My dog constantly licks her paws. It is irritating. Why does she do this?

Answer 1

Allergies are one of the most common health problems for dogs. If your dog licks her paws, scratches constantly, or has watery eyes, she may be suffering from allergies.

What you can do:

Have your veterinarian determine if your dog is suffering from food or environmental allergens.
If it’s a food allergy, you’ll eliminate specific items individually to determine the culprit. A hypoallergenic diet is usually recommended.
innova, canidae, wellness, solid gold are good natural foods. The dog is more than likely allergic to the corn in the food. Science diet is not a good food either as it is filled with fillers, so if this is recommended by your vet just remember vets promote this food because they get a 4o percent profit on it and they are pet doctors not nutritionists.

Answer 2

Here are two excellent articles on the subject which you should find helpful.

http://www.usask.ca/wcvm/herdmed/applied-ethology/behaviourproblems/lickderm.html

http://www.lucythewonderdog.com/licking.html

There are several different things that can cause a dog to do this.


1. In my experience, when I've seen a dog that constantly licks the paws or lower part of the front legs all the time, on the front side of the leg, boredom has been the cause.

2. When a dog has licked or chewed and also scratched at a lot of different areas, its often caused by fleas and flea allergy, or other allergies.

3. If a dog is constantly licking at his anal area, its often an anal gland problem.

If you're not sure of the cause, or if the situation is anything except the first one described, then I would advise that you have your vet check your dog for other problems.

If you are pretty sure you're dealing with #1, start giving your dog something to do. Elementary obedience training is an excellent place to start, a great activity for you to do with your dog, which also has the bonus of being able to give you a dog that will come when you call it, stay when you want it to, walk at your side and not be pulling you around, etc.

Vets also sell medicines that you can put on the area of the paws that the dog likes to lick, which taste bad and will help break the habit.

Answer 3

When a dog licks his paws excessively:

Besides limping, another very obvious signal of a lesion is when a dog is constantly licking and biting at his paw trying to alleviate his pain this way. If you notice that your dog only licks at one of his paws, most likely he just has a localized lesion such as a small cut or cyst. However, if both paws are affected, it's possible the dog has a coetaneous allergy and in these cases the dog will need to get several tests such as blood tests, biopsies, etc.

A dog constantly licking at his paw can also cause him to get dermatitis. This usually occurs when a dog constantly licks at one particular part of his body (usually the paw), so much so that he rids that part of his body of hair. As time goes on, the skin forms into an ulcer, and it bulges and changes color.

Excessive licking can be caused because of several factors such as boredom, pain, parasites, as well as different types of allergies. Diagnosing this can be quite difficult, and a complete medical history will need to be done. The treatment depends on the cause of the ailment and it can consist of ointments, creams, or behavior therapy when the problem is psychological. Another problem is if a splinter or a spiked seed gets stuck in the dog's toes, it can gradually get stuck further inside the skin until it is completely inside. Usually this then forms into a cyst or painful and irritating lump, which sometimes pops on its own in order to get rid of the foreign object causing it to secrete and bleed. Cysts must get treated by a veterinarian and in the cases when they are very painful, it will be necessary to anesthetize the dog. After the foreign object has been removed, usually antibiotics need to be given to the dog to avoid infections from occurring

Answer 4

If this has just started then you might want to take a look at his paws and make sure there is nothing stuck in his paw he could have a sliver ,glass etc...He will let you know if it something cause when you touch his paws he might start licking alot or even bite because it is hurting him.

Answer 5

well i have a dog who does this too and she is a white dog so it discolors her fur i asked the vet about this and she thougth it could be an allergy and so the skin is itchy they also might grab a toy and roll their backs over it.thats another sign it could be an allergy to either food or a shampoo or anything pretty much that humans are allergic too . i found that my dog was allergic to the food i was feeding her i switched her food and the problem was solved . hope this helps you

Answer 6

she could be simply grooming o if se does it certain times of the year lickig and nibbling paws can be a sign of allergies.

Answer 7

Dear cant u ask ur dog okie....she cant talk then cant u bring her to see doctor that wud help u n ur sweety

Answer 8

Cats do the same, well at least mine does, That noise is so annoying!

Answer 9

Is she hurt? Something caught in the pad?

Answer 10

my dog does that too!!!! i think she is cleaning them