The best way to prevent Frito feet or any infection is to keep your dog’s feet as clean as possible.
Your dog’s paw pads can become a hotbed site for infection, especially if they have injured paw pads, are immunocompromised, or in poor health.
One smell we hear about often is “Frito feet,” or when a dog’s paws seem to smell like corn chips.
When your dog’s paws have a bacteria called Pseudomonas and Proteus, their paws can give off a yeasty odor that does smell similar to corn chips.
Now, just because most times when your dog’s feet smell like corn chips are no cause for concern, that doesn’t mean that you should completely ignore it.
Should You Try to Get Rid of the Smell?
Dogs’ noses are much more sensitive compared to humans’. Depending on the breed, dogs’ senses of smell can be between 10,000 and 100,000 times stronger than ours. Accordingly, spraying perfume or shampooing them with scented products can be very unpleasant for dogs.
“Dogs want to smell like dogs,” Dr. Attas emphasizes. “You don’t want to mask the odor or add something to it.” If you don’t particularly like the Fritos smell, she recommends not putting your face close to your dog’s feet and using unscented wipes and soaps that are specially formulated for dogs.
Find food that fits your pet’s needs
Strong smells are nothing new for dog parents and their fur kids. Not only do our canine friends have a strong sense of smell, but they also can be quite stinky themselves, and one of those smells could be similar to opening a bag of salty snacks. No, its not your imagination. If you were just thinking that your dog smells like corn chips, youre not alone!
But, how can a dog or a dogs feet smell like corn chips? If you noticed this with your pet, you may be wondering why its happening and if there is anything you can do to lessen that chippy smell. More importantly, is this distinctive scent something to worry about?
When Dog Paws Smell Like Corn Chips
Have your ever gotten a whiff of your pet’s paws and thought to yourself, “corn chips?” That’s curious, right? Sure, dogs don’t always smell particularly wonderful, but why this recognizable scent? “Frito paws” is a common complaint from many dog owners and can usually be easily explained.
If you’ve wondered why Fido’s paws smell like corn chips, then you have come to the right place. The team at Androscoggin Animal Hospital can help uncover the reason behind this phenomenon and offer some suggestions for taking good care of those pet paws.