German Shepherds Forum banner

Paw and leg chewing

6K views 2 replies 3 participants last post by  onyx'girl 
#1 ·
My boy Hank has been chewing his paws and the back of his back legs and around the base of his tail, a lot. Hank is 16 months old now and been on antibiotics 3 times now for infections from his chewing. His vet says allergies....to grass or food, (but doesn't seem to be too concerned) We haven't seen grass in 4+ months. I've changed his food, he now eats lamb and rice and was doing so well, but now he's back to his itching. He gets a bath every 2 months with oatmeal shampoo. He also takes Benadryl. Sometimes I wonder if this may be an anxiety thing as well? Help!
 
#2 ·
I think it is more like a nasty cycle. The dog chews to get relief - he chews the hair off - when the hair grows back - it itches - so he chews again. I know my Sting had it this spring - a little scratch on his front leg - I thought for sure some type of allergy - because his case was not severe and more textbook case of compulsive behavior - the vet said that is what it was. I did get a bitter spray - it has tea tree oil in to promote healing but I also worked on redirecting. When he would chew - I would make a sound - when he looked up - I would praise him - also I would give him his bear to chew on - it worked - his skin is all cleared up now. The spray I used was Natural Touch Chew Not for Dogs. I also gave him HomeoPet Skin & Itch drops.
 
#3 · (Edited)
I would look into using this:
https://online.zoetis.com/US/EN/Products/Pages/apoqueldvm/Index.aspx
When Onyx was on pred for her ear hematoma, her habit of licking her abdomen ceased. The skin cleared up because she wasn't constantly licking herself. I hate pred, and it was a last resort for her. But it stopped that one habit. She still licks her paws but not so much right now(no pollens yet to get her aggrevated) But she is allergic to dust mites, so I know licking the paws is probably due to that(I give her natural vitamin C and benedryl)

I'm thinking about going with the allergy oral drops/she has already been tested thru Heska lab. But the apoquel is something I'm looking into as well. It is an Rx but looks affordable.
Humidity in the home helps and the supplement of omega 3 oils daily also keep the skin and coat healthy. If your air is dry, the dog feels it!
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top