Hi.. Red feet any ideas?

Hi my name is Jennifer. I'm new to here and new to being a handler to the 2 beautiful (in looks and in nature) blue/brindle staffs i have. My boy was bought with an infection in his ear and we have been to the vets and he has had steroid shots and ear drops as i was advised this was due to allergy. Possibly due to environment or food.
I have been giving him the drops everyday, twice a day but his feet are still red!? The infection in his ear is definitely clearing but i don't see any improvement with his feet.

Does anyone know anything that i can do to help him as it must be sore. Its looks sore and when i try to investigate  he pulls his feet away.

Going back to the vets but she was aware this was an issue in the beginning and advised that the feet are affected at around the same time the ears are but considering the medicine has only affected the ear i would like some other advice from owners who have either been through this or understand a little more than me to arm my self with knowledge to get the right treatment at the right time.

Thank you for taking the time to read this

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Hi Jennifer, welcome to the forum from Flo and me

I'm assuming that the red paws are through chewing them? My Flo also chews her rear paws and the vet originally put it down to transferred pain from her knee (the idea being she can't nibble the knee so does the paws instead). We went for the knee op which is now obvious to us that she needed it, however, she still chews her paws

We have tried Thornit powder with some success but it still doesn't stop completely. We have added coconut oil to her food and she has a great coat but she still has a nibble. The vet also tested for allergies and says that she is allergic to grass pollen but to be honest, I'm not convinced.

Her nibbling isn't so bad now so we simply clean her paws after each walk. It may be that you need a combination of things to solve the issue but if you happen across another remedy please share

hia from me and sasha i hope your vet gets to the bottom of her condition

Hi Ian & Stella

Thank you for your replies.
I guess it might be to do with the grass! Prior to me his last home/s unfortunately meant he was either stuck indoors, taught to fight or in a family home with small yard. the reason i have him now at 2yrs old is to give him a forever home with plenty of space and areas such as parks and playing fields within my location to actually be a dog and hopefully a happy one : D.

He came with an infection in his ear and that's the reason the vet isn't sure of the cause. But i guess that's an option considering he has more outings than he did before and therefore more contact.

I think i need the vet to do an allergy test. To be honest im surprised this wasn't made an option initially. It was just left with time will tell us if its an environmental issue or food.

I think i kind of let the vet intimidate me if i be honest and thats why i didnt push this whilst there. However that can be rectified upon my next visit and until that point i will wash his feet after every walk and look into the Thornit powder as that may help his feet aswell.
The steroid shots and eardrops seem to be targeting only the ear.

I appreciate your advice as atleast this has sent me into other directions to help my boy.

Hi from Una and me!

Hiya from me and Vinnie, diet and allergy can cause these symptoms, tbh my boy at this time of year is awful eyes ears and paws due to grass and tree pollen, I do give him half a piriton every day for a few weeks and does seem to help a bit along with the thornit and coconut oil

hi & welcome.

tge thornit may help, but i wouldn't use it while you're using meds from the vet - you never know if the two will clash!

the feet might be due to grass SAP. So many grassy areas are being mown this time of year & the sap can really irritate. i'd bathe his feet in salt water & dry thoroughly after walks & give Piriton tablets - half, twice a day.

Hi from me and mine! Well done on the rescue, it sounds like he needs a bit of TLC.

It's also possible that his feet just haven't hardened due to lack of exercise. When we got Chaos we had quite a few problems with his feet as he'd not been walked much and at the rescue centre had only been walked on grass, so as soon as we started going on roads and harder tracks his pads couldn't cope. It was a question of building up harder surfaces gradually, now he's fine.

Hi and welcome to the forum from me and the zoo xx

Your poor boy but congrats on the rescue well done you!

Have you thought about hiking shoes?  Sounds daft I know but there are companies that do hiking or normal shoes for dogs to help with sore pads?  This might help during the dealing process?

http://www.dogquality.co.uk/products/grippers?gclid=CjwKEAjwp-S6BRDj4Z7z2IWUhG8SJAAbqbF37-SH2Hbpz3kLXhY1S0h6OOk4M6BjhQt0cmg8I246axoChjzw_wcB

Thank you ALL really, Thank you Ian, TwoSocks, Inez Maria, gillybrent, Liz P and VikkiGT4



If you can get through my long replies there's a surprise about my beautiful lad at the end. It was a real hum dinga for me when I found out.



Tbh, All of you have hit on something.



LizP . All my life (At the grand age of 29 lol) we have always had family dogs from pups and we too noted that straight away his paws hadn't hardened. and you've picked up on that also due to past experience with chaos (loved the name) so would be interested in discussing that more with you hun. considering he's two its a bad sign especially when you put that with large nails.



But we have a huge playing fields near us with some paths (with parks close) and I also walk him to shops and school etc to have him on pavement and It sure cut his nails down quick too : D



Also the vet did say he was overweight and I could agree due to food being chubb roll and being fed a whole one per day along with dry food twice a day and possibly food from children so when we started walks he couldn't go far and he refused to go further. He's now on a high exercise low food intake diet. But the vet wasn't very helpful with that side of things and offering advice so any advice is really welcomed : D xx



I've removed the chubb roll because since he came to me a whole month ago he's had loose stools all this time. I didn't want to change too much initially as he had already been through so many changes so didn't change his food but the last week he has been on dried pedigree adult vital protection only and I'm praying this helps his digestion as well as the smells... (I get staffs can be stinky at times but this is too often and too bad for it to be ok)



gillybrent, Your right about not mixing medication and on discussions with my aunt who works at a pet shop she also advised piriton but when I asked the vets they advised me they do use this for dogs however do not give it to him unless they say and prescribe the dosage..



Funny because when we went to appointment he was given steroid shot and eardrops (10 per day twice aday) which is a fight with my big lad right after the 3rd drop. I must admit I didn't stand up and ask for piriton in the discussion so I hold my blame too but I did iniate that conversation but never got a reply only other remedies such as steroid shots being better. I think I need to do that also as today I was tickling his chin and found he has lumps under his chin and in the night he must of been scratching that's made it more pronounced and red.



So will definitely get that for him too thanks Inez Maria and gillybrent. Salty water baths which I will try to minimize to just feet level as he is not a fan of baths lol will also be part of the routine if only to minimize his discomfort/pain. Tried the wiping his feet with sterile water from kettle and quarter of a cap of Dettol in water as advised by a friend but he pulls too much and I really don't want to hurt him so I stopped and ended up just sticking his feet in bowl for a few seconds or until he moves it and then sit with him for ages after, apologising with strokes and cuddles. Ok and kisses too. Yes! I kiss my dogs.



VikkiGT4 I don't think that sounds daft at all and its definitely something I will look into. If no contact means it will help than I will try but I just cant help wanting to find a solution where he can be a dog and have the grass in his feet and run inhibited and have no issues at all. Still a good idea though especially as your looking at it as a part solution to help in the meantime and I will keep in mind but I think if I'm going to help him I want one direct way but this is a good option if that cant be the case.



Ian, Out of interest what was it that made the vet think that your little girl needed a knee op and that you felt it was right afterwards. Just interested in future signs because I think everything with my boy points to allegies and I think more so environmental but if this issue is solved and in the future he nibbles his feet again I don't want it to be put straight down to allergies if there is other options to watch for.

Ok Guys and now the surprise bare with me whilst typing. Long story but I'm going to try to cut it short (which i have problems with lol)

You have covered everything tbh and just to say had this for sometime with Vinnie but by trial and error it did come good ,,,,, its so frustrating I know as you do feel its exhausting, Vinnies seemed to be predominantly his diet so is now on grain free along with the Viacutin plus oil fo9r sometime on his food made so much difference, and as said this time of year the piriton does help,,,,, I am a bit dubious of too many steroids tbh

What was the surprise? x

hi there and welcome from me and mia its important to look at your dogs diet and possibility of what your dogs diet consists of and what could be causing the allergy ie meats cereals or anything else wash and dry his feet after each walk as above id also discuss alternative medications with your vet as the steroids may not be effective long term and antibiotics work much same as they do with humans and are only effective for so long. dnt give any medication unless advised by a vet blue staffied are prone to allergies . coconut milk is good for skin as are all white fish. oatmeal shampoo and aloe vera and teatree are all great for dogs with allergies.

Jennifer86 wrote:

Ian, Out of interest what was it that made the vet think that your little girl needed a knee op and that you felt it was right afterwards. Just interested in future signs because I think everything with my boy points to allegies and I think more so environmental but if this issue is solved and in the future he nibbles his feet again I don't want it to be put straight down to allergies if there is other options to watch for.

Ok Guys and now the surprise bare with me whilst typing. Long story but I'm going to try to cut it short (which i have problems with lol)

The vets first reaction was transferred pain which I can understand but still dubious about. Flo had xrays done on both legs and the vet showed us the comparison between the two knees. Her right rear clearly had an issue but the left not so much so. We opted for the right one to be done (which should have been under insurance but wasn't in the end due to the vet being a little too honest) and after lengthy rest all was fine but I wasn't convinced that she needed it until more recently.

When she runs she is slightly lop sided and shows far more strength with the knee that was fixed over the other one. She shows no sign of pain I.E. limping etc but it just doesn't look as strong. I have toyed with the idea of getting the left knee done but at 10 years I'm not sure I want to put her through that unless absolutely necessary

Jennifer86 wrote:

LizP . All my life (At the grand age of 29 lol) we have always had family dogs from pups and we too noted that straight away his paws hadn't hardened. and  you've picked up on that also due to past experience with chaos (loved the name) so would be interested in discussing that more with you hun. considering he's two its a bad sign especially when you put that with large nails.  



But we have a huge playing fields near us with some paths (with parks close) and I also walk him to shops and school etc to have him on pavement and It sure cut his nails down quick too : D

Chaos was about 11 months old when we got him, so not a pup either. We had to go easy on hard surfaces for a while, building up over a couple of months or so as his feet hardened. He's now no different to any other dog (foot wise!). We're on holiday in France at the moment and doing 2-3 walks a day, 6-7km each, on any surface you like including stony forest tracks and he's fine.

If Rango's worn his claws quickly too, it might be that you need to build up as well. There may be something else going on, not just walking, but it won't hurt to do more soft surfaces than hard and then increase the hard surfaces over the coming weeks.