Hi All I caught my boy biting/scratching his under paw today. He was really going at it. When I checked it out - it was red and inflamed between his toes. Nothing is apparent on his 3 other paws. I know he was digging up a storm yesterday in the yard. I have washed his paws - however does someone have tricks or something I can do to soothe his paws? His diet has not changed and hasn't been eating anything out of the ordinary. Thanks in Advance.
If the skin is not broken you could bathe his feet in salty water. Epsom or ordinary table salt. If skin is broken salt could sting. Dry thoroughly, hair dryer is good to use. Had he been scratching his ears with his feet? They can transfer ear infection to their feet that way, and vice versa I think, and can react more strongly at the transferred place than at the original place. I wonder too, if there was something in the ground where he was digging. Ants? Fertilizer? Or maybe it's just abrasion?
Hmm....I think these can be caused by tiny grass seeds. Can drive dogs pretty batty. You might need to see the vet. They are sometimes so tiny they are almost impossible to spot.
I would also recommend seeing the vet. A splinter or similar could be the culprit. You won't necessarily see the entry point. It sounds like it is way more irritating/painful than you'd expect mere itchiness to be. Foot wounds are a real pain to manage so the sooner you get a diagnosis the better.
