[EckoMac]

I'm not sure if I'm starting this in the appropriate place, sorry if I'm not.

Ecko is a feet eater. he doesn't draw blood, or even make them red really. He just licks them until they stink and he makes big wet spots wherever he is laying. I tried some bitter apple spray. He smiled at me and basically thanked me for flavoring it for him. He is walked daily and has closely supervised play dates with my mom's Greyhound mix. He sleeps when I'm home and sleeps at night, but all day in his crate, and in the mornings when I'm getting ready for work he goes to town. If I tell him to stop he does, but I'm washing his crate pillow every other day. He smells awful and I don't want to wash HIM every other day. Plus, it's pretty darn cold here, even though we're in FL it's like 30 degrees in the mornings. So, bathing isn't an option. When I do wash him, I pay extra attention to his feet and make sure they are rinsed properly. This is an obsessive behavior and I'd really like it to stop. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[k8nkane]

I'm sorry, I don't know how to stop it. Kane does the same thing too, but only when he's really bored. Honestly, it doesn't sound THAT compulsive because otherwise he wouldn't stop when you told him to, it would be something he would HAVE to keep doing no matter what -- like dogs who chase shadows or stare at lights on the floor.

 

[performanceknls]

Some dogs just lick their paws and nibble out of habit. It is like ppl biting their finger nails (dogs also do that) just a habit. Make sure it is not an alergic reaction to something first before you just ignore it.

To make sure the dog did not step in anything wash his feet with dawn dish soap to get the feet clean, then you can give some benadryl for a week and see if that helps. for a 50 lbs dog (give or take a few lbs) you can give 2 pills of benadryl twice a day for a week. If the dog is still going at his feet it is probably just a habit. You can also try changing the food to a grain free diet but if the feet are not red I would just ignore it.

Tasha my oldest dog licks her feet the same way and chews on them, she also bites her nails, lol it is just what she does.

 

[EckoMac]

He's on grain free now. I have him on natural Balance venison and Sweet Potato. I thought that was the issue too so i switched him out about 2 months ago. I use tea tree and oatmeal shampoo. I'll try the benedryl for a week over Christmas while someone is home to watch him. Thank you for the advice PK.

K8, thank you for the peace of mind. I know he's crazy in a good way, as in fun and silly, I was starting to worry that maybe he was also crazy in the bad way too. He's a good boy though, this is really the only bad thing he does. I guess I shouldn't complain too much.

 

[cEElint]

My dogs do the same.. most likely habit

 

[750kev]

My last pitt did it his whole life it was a comfort thing. But almost seemed a little like ocd but i tried everything to get him to stop. If you get him to stop please share you solution.