Is it normal for a maltese dog to constantly lick and bite at his paws?

he is one year old, and has no apparent skin problems, but chews and licks his paws (all four) sporadically throughout the day. i don't know if this is a weird habit or how to break it? he's been seen by a vet recently and has no health issues.

Is it normal for a maltese dog to constantly lick and bite at his paws?
Could be an allergy.


Could be anxiety.


Could be just a bad habit.


Could be boredom.


Could be that he needs more exercise!


Could be sensitive to something in his food.


Hmmmm.





If you can easily distract him from chewing (for example, with a treat), it's probably just a habit or behavior he's developed. If not, he's most likely either anxious about or allergic to something. Try watching him, to see when he tends to chew his paws ... or, maybe, what is causing it.





If you can't figure it out, please talk to your vet. Dogs can develop very painful and hard-to-heal spots on their paws if they are allowed to chew them. Since your dog is biting at all 4 paws, I would suspect that it is a systemic problem, or something related to boredom or anxiety. Good Luck.
Reply:awwn there so cute how much was he
Reply:yes bc my grandma has the same dog and she does tht all the time


i dont think it is anything 2 worry about
Reply:It can be a sign of allergies, especially if the paws are being stained brown. If the fur is staining, he's doing it a lot. Rubbing his face on things and shaking his head/pawing at ears are signs of allergy too. Dogs are commonly allergic to fleas, pollen or food. Beef, chicken, and corn are the most common food allergies. Like humans, dogs with allergies usually are allergic to multiple things. They can take Benadryl, I'd ask your vet about allergies next time you visit.
Reply:Well it depends how much he does it.


Our dog used to really lick and chew at her front paws and it turned out she had a mild rash.


You may want to check if this is the case with your dog.
Reply:Could be allergies. Our Chow does this constantly. Vet prescribed Prednisone, which has helped.
Reply:If he has no apparent skin problems, it could be an anxiety issue. Doe he do it when he is left alone or is it an "anytime" thing? Perhaps you could get him a crate (if he doesn't already have one) so that he has a little "nest" or "den" of his own to call home. I wish I could help you more but you are skimpy on the details...Sorry.


Good luck


PS - Even though skin issues are not apparent, allergies can cause a dog to do this so pay close heed to the food (make sure it is high quality with no preservtives...)
Reply:Usually when dogs chew their feet is a sign of a food allergy. I would switch to Wellness Fish %26amp; Sweet Potato formula.
Reply:my dog also does that, but not 24/7. If your hand was reeeally itchy, i dunno about you, but id do everything in my power to itch it.,, don't let your dog do it too much though. Once i didnt see my dog doing it, and he bit off a piece of their black circle paw thing... not gooood. call their name and act like your angry, if she/he continues to do it, slap her/him.. not really hard, just hard enough to get their attention. its also fun to give your dog a huuuge loong glare. xD not needed tho. if she/he tries to bite you after, distract them by putting their food dish next to em or get a ball; something to stop em. Its not good for people to bite their nails, n its not good for dogs to bite their paws.


-tarah
Reply:If the vet says hes ok, your dogs ok. unless you see a serious problem. Your doggy's normal trust me.:)
Reply:It could be an allergy to food, or even grass.





Sometimes dogs will have an allergic reaction to something and chew and lick their paws for relief, and after a while it just becomes a habit, which can be an anxiety problem. I know Dobermans are really bad about this. They will actually lick their tops of their paws until they develope a raised hard area on the paw.





I would take him to the vet and have him checked out. Has he been obedience trained? It can even be a problem of insecurity. That does not mean it is your fault, some dogs just need some help with this.
Reply:Check the hair between his pads...if it is too long it could be irritating him.
Reply:It's normal.

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