Help Needed! Chewing on paws!

[Dmlove67]

Hello everyone. New to this forum. My Bullie is Abigail, who's now 11 years old but still going strong. She has allergy issues, but was never real bad, but about 6 months ago it got pretty bad, and she started to chew her paws non-stop, and scratching her face. I've been back and forth to my vet, and have spent over a thousand dollars easy just having them "try" different meds. She's been on prednisone, apoquel, medicated wipes, medicated sprays, medicate powders, antibiotics, anti-fungal pills, Benadryl, you name it. Each time she's on something new, it'll stop her from chewing, but as soon as she's off the meds, she starts right back up again. I giver her foot soaks to keep them clean. I'm now trying some off the shelf stuff that i heard was good that has hydrocortisone in it. Has anyone seen this or have had to deal with this with there bullie? I figured I'd ask on a forum before I head back to the vet for them to take another guess at their next step.

 

[helsonwheels]

OMG poor thing. I will tag other members as they can help you more. Nyala never had them issues.

And Welcome. Congrats on Abigail being 11 !!!!! Good job but we need to help her. Hang on will tag someone.
[MENTION=2894]2BullyMama[/MENTION]

 

[Mutsch Harvesting]

Hello everyone. New to this forum. My Bullie is Abigail, who's now 11 years old but still going strong. She has allergy issues, but was never real bad, but about 6 months ago it got pretty bad, and she started to chew her paws non-stop, and scratching her face. I've been back and forth to my vet, and have spent over a thousand dollars easy just having them "try" different meds. She's been on prednisone, apoquel, medicated wipes, medicated sprays, medicate powders, antibiotics, anti-fungal pills, Benadryl, you name it. Each time she's on something new, it'll stop her from chewing, but as soon as she's off the meds, she starts right back up again. I giver her foot soaks to keep them clean. I'm now trying some off the shelf stuff that i heard was good that has hydrocortisone in it. Has anyone seen this or have had to deal with this with there bullie? I figured I'd ask on a forum before I head back to the vet for them to take another guess at their next step.
View attachment 103157

moNetamax immediately!! This is very uncomfortable for bullies. MoNetamax

 

[Dmlove67]

moNetamax immediately!! This is very uncomfortable for bullies. MoNetamax

Do you mean Mometamax? I can't find any info on MoNetamax. All I see is Mometamax, but that is for ear infections.

 

[NewEnglandBully]

Oh poor Abby!! That looks so painful! No experience w/this to this extent…wondering if it's perhaps not just atopy, but possibly a psychological cause? Has your vet mentioned Lick Granuloma? Have you considered asking the vet about a no bite collar to help break the cycle of licking?

What are the allergies you wrote of? Food, Environment? Maybe getting an air filter in the room she's in the most to help alleviate allergy onsets...

Hoping someone chimes in w/advice on how to heal this

 

[Dmlove67]

Oh poor Abby!! That looks so painful! No experience w/this to this extent…wondering if it's perhaps not just atopy, but possibly a psychological cause? Has your vet mentioned Lick Granuloma? Have you considered asking the vet about a no bite collar to help break the cycle of licking?

What are the allergies you wrote of? Food, Environment? Maybe getting an air filter in the room she's in the most to help alleviate allergy onsets...

Hoping someone chimes in w/advice on how to heal this

They don't think its psychological because it can get yeasty, so they say that they are sure it's bacterial in nature. The only bite collar I've tried is the cone type, but it's so hard for her to get around with that thing on, and she starts chewing again when I take it off. I'm reading about the non-cone type, but not sure if that would work since the wounds are at the lower portion of her legs.

They haven't been able to pin point what the specific allergy is. Her food hasn't changed, she only goes outside to use the bathroom or to be out back with me, but she just lays/sits with me on the patio and doesn't get into anything like weeds or bushes.

She lets me clean them and look at them without acting like it bothers her or hurts her.

 

[oscarmayer]

That looks like a raging yeast infection to me. Has you Vet ever prescribed Ketaconazole? It would take regular dosing for several months to clear that up. No food with potatoes(sweet potatoes especially), rice, peas, corn, etc. Digested high carb foods create sugar...yeast feeds on the sugar. The food you are feeding may need to be changed...what are you currently feeding?

 

[Dmlove67]

That looks like a raging yeast infection to me. Has you Vet ever prescribed Ketaconazole? It would take regular dosing for several months to clear that up. No food with potatoes(sweet potatoes especially), rice, peas, corn, etc. Digested high carb foods create sugar...yeast feeds on the sugar. The food you are feeding may need to be changed...what are you currently feeding?

She's been on antifungal meds twice, and I think it was Ketaconazole (I'd have to check the empty bottle when I get home to be sure), but each time it was only for a couple of weeks.

She's been eating Hills Ideal Balance, Grain Free, for years. But it does have potatoes (not sweet) and peas. Maybe in her old age I should consider a change.

Any food suggestions?

 

[helsonwheels]

As most in here knows, im a big believer in essential oils. The recipe below is fantastic for ears, paws and/or any infections. Humans too. Essential oils been around over 3 000 years. Must be a reason why we've been using them for so long.

Maintenance is the most important thing we all need to do on all our pets and ourselves. Im sure you've done alot on your baby since she's 11yrs old. Good job! You still need to know what is causing this on Abigail and I hope it's soon as poor thing it looks painful.

Here is the essential oil recipe for ear (any infections) or just maintaining good health. Spray on cotton ball and wipe out infected area. If its an ear infection, don't spray directly in ears. In a 2 ounce glass spray bottle, combine:

15 drops Lavender
15 drops Geranium
15 drops Frankincense
15 drops Basil
10 drops Arborvitae

Fractionated Coconut Oil : fill the bottle about 3/4 of the way full. Shake bottle well before using. Use once a week to treat infections once a month as a preventative measure in ears/paws that are prone to recurrent infections. If ears/paws are especially inflation or infected, dilute 2 drops of lavender in 4 drops of fractionated coconut oil on a cotton ball and apply lightly to soothe the inflamed area.

 

[oscarmayer]

It's hard to get away from peas unless you go raw. There are many dry foods available from reputable manufacturers like Fromm, Orijen, Acana, Merrick, etc. We get our food delivered free from Chewy. Stay away from Rice, Potatoes, and any grains...Oats and Peas if possible. We have had several dogs come into rescue that could not tolerate chicken...so we never feed it. Our worst allergy cases end up on either Duck or Salmon formulas.
If it is, in fact, yeast(and it sure looks like it from your pic) then you'll need to see your vet for the keto. It's going to take way more than any 2 weeks worth to knock that out.
Be prepared to bathe or, at least, soak those feet using Nizoral shampoo...or similar a minimum of 2 times a week.
Keep those feet dry. When she comes inside and feet are wet take the time to dry them off.
An E-collar may be necessary in order to prevent licking.
Be diligent with treatment. Once it appears cured, continue to treat for another 2 weeks. Yeast not completely cured will rapidly return.

Be aware, I am not a Vet and I'm making assumptions here, from a pic and over the internet. I base my recommendations solely on 15+ yrs of experience with 40+ yeasty Bulldogs. Nothing more.
Yeast infection is nasty itchy stuff. I hope your girl gets through this as quickly as possible. Be happy it's only on her feet.

 

[TyTysmom]

Great post. I agree & second everything Chip mentioned above, I would change food over to something of better quality. Hills isn't the best food. Here's a link to ratings if you decide to change. I would highly suggest that. But if you do be sure to make it a slow transition mixing the old food with the new little by little over a 5-7 day span.

English Bulldog News Forums - Dog Food Ratings at English Bulldog News

It's hard to get away from peas unless you go raw. There are many dry foods available from reputable manufacturers like Fromm, Orijen, Acana, Merrick, etc. We get our food delivered free from Chewy. Stay away from Rice, Potatoes, and any grains...Oats and Peas if possible. We have had several dogs come into rescue that could not tolerate chicken...so we never feed it. Our worst allergy cases end up on either Duck or Salmon formulas.
If it is, in fact, yeast(and it sure looks like it from your pic) then you'll need to see your vet for the keto. It's going to take way more than any 2 weeks worth to knock that out.
Be prepared to bathe or, at least, soak those feet using Nizoral shampoo...or similar a minimum of 2 times a week.
Keep those feet dry. When she comes inside and feet are wet take the time to dry them off.
An E-collar may be necessary in order to prevent licking.
Be diligent with treatment. Once it appears cured, continue to treat for another 2 weeks. Yeast not completely cured will rapidly return.

Be aware, I am not a Vet and I'm making assumptions here, from a pic and over the internet. I base my recommendations solely on 15+ yrs of experience with 40+ yeasty Bulldogs. Nothing more.
Yeast infection is nasty itchy stuff. I hope your girl gets through this as quickly as possible. Be happy it's only on her feet.

 

[Dmlove67]

Great post. I agree & second everything Chip mentioned above, I would change food over to something of better quality. Hills isn't the best food. Here's a link to ratings if you decide to change. I would highly suggest that. But if you do be sure to make it a slow transition mixing the old food with the new little by little over a 5-7 day span.

English Bulldog News Forums - Dog Food Ratings at English Bulldog News

It's hard to get away from peas unless you go raw. There are many dry foods available from reputable manufacturers like Fromm, Orijen, Acana, Merrick, etc. We get our food delivered free from Chewy. Stay away from Rice, Potatoes, and any grains...Oats and Peas if possible. We have had several dogs come into rescue that could not tolerate chicken...so we never feed it. Our worst allergy cases end up on either Duck or Salmon formulas.
If it is, in fact, yeast(and it sure looks like it from your pic) then you'll need to see your vet for the keto. It's going to take way more than any 2 weeks worth to knock that out.
Be prepared to bathe or, at least, soak those feet using Nizoral shampoo...or similar a minimum of 2 times a week.
Keep those feet dry. When she comes inside and feet are wet take the time to dry them off.
An E-collar may be necessary in order to prevent licking.
Be diligent with treatment. Once it appears cured, continue to treat for another 2 weeks. Yeast not completely cured will rapidly return.

Be aware, I am not a Vet and I'm making assumptions here, from a pic and over the internet. I base my recommendations solely on 15+ yrs of experience with 40+ yeasty Bulldogs. Nothing more.
Yeast infection is nasty itchy stuff. I hope your girl gets through this as quickly as possible. Be happy it's only on her feet.

Yes, good info. Thank you. I'm sure I'll be headed back to the vet real soon and I'll talk to them about a longer dose of Ketaconazole.
I'll also be looking into better food right away.

 

[TyTysmom]

Great! Keep us posted I hope she heals up soon!!

Yes, good info. Thank you. I'm sure I'll be headed back to the vet real soon and I'll talk to them about a longer dose of Ketaconazole.
I'll also be looking into better food right away.

 

[2BullyMama]

Yes, good info. Thank you. I'm sure I'll be headed back to the vet real soon and I'll talk to them about a longer dose of Ketaconazole.
I'll also be looking into better food right away.

Sorry I was late, but the gang sure gave you awesome information.... please keep us posted.

Does she have any issue like this anywhere else or is it strictly her paws?

 

[cefe13]

Poor girl - you have got good advice and I hope you and your vet will find a solution to her problems! Transitioning to raw food might be a big step but if she is allergic to anything in her food, raw is good as you can keep it to very few ingredients.