Itchy feet

corbinam

corbinam

Moderator
Lexi has been biting and licking at her feet for the past couple weeks. The same thing happened last year at this same time.

I know there are a million posts about this topic, but I have a question. We have tried everything short of steroids. We've tried Benadryl, Claritin, foot rinses, etc. Nothing seems to help.

I've talked to our vet who suggested a round of steroids. I'm a little hesitant only because I'd rather not go to something that strong if I don't have to. But obviously what we are doing isn't working.

So my question is this--what are the risks with steroids? Is it something that will most likely help her? Would you do it with your dog?
 
We had the same thing happen 3 years in a row except it was mid May.
Itching, biting her feet and scratching her ears....in our case the vet thought it was a seasonal allergy. We tried Benadryl and it did absolutely nothing, then switched to Zyrtec and it worked! Maybe check again with your vet

~Karol
 
We had the same problem with Hollie one year. We did put her on steroids and it did help. But I didn't like it. They made her very thirsty and made her pee all the time. She even peed in the house which was something she would never do. I know that is a side effect of the steroids and it did make her better but I would only do it if nothing else works.
 
Steroids in dogs can have the same affects that they do in humans, Side effects can range from Cushing's disease to diabetes to, to enlarge trunk area.
 
karol said:
We had the same thing happen 3 years in a row except it was mid May.
Itching, biting her feet and scratching her ears....in our case the vet thought it was a seasonal allergy. We tried Benadryl and it did absolutely nothing, then switched to Zyrtec and it worked! Maybe check again with your vet

~Karol
Click to expand...

I was going to suggest a different type of allergy pill also. I know Zyrtec seems to work a lot better for most people I know (including myself) than Claritin. Also, if you do try Zyrtec and it works, buy the generic at Costco, it's just as good (trust me, I know! LOL). Oh wait. It's like 365 pills. Nevermind. If it's seasonal, getting it at Target or something may be more worth your while. I have a coupon if you'd like it. LOL. $5 off.

Also, just wondering, when you did the foot rinse, did you do it every time she came back into the house? I ask, because once I started doing that for Miko, it helped a lot!!! I did the baking soda/water soak bit.

My other suggestion is....booties. Put them on for the "quick potty walks" then do the paw washing if you're out longer or all day (trial or out and about town, etc). Because it's summer, booties are hard to do for long periods of time, that's why I'm suggesting it for quick potty walks. Don't want them overheating.

It sounds like it's more seasonal versus something she's picking up from the grass. I mean, I just noticed that they put some sort of fertilizer on the grass (looks like those Miracle Grow pellets). And of course, now Miko is starting to bite at his feet. I may have to rinse his feet then start using the booties. Poor dog.

BTW, I honestly wouldn't do steroids until I exhausted everything else. Try booties. Try a different allergy pill. Use booties.

Good luck. I totally understand the un-funness of this (one reason I will stay out of GA during Spring always!). For me personally and dealing with Miko.
 
k9kreationz said:
I was going to suggest a different type of allergy pill also. I know Zyrtec seems to work a lot better for most people I know (including myself) than Claritin. Also, if you do try Zyrtec and it works, buy the generic at Costco, it's just as good (trust me, I know! LOL). Oh wait. It's like 365 pills. Nevermind. If it's seasonal, getting it at Target or something may be more worth your while. I have a coupon if you'd like it. LOL. $5 off.

Also, just wondering, when you did the foot rinse, did you do it every time she came back into the house? I ask, because once I started doing that for Miko, it helped a lot!!! I did the baking soda/water soak bit.

My other suggestion is....booties. Put them on for the "quick potty walks" then do the paw washing if you're out longer or all day (trial or out and about town, etc). Because it's summer, booties are hard to do for long periods of time, that's why I'm suggesting it for quick potty walks. Don't want them overheating.

It sounds like it's more seasonal versus something she's picking up from the grass. I mean, I just noticed that they put some sort of fertilizer on the grass (looks like those Miracle Grow pellets). And of course, now Miko is starting to bite at his feet. I may have to rinse his feet then start using the booties. Poor dog.

BTW, I honestly wouldn't do steroids until I exhausted everything else. Try booties. Try a different allergy pill. Use booties.

Good luck. I totally understand the un-funness of this (one reason I will stay out of GA during Spring always!). For me personally and dealing with Miko.
Click to expand...

Re: The baking soda/warm water foot soak for itchy paws. Only once or twice a day the most. (The second time would be right before bed)
 
Tully has the same problem with allergy to grass and used to chew her feet to bits. I've done the steroid shots - watch out, they are in extreme hunger and you have to lock everything away. They did work for about a month and I only go them at the worst part of the season. I also tried them in tablet form but they weren't as effective as the shot and still made her extremely hungry.

I tried all of the newer anti-histamines but none really worked that well for her. In the end it's the old Phenergan that worked best (which is interesting for me because I find the older antihistamines work better for me, not phenergan though as I'd never stay awake). At first it made her drowsy but she got used to that. She could have up to 1 tablet a day but I prefer to give her 1/4 in the morning and 1/4 in the afternoon - before our walks. That protocol worked well last year and we've just hit allergy season so I'll see if it works again this year.

As a matter of interest, when are you giving the antihistamine? The best time to give it is at least 1/2hr before they go onto the grass or outside (or go near whatever makes them allergic), otherwise the histamines build up and it becomes much harder to get them down again. That's why I prefer to give her a smaller dose twice a day.
 
very mild, lowest dosage steroid pills, worked wonders for Toffee for a few weeks during such an outbreak, if you wait too long and Lexi is chewing off all the fur off her feet like Toffee did one year wouldn't befun at all, I imagine

I'd do it again if I had to, when nothing else helped.. thus far knock on wood, we didn't need it last year or this year...
 
My Storm had the same problem this summer, my vet recommended Hydrocortisone Spray, it did the job, but have to apply a couple of times a day.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top