Licking, licking, licking!

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Murphy has been licking his right paw, between two toes now since tues. I cleaned it off, cut all the hair around it I case it was a Matt or something caught in the hair, and to keep it dryer.
We have put a sock on and as hard as we try to keep it on with cloth tape, he finds a way to get it off. Now he has gotten it all red and I'm suspecting an infection is brewing. There is absolutely nothing there that we can see. No abrasions, thorns, insect bites, it's not tender to touch and he let's us touch it without pulling away.
Any suggestions other than some antibiotic ointment and keeping it wrapped and dry? Does this seem like an allergy type behavior? Licking for no reason, but only in one spot?

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

I have heard about hot spots. What is it exactly?

[Karen and Bridget]

Bridget had the same thing a few months ago.  The vet thought it was seasonal allergies and put her on Benadryl (1 mg per pound) and we used the dreaded cone of shame for a week. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

This does not sound at all like an allergy to me, and I would not give any meds nor change food. It has nothing to do with food, I can just about promise you.  A hot spot is a moist dermatitis which is caused by licking an area, but there's an underlying cause for the licking. The hot spot is a result of something else, it's not just something that happens, like a pimple.
Andrea's experience with Molly sounds like a possibility. What first popped into my mind when I read this though is foxtails. If there is even a chance there's a foxtail in there, you need to get him to the vet ASAP. Nancie had some horrendous experiences with Gracie's getting foxtails in her feet, hopefully she will chime in here.

My bet is that there is something there in that one spot that is bothering him.

[Bonnie and Kona]

That was my first thought, too, Karen. A foxtail can work its way into the paw so that you cannot see the weed on the outside at all. Then it festers inside to cause an infection. They are very dangerous and can work their way through the body.

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Thank you Karen, I will email Nancie later today. I am going to go soak his foot and really inspect it with a magnifying glass. Yes, it's the wrong season, but the right state to be likely to find foxtails. We have been going on long walks lately, and we do let him go smell bushes and wander in the grass. Everything is pretty dry right now too. Well, I will be watching this tonight and we can take him in tomorrow if no better with treatment, as I hope. Thank you again.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here's an article from Bark magazine on foxtails. Notice that they mention that a favorite place for foxtails to burrow in is between the toes:

http://www.thebark.com/content/protecting-your-dog-against-foxtails

[Katie, John & Parker pup]

Wow! I have never heard of foxtails! That sounds so scary!

[Lynda Kamrath]

We have had experience with foxtails also.  I always check feet carefully whenever the dogs have been for a walk.  The other place that foxtails tend to gather is in the ears.  On feet, they will lick their paws (usually one specific spot) and for ears they continually shake their heads.  You can't see them!  They enter the skin and unless you catch them early and see some tail remaining, they are in the body and will continue to work their way up.  You need to have a vet remove them surgically.  They are some other things that work the same way, such as thorns, but they will make a bump and swell.  Since it is one area that he is licking, I would say not allergies.

Okay, Nancie, where are you?

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Thank you Karen. I appreciate your wisdom on allergies. Wasn't sure. As for foxtail, geez, sounds like theres no sure way of knowing. Guess we will have to go to the vet, but what can they do if they don't see anything either? I guess antibiotics prophylactically.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Sue, talk to Nancie, she will have some advice for you. You can also read her blogs about this. It's really difficult for them to tell if there is a foxtail in there, because they burrow in. I believe that in Gracie's case, they had to go in twice because they missed one the first time. I don't mean to scare you, and there's a good chance this isn't the case with Murphy, but I think you really need to have it looked at. One thing in your favor is that I think it's the wrong time of year for foxtails, but I'm not sure, and it may have been there for awhile. They are a bigger problem out west than in other parts of the country.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

More info on foxtails and dogs:

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art29569.asp

[Judi, David & Maddie Irishdoodle]

Just a heads up that Maddie had this same thing happen about 3 months ago.  She kept licking licking licking so I took her to the vet - they shaved her paw and a bit up her leg - she had red welts all over her leg and paw and they thought it may be some type of bite because they couldn't find any injury, thorn etc. The welts were not noticeable until they shaved her leg and foot.

She was given a cream with a steroid in it, antibiotics and bandaged up.  I was to keep it dry and was told I could use a bit of gold bond foot powder on it also. 

I cut the toe out of a few pairs of white 'cotton' socks - put the toe part on her foot and used a narrow piece duct tape over the top part of the sock to keep it on. I sprayed a bit of bitter apple on the sock and let it dry before I taped it on her foot. 

She wore a cone for a couple days but it drove me crazy so I just took it off and kept my eye on her.  She actually left the sock on no problem but as soon as I took it off to clean and dress her leg and foot she wanted to lick it.  It seemed to take about a month before she could go without the sock on and before she stopped licking it.

You may want to trim the paw and leg down quite a bit so you can see if there is any infection starting to happen after a bite or the continuous licking. 

Maddies appetite changed also and she actually lost a couple of pounds during this episode.