Licking excessively

[Yourownpersonaljesus]

My dog has been licking her paws excessively for quite a while now but it seems to have got worse over the past week and they look pink and sore. She is old and has lots of warts and licks them too. I have been to the vets and he gave me cream for the warts and recommended trying Piriton, which I have but it hasn’t made any difference. I will make another appointment but in the meantime has anyone tried anything you can buy that I could try before another expensive vet trip? Thank you.

Try Mushers Secret paw wax to heal pads. You might need those little slipper socks with Velcro to stop licking it off. Maybe overnight.

Thanks for the reply. Sorry I should have said, it’s not the paw pads, it’s the front of the paw right at the bottom of the leg (not sure if that makes sense).

Aw yes. The little slipper socks might still help. You can get ones with Velcro so they don’t slip off.

The only thing that has helped with my dog paw chewing is zenrelia from the vet. We tried socks but he just pulled them off. He mostly chewed in the evening so I would wash his feet about 6 in the evening (and after every walk) which did help a bit. But as soon as he started on zenrelia he stopped chewing and scratching completely.

I wonder if she needs blood tests. I think I'm right in saying that warts are caused by a virus and her body is presumably not able to successfully fight that virus. Might be something else going on is what I'm thinking.
How old is she?

Thanks for your replies @redboxer321 and @zobalina77 . I think I do need to make an appointment with the vet soon then. She’s 13 and the vet said the warts are quite normal for her age and not anything to worry about. It might just be that the general itchiness is affecting them. I put some warm water and Hibiscrub in a very shallow bath this morning to clean her paws and then rinsed them with clean water to see if that eased it a bit. I think it has slightly though she’s been asleep most of the time since then so it’s hard to tell!

Licking is soothing. She may be in pain somewhere else and licking to make herself feel better. Her paws may not be the primary problem. They are gettting red and pink from the licking rather than a paw issue.

You are right to be making a vet appointmen soon.

It could be anxiety. Our lovely DDog started to do this a lot in the later years, to the point that his paws started getting sore. It was connected to dementia. But I should add he lived for a good long while after we first noticed it. He lived to 18.

Have a look at the Cooper and Gracie range OP, it really soothed our dog's itchy skin and feet and she no longer has to be on antihistamine medication.

www.cooperandgracie.co.uk/collections/skin-coat-care

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply all. @AnewlifeintheCountry and @Booleanb I’ll call the vets on Monday to make an appointment. @Wellbeing24 I’ll take a look at that range. What exactly do you use?

The spray and the cream mainly but the shampoo is also good and their products don't irritate already sore skin. It saved ££££ from really expensive vet visits and prescriptions, definitely worth a try OP 💐

This spray?
https://www.cooperandgracie.co.uk/products/dead-sea-anti-bacterial-anti-fungal-dog-spray-250ml-soothes-itchy-skin-naturally

Just found this one.
https://www.cooperandgracie.co.uk/products/c-g-antibacterial-anti-fungal-dog-spray

Ours did this. It turned out that he had a grain intolerance which was affecting his skin including paws. We switched to a grain free diet and haven’t had the problem since. Obviously this is only anecdotal but something to consider

Your dog may be bored. Or feeling nauseous.

Thanks @ValleyofHumiliation . She’s on this food which is grain free. She has pancreatitis so has to have a very low fat diet. Thanks for replying though. Glad your dog is okay now.
www.fish4dogs.com/superior-salmon-senior

One of my dogs has been to the vet recently with this very issue.
It was caused by full anal glands which the vet expressed. She was prescribed a short course of steroids to reduce the inflammation and the vet suggested bathing her affected foot in Epsom salts. it all seems to be working well so far and relatively cheap !

Both a possibility @Cruftsrecommended .

Also possible @Commercialflightrreadytoland . She hasn’t had hers emptied for ages.