Every year, roofus gets this foot pad problem... I haven't found a cause, and since we've got so many people on here who have experienced nearly everything collectively, I thought I'd give it a shot. It always starts being a problem about this time of year.
What it is, is his pads get REALLY calloused. Sometimes they'll crack and bleed. He has mostly pink pads and they get these gray ugly callouses. A few days ago, he had a huge hunk of callous coming off of one, which he wouldn't leave alone and finally licked it off - leaving a sore behind. I rubbed some pad stuff on it last night and it is much better today, but obviously this is a recurring issue.
The first year, I asked the OES forum about it, most of which replied it was probably from the salt folks throw on the sidewalks to melt ice. Problem is, at that time I didn't hardly walk roofus on city sidewalks. It was my parents' land or my backyard. And this year no one has even had the chance to use any yet. So it's not salt. It's not diet - we've been through different foods, I've added coat supplements, etc - doesn't make a difference. I've tried this pad stuff they make for huskies and other sled dog breeds... helps a bit. He doesn't spend a lot of time outside really, except for potty and frisbee (well hasn't in the past, we've been walking a lot lately).
What DOES seem to make a difference is if I have a humidifier on in my house. For some reason, his pads don't really get crusty as long as I keep the humidity up. Mind you, this is only one dog I have this issue with. Everyone else's pads are fine. I will add Roofus has hay fever or something like it, every year at this time he gets a hot spot on his back and will rip all the hair out - looks like this year I've managed to control it (barely) with expensive air filters, weekly baths with hydrocortisone shampoo on that area, etc. I don't know if the two are related, just thought I'd mention it in case they are.
any ideas? Or is it just one of those freak things that only happens to me...
What it is, is his pads get REALLY calloused. Sometimes they'll crack and bleed. He has mostly pink pads and they get these gray ugly callouses. A few days ago, he had a huge hunk of callous coming off of one, which he wouldn't leave alone and finally licked it off - leaving a sore behind. I rubbed some pad stuff on it last night and it is much better today, but obviously this is a recurring issue.
The first year, I asked the OES forum about it, most of which replied it was probably from the salt folks throw on the sidewalks to melt ice. Problem is, at that time I didn't hardly walk roofus on city sidewalks. It was my parents' land or my backyard. And this year no one has even had the chance to use any yet. So it's not salt. It's not diet - we've been through different foods, I've added coat supplements, etc - doesn't make a difference. I've tried this pad stuff they make for huskies and other sled dog breeds... helps a bit. He doesn't spend a lot of time outside really, except for potty and frisbee (well hasn't in the past, we've been walking a lot lately).
What DOES seem to make a difference is if I have a humidifier on in my house. For some reason, his pads don't really get crusty as long as I keep the humidity up. Mind you, this is only one dog I have this issue with. Everyone else's pads are fine. I will add Roofus has hay fever or something like it, every year at this time he gets a hot spot on his back and will rip all the hair out - looks like this year I've managed to control it (barely) with expensive air filters, weekly baths with hydrocortisone shampoo on that area, etc. I don't know if the two are related, just thought I'd mention it in case they are.
any ideas? Or is it just one of those freak things that only happens to me...
