Red paws are an indicator for allergies, infections, or injuries on your dog. Here’s how you can relieve their symptoms.
If your dog has red paws, it can indicate a few different things such as allergies, infections, injuries, autoimmune disorders, or contact dermatitis. Your dog is also likely to be bothered by its red paws because it can either itch or hurt depending on the cause, evident by its behaviour like chewing or licking their paws for relief. Unfortunately, doing so can only further aggravate the redness or cause secondary infections.
In fact, there is a medical term for paw redness in dogs – pododermatitis. Some other signs that your dog may have pododermatitis is paw discolouration, cracking and peeling of the skin on the paws, a foul smell, or limping.
Treatment and Management
Firstly, you will need to check your dog’s paws. On top of the obvious signs of redness and irritated skin, take a closer look at the crevices between the paw pads and check between their toes for injuries or signs of trauma. If your dog spends a lot of time outdoors, it is quite likely that debris or small stones have gotten stuck and wedged into the paws that may have caused the injury or irritation. Leaving the debris in your dog’s paws will cause the injury or itching to further fester into an infection that could hurt your dog more.
Secondly, you may want to start incorporating new routines to keep your dog’s paws and the areas around it clean. After checking and removing debris from your dog’s paws, you can either spray the paws with an antiseptic solution, use a topical ointment, or wash them gently with antifungal shampoo. Doing so can help reduce redness and inflammation on your dog’s paws. One of the proven effective methods for this step is to use PettoGard® Antimicrobial Skin Care & Wound Spray for Dogs – formulated to treat skin infections, relieves itchiness and skin irritation for your beloved furry friend.
Last but not least, make your recovering pet wear dog boots or paw protectors when they go outside. They may feel awkward about the addition at first, but this final step is important in preventing further irritation on the wounds.
How to Prevent Your Dog from Getting Red Paws
1. Always keep paws clean.
As people, we always wash our feet when we return home from exploring the world outside. Moreover, we have the added protection from our shoes and sandals. Remember that this is not the case for your dog – that is why it is crucial to perform frequent paw checks every now and then. Regularly cleaning your dog’s paws can be effective in preventing paw infections.
2. Keep your pet’s favourite areas and environment clean.
Whether your dog is an outdoor or indoor dog, you should always maintain a clean and debris-free environment in which your dog can play in without accidentally injuring its paws or catching a bacterial infection. Avoid exposing your pet to known allergens.
In this case, you can consider our PettoGard Odor Remover Spray – formulated with a natural-occuring acid called Hypochlorous Acid that combats pathogens on both hard and soft surfaces, such as the floor, carpets, pet beds, cushions, chew toys, and more. The formula is also safe if licked by your dog.
3. Pay your vet a visit regularly.
You don’t have to wait until something is serious enough before consulting a vet. As the saying goes, prevention is better than cure, and that applies even to your beloved dog.
