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My dog is licking his paw raw. What's causing it and how to help?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Small (up to 22lb) | Male | unneutered | 11 lbs

Tobi got this today what should we do ?

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Rodrigo Roca, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on August 17th, 2017

Hello, poor Tobi he must be licking it. You can put a cone if you have on him so that he doesn't lick at it anymore until you can see your veterinarian so that they can prescribe him medications to treat the itchiness and secondary infections if needed. Those kind of signs occur because of food or environmental allergies, bacterial infections, yeast infections, or foreign material stuck between their toes. All of these require a veterinarian to examine and diagnose then treat as necessary. Hope this helps and best of luck.

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    Answered By Ricardo Fernandez, DVM

    Veterinarian, Veterinary Oncology Resident

    Published on September 11th, 2018

    Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

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