Can I soak my dogs paws in vinegar?
If your dog is notorious for chewing and licking their paws, you can also soak each paw in ACV for a moment or two to relieve itchiness. For general skin and coat health, add one tablespoon to food or water every day. Apple cider vinegar has proven to be extremely beneficial to the skin and fur!
Most veterinarians recommend using povidone-iodine (brand name Betadine®). This is an organic iodine with no side effects and does a good job controlling most skin bacteria.
Solution: Povidone iodine.
The gentle Betadine brand can allay staph, yeast and most common bacteria. It’s safe if a pet licks it.
Things to Consider When Using Betadine
It burns. You must always dilute it prior to its use. Betadine is normally a dark brown color, so youll have to dilute it with water until its a weaker tea color. Applying it as is without diluting can damage tissue. If you are looking for ratios, one part of it to 10 parts water is a good guideline.
What about hydrogen peroxide? You may have heard about this alternative, but hydrogen peroxide doesnt have much value as an antiseptic and actually kills healthy tissue, which is why it foams.
According to Vet Street, “The fizz created when it interacts with tissue makes it seem like something good is happening. Hydrogen peroxide, in fact, inflames the healthy skin around a wound, which increases healing time. Recent studies have shown that it’s not even an effective antibacterial.” The only reason you see hydrogen peroxide in a dogs first aid kit is because it can be used to induce vomiting.
What about alcohol? Do not use alcohol, because it burns. It is also a drying agent and causes a delay in the healing process. The main reason why alcohol is in a dogs first aid kit is to disinfect thermometers after use for fevers.
The main products used as antiseptics for dog wounds are therefore Betadine (povidone-iodine) and Nolvasan (chlorhexidine diacetate). In this article, we will be mainly focusing on Betadine.
How do you use povidone iodine on dogs paws?
Betadine is anti-fungal, anti-viral, safe, non-toxic and non-stinging. I put enough betadine in the sink to make the tepid water look like tea and stand your dog in there for a couple of minutes. As you can see, it can be quite relaxing for them.
Giving Your Dog a Foot Bath
Dilute concentrated Betadine with water to a light ice tea color (or Nolvasan with water to light blue color) and make a foot soak in a kitchen snick, bowel, Tupperware tub, or kiddy swimming pool. Place your dog in the foot bath for 1-5 minutes (remembering to irrigate in-between their toes).
I recommend povidone iodine or Betadine® solution because it’s naturally antifungal, antiviral, safe, non-stinging, non-toxic, and non-abrasive. It’s a very effective disinfectant for your pet’s paws. … Keep them on for about two minutes, then remove and pat the paws dry.