to be able to stand in the pet food isle comparing different dog foods and not be confused. 

Since it was said that it takes several months for an allergen to get out of the system, could it have been something the last owners were feeding him?

Also I was wondering, could it also be do to stress? This is the 5th home this poor guy has had in his life (he's only a year and a half) This is going to be his forever home, but he has no way to know that.


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## K9 Passion (Jan 2, 2009)

RavenWolf said:


> ....This is the 5th home this poor guy has had in his life (he's only a year and a half) This is going to be his forever home, but he has no way to know that.


Oh my goodness, that's sooo sad.  I'm glad he's finally found his forever home.


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