She never stops licking her feet!

[FL Tink]

Originally Posted by TaylorWoods

I feed her Royal Canin Yorkshire Terrier puppy food and it has the following ingreidents in it choline chloride, Trace Minerals [zinc proteinate, zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, manganese proteinate, copper.....

I would think most foods have corn etc in them?

Im going to look into the grass allergy idea because she is outside a lot. and also the anxiety issue because latly she has become very clingy and upset when I go out. Even if i walk outside she has to come with. when i shower she sits outside the door and won't move. She loves my boyfriend too but if she has a choice it's me she wants to be with. I'm concerned it might also have something to do with separation anxiety.

my Bella cane from the breeder on RC. She licked her paws like crazy I switched to grain free holistic food. The Honest Kitchen. Now my lil one is allergic to chicken so I feed primal raw lamb medallions. Both are thriving. Grains cause inflamation. Arthritis. For humans and dogs. I feed grain free because I want my girls to be pain free when they are old.

[BunnysMommy]

Originally Posted by lillymae

Hmmm. I have a silly little guy who is a rescue that went through allot of stress before I got him mostly emotional stress. He used to suck his back foot at bedtime just like a baby sucking it's thumb. Something I noticed is that he gets the Mad Dogs at bedtime as soon as I put him on the bed. I used to make him settle down and he did but then would start sucking his foot. So I put a toy and nylabone on the bed and let him play for a bit till he gets out all his energy then when he lays down and goes for his foot I put my hand over his foot and give him the nylabone. Now he falls asleep with the nylabone instead of with his foot in his mouth. Oh, and his name is Taylor So I'm thinking it's from boredom or stress.

ur a really good trainer taylor is very lucky patient too thats gr8

[Mom to Hot Rod]

this is how we figure Hot Rod was allergic to chicken. Whenever he gets anything with chicken, he starts to lick his paws.

[TaylorWoods]

Originally Posted by dwerten

Are you doing hyposensitization shots or steroid shots?

No I have not taken her to the vet yet - I never even thought about allergies until i posted this. I presumed it was just a habit. But she will be going in soon.

[TaylorWoods]

Originally Posted by capt_noonie

I just realized you are in south africa, so I guess all the other varieties of food would be harder for you to get? There are many foods that do not have corn in them. Did you take a look at the website I linked? Check to see if you can get any of these foods in your area, most of these don't have corn: Five Star Dog Foods

I don't recognise any of those food brands the main ones we get are Royal Canin (which she is on) and the Hills brand. The lady in the shop said that if I can avoid changing her food she reccomends I stick with it because it is breed specific. She is such a fussy eater as it is!

[TaylorWoods]

Well, i decided to watch her carefully last night and keep a note of which foot she was licking and how often. I thought it was just her front feet which i have been told could then means it is more an emotional issue - but last night it was her back feet too. she bites them like they're on fire

I have decided not to change her food just yet until she can see the vet. I will start washing her feet off when she comes in too or wiping them down. and maybe try some socks I saw in the shop the other day.

She is 100% flea free. the lady in the food shop asked if she is treated anyway and she is. I do it regularly just in case she gets fleas. But she always scratches and my boyfriend told me she must have fleas so i told him to find me ONE and he couldnt. she scratches around her collar a lot. her skin on her tummy is fine tho and she has never had a skin problem. as a baby she had the odd little baby pimple on her tummy but the vet said it would be ok and it disappeared in a week or so.

The more i think about it the more i think it's an allergy becasue she is ALWAYS outside in the garden. Last night (much to her horror) i checked between her toes and it was quite red - she was biting her foot as i was trying to check even as if it was really bugging her I plan on phoning the vet just to see what he suggests and maybe trying a homeopathic remedy for now. Any ideas on that?

After reading that site i mentioned earlier i am worried about giving drugs too soon But i really want her to not itch like someone said, the more she bites and scratches the more itchy it will be for her her general skin is clear tho???

are there any shampoos i could use to help? the lady i spoke to yesterday said i must not dip her with tick and flea dip because it might irritate her skin...I did it once and she was spinning and looking around at her body and i rinsed her off straight away and she was fine. So perhaps her skin is not red and inflamed but sensitive?

[TaylorWoods]

Well, i decided to watch her carefully last night and keep a note of which foot she was licking and how often. I thought it was just her front feet which i have been told could then means it is more an emotional issue - but last night it was her back feet too. she bites them like they're on fire

I have decided not to change her food just yet until she can see the vet. I will start washing her feet off when she comes in too or wiping them down. and maybe try some socks I saw in the shop the other day.

She is 100% flea free. the lady in the food shop asked if she is treated anyway and she is. I do it regularly just in case she gets fleas. But she always scratches and my boyfriend told me she must have fleas so i told him to find me ONE and he couldnt. she scratches around her collar a lot. her skin on her tummy is fine tho and she has never had a skin problem. as a baby she had the odd little baby pimple on her tummy but the vet said it would be ok and it disappeared in a week or so.

The more i think about it the more i think it's an allergy becasue she is ALWAYS outside in the garden. Last night (much to her horror) i checked between her toes and it was quite red - she was biting her foot as i was trying to check even as if it was really bugging her I plan on phoning the vet just to see what he suggests and maybe trying a homeopathic remedy for now. Any ideas on that?

After reading that site i mentioned earlier i am worried about giving drugs too soon But i really want her to not itch like someone said, the more she bites and scratches the more itchy it will be for her her general skin is clear tho???

are there any shampoos i could use to help? the lady i spoke to yesterday said i must not dip her with tick and flea dip because it might irritate her skin...I did it once and she was spinning and looking around at her body and i rinsed her off straight away and she was fine. So perhaps her skin is not red and inflamed but sensitive?

[lillymae]

You can try a Chamomile tea rinse on her but she should see the vet 1st as the tea will take the red and irritation out of her skin pretty quickly. The rinse will deff make her more comfortable but the vet needs to see it as is to make a proper diagnosis. Sounds like allergy and the tail sucking is probably from stress because the itching is driving her crazy.

[FL Tink]

the tea didnt work for me! you have to take away the source

[drabinowitz43]

I heard that Royal Canin causes a lot of allergies in some dogs.

[TaylorWoods]

There seem to be SO many different opinions about the food Im going to leave her on the Royal canin for now and try and get her to the vet soon for a check up.

I dont think her tail chasing is related tho she has always done that ever since she was a tiny baby! We don't dock their tails anymore in SA and i think her chasing it is just a habit. She does it as a game, normally with a toy nearby and multi-tasks chasing her tail and fetching her toy at the same time.

Thanks for all the advice - I appreciate it. I would never have thought about allergies, i presumed it was just a nasty habit. I will definitely have her checked out soon

[BellaDonna]

If you can get baby benedryl you might give her a tiny bit of that to see if it helps her itching. If she has allergies to something external that might help her and give her a little relief. I give it to my tiny Chi for allergies. I give benedryl before they go in for vaccines.

I also highly suggest you try to change her food. Do your research online on food allergies. Royal Canin is ok food but if she is allergic it doesn't matter how good it is. Unfortunately the vet will probably suggest some line of Hills-Science Diet and I WOULD NOT feed that at all. Research and find a great quality food you can order in if you have to.

[Poochieheaven]

Originally Posted by TaylorWoods

There seem to be SO many different opinions about the food Im going to leave her on the Royal canin for now and try and get her to the vet soon for a check up.

I dont think her tail chasing is related tho she has always done that ever since she was a tiny baby! We don't dock their tails anymore in SA and i think her chasing it is just a habit. She does it as a game, normally with a toy nearby and multi-tasks chasing her tail and fetching her toy at the same time.

Thanks for all the advice - I appreciate it. I would never have thought about allergies, i presumed it was just a nasty habit. I will definitely have her checked out soon

If there isn't a huge selection of food available by you, maybe look into homecooking or a raw diet.