# Rough/Cracked Paw Pads?



## evildiva (Jul 3, 2011)

I've been feeding my standard poodle puppy raw since I got him at 10 weeks old, he's now 7 months... for a while I've noticed his paw pads have cracks and are a bit rough. I've read this is usually from allergies! Any advice?


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## evildiva (Jul 3, 2011)

I've searched some more and I think it might be because I haven't been giving him fish or egg lately. Anyone have experience with this and if egg/fish helps? How long should they take to heal?


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## malluver1005 (Nov 15, 2009)

You can put bag balm on them, it works great. I supplement Aspen with zinc, as nordic breeds are prone to zinc deficiencies, and his pads are cracked no more. He's been on the zinc for about 2-3 months now...


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## Kat (Jul 12, 2011)

I use organic extra virgin coconut oil for Rubys paws, works SO WELL! Her paws are like baby soft. Especially in the winter time with the salt, I was her paws with warm water, dry, then oil them.


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## LucyinSweden (Feb 20, 2012)

Ooh ooh! I highly recommend Musher's Secret! I purchased it from Amazon UK in a 500g jar. It's amazing. Moisturizing AND protects! If it has been snowing there, it will keep the snow from attaching itself to the fur, and it also protects against all the salt. It's helped my shih tzu during the Swedish winter!


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## IslandPaws4Raw (Sep 7, 2011)

LucyinSweden said:


> Ooh ooh! I highly recommend Musher's Secret! I purchased it from Amazon UK in a 500g jar. It's amazing. Moisturizing AND protects! If it has been snowing there, it will keep the snow from attaching itself to the fur, and it also protects against all the salt. It's helped my shih tzu during the Swedish winter!


Do you think Musher's Secret would work in a different abrasive environment? We don't have snow and ice, but the way Kai skids on the sand to fetch her toy, her pads are always in rough shape. I've had this product in my Amazon cart for a while now, but I wasn't sure if it would work here........ I guess it's worth a shot no matter what


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## xellil (Apr 4, 2011)

malluver1005 said:


> You can put bag balm on them, it works great. I supplement Aspen with zinc, as nordic breeds are prone to zinc deficiencies, and his pads are cracked no more. He's been on the zinc for about 2-3 months now...


I am a Bag Balm fan myself


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## LucyinSweden (Feb 20, 2012)

IslandPaws4Raw said:


> Do you think Musher's Secret would work in a different abrasive environment? We don't have snow and ice, but the way Kai skids on the sand to fetch her toy, her pads are always in rough shape. I've had this product in my Amazon cart for a while now, but I wasn't sure if it would work here........ I guess it's worth a shot no matter what


The package says that it helps with hot sand as well! I've even left it on my hands overnight and it makes them really soft and moisturized.


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## liquid (Dec 28, 2011)

Isnt it better for a dog's paws to be hard/rough/calloused? That way their paws wont be so delicate and easily hurt when outside. I understand cracking is an issue and probably very painful for the dog, but arent soft, squishy paws bad? As in, more prone to injury. At least thats what I always thought! :tongue:


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## greyshadows (Jan 30, 2012)

It could be an allergy, depends how bad it is. Just a little rougher and drier, any of the above things suggested would be great. If it gets worse or bleeds it could be something else. We had a dog whose pads cracked and then bled, within a week they became swollen and she limped. The vet bandaged the paw but after three days it got much worse. We opted to have a biopsy done and it came back as a type of allergy. We immediately stopped feeding her what she was on (it was kibble) and the vet told us to change her diet and give her fish oil every day. Within a week it was almost back to normal and it has never come back. Just keep an eye on it and try some of the above remedies first.:smile: Good luck!


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## evildiva (Jul 3, 2011)

its not severe, its just dry with some shallow cracking, like dry skin. It's worse on his back feet than his front. I'm giving him a teaspoon of cod liver oil daily now as well as an organic egg to see if that helps. I'm getting wax to put on his paws in a few days so hopefully he will be sorted


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## Liz (Sep 27, 2010)

We use cococnut oil on their pads in the evening and it works great and smells nice.


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## malluver1005 (Nov 15, 2009)

liquid said:


> Isnt it better for a dog's paws to be hard/rough/calloused? That way their paws wont be so delicate and easily hurt when outside. I understand cracking is an issue and probably very painful for the dog, but arent soft, squishy paws bad? As in, more prone to injury. At least thats what I always thought! :tongue:


I totally agree with you. A dog should have tough pads...capable of rough terrains. That's how Aspen's are. I don't moisturize them or anything...but sometimes he does get deep cracks in them, usually in summer, and that's when the bag balm comes in handy.


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## stajbs (Jun 5, 2010)

Love the Mushers Secret, but also bag balm, and coconut oil and have used all. Plus with our guys being northern breeds some of whom have issues with zinc absorption, supplementing with zinc helps a lot. I prefer Zinpro because it's more bio-available, and easier on the stomach than some formulas of zinc. When we ran dogs in order to prevent ice balls which can be painful,(one of the reasons mushers use booties on their dogs) the Mushers Secret was awesome, and yes I've also used it on hikes in rough terrain too. I like bag balm if one of the dogs has a superficial cut, I swear they can't manage to lick all of it off no matter how hard they try. Coconut oil I tended to use more rarely because I preferred their pads to be tough, but on occasion I used to do it, and tell the dogs it was their foot message time. lol In fact when mushers began breeding in hounds and other types of dogs for more speed than siberians or malamutes had, they had issues with soft paw pads. Periodically racing kennels will breed back to siberians to keep tougher feet in their lines. Booties are a pain in the butt, and they come off very easily. We have booties but rarely ued them thanks to the tough feet of a siberian.


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## evildiva (Jul 3, 2011)

I'm feeding fish oil every day, sometimes a raw organic egg, and using musher's secret on his paws once a day. Is this enough to heal them? How long should it take for them to heal completely?


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## chilipepper5353 (Nov 28, 2012)

My Lab, Romeo, has been struggling with what I belive is an allergy this year. He is 7, and never before was bothered. Chewing his feet has caused rawness on a pad, which I have been treating with a product call DermaPaw. Good results, but I just purchased Musher's Secret. I have read very good reviews on this product. I am thinking of having some bloodwork for allergy testing, to narrow down what is really going on. I have been feeding "Fresh Pet Select" turkey or chicken for almost a year. After reading other posts, am contemplating feeding both of my dogs Raw. I will, however, do the bloodwork first.


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## monster'sdad (Jul 29, 2012)

Zinc is not easily easily absorbed to begin with and much of the zinc binds with other minerals like calcium for example. That is a reason why low ash diets are so important. Also, legumes contain phytates so if your food contains a lot of peas, beans, lentils, chickpeas etc there is a greater chance of a zinc deficiency. Sadly, protein from legumes is becoming common place now.

It really important that your food contain zinc oxide, zinc sulphate and proteinated zinc. 

Musher's Secret is a good product but I doubt it will help if the dog has a zinc problem.


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