My Kitten Chews His Paws Raw

Sorry, I seem to ask questions more than answer on here, but my tabby kitten, Teddy (he's about 4-5 months old) has had a kind of dermatitis on his paws since before I adopted him. His front paws seemed to be healing after putting some salve on them, and while they aren't a 100 percent, they are in much better shape than his back paws.

Not sure if you can fully see in the pic, but he literally chews them raw.

Everything I put on his paws he licks off, and if I'm able to distract him long enough for the medicine to dry, he just goes to town on them before they even have time to heal. I'm at a loss of what to do.

Is there anything I can put on his paws that would make them taste bad or prevent him from chewing himself up until he bleeds? Should I wrap them in bandages? Idk what to do.

I ordered an antifungal and antibacterial spray and want to see if that helps heal them. A spray might dry faster than the salve and its way easier to apply since he wiggles like crazy to get away. I have to hold him while my mom puts the stuff on because neither of us can do it on our own.

If by the end of the week they don't look better I plan on making him an appointment at a vet.

His foster mom said two of her other kittens are having similar issues but their paws are healing I guess.

Not sure what is causing it. Allergies, sensitivity to something.

Thanks for any help. I really would like to avoid putting him through the stress of a vet visit, but I might have to.

Honestly a vet visit would probably be best. You need to figure out what is causing the reaction. By any chance have you seen even a single flea? I have two kitties that react to even one bite. There are many things that can cause the dermatitis. Flea bites, food allergies , exposure to other allergens like chemicals used to clean etc. Pinpoiting the cause and eliminating it is better than treating the symptoms. I’m so sorry your darling baby is itching so badly. One other thought is to check his claws and pads for anything that might be on them or stuck in them. It could be discomfort other than itching. I know that must be stressful for you. Check your baby over carefully and call your vet. That will provide relief for everyone involved.

Please let us know how kitty is doing later.

Jcatbird said:

Honestly a vet visit would probably be best. You need to figure out what is causing the reaction. By any chance have you seen even a single flea? I have two kitties that react to even one bite. There are many things that can cause the dermatitis. Flea bites, food allergies , exposure to other allergens like chemicals used to clean etc. Pinpoiting the cause and eliminating it is better than treating the symptoms. I’m so sorry your darling baby is itching so badly. One other thought is to check his claws and pads for anything that might be on them or stuck in them. It could be discomfort other than itching. I know that must be stressful for you. Check for baby over carefully and call your vet. That will provide relief for everyone involved.

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You're probably right about just calling the vet.

I haven't seen a flea, though, so I don't think it's that. My best guess is he could be sensitive/allergic to a certain animal protein, or ingredient, or maybe even clay litter, but he hasn't had this paw issue his whole life. It's a new problem that started a few weeks before I adopted him.

He doesn't appear to be in pain (i.e. limping), he plays normally, uses the box without obvious issue, which is good. But it has to be itchy or just uncomfortable since he wouldn't be so obsessed with gnawing his foot raw if he couldn't feel something.

It's difficult to get a good look at his paws because unlike his brother, Finny, he has very little tolerance for being handled. But I'll have my mom help tomorrow and see if there's anything unusual.

Thanks for your reply! I'll be sure to give an update.

Hmmmm. Maybe you can find a clue if it started a few weeks before you got him. Can you compare notes with the foster. What changed in his life about that time? Did he maybe get in an area where a glass might have broken or was that when he started on a new food? Cats really don’t show pain unless they have to since, in the wild, it would be a liability to them. They are so tough. It is hard to examine paws. None of my kitties would appreciate that! They would wiggle like crazy and pull their paw away. Since the siblings experienced the same issues it’s really got me wondering about this. With it continuing after you removed this one to a different environment, they should have one thing in common. Same litter, food, past experience, maybe even ingrown claws? IDK but will be hoping you get a quick and simple solution. I’ll be checking back to see if baby is letting the paws alone.

Looks like it could be pododermatitis. Plasma Cell Pododermatitis (Pillow Foot) in Cats - Veterinary Partner - VIN Only a vet can treat this.

Jcatbird said:

Hmmmm. Maybe you can find a clue if it started a few weeks before you got him. Can you compare notes with the foster. What changed in his life about that time? Did he maybe get in an area where a glass might have broken or was that when he started on a new food? Cats really don’t show pain unless they have to since, in the wild, it would be a liability to them. They are so tough. It is hard to examine paws. None of my kitties would appreciate that! They would wiggle like crazy and pull their paw away. Since the siblings experienced the same issues it’s really got me wondering about this. With it continuing after you removed this one to a different environment, they should have one thing in common. Same litter, food, past experience, maybe even ingrown claws? IDK but will be hoping you get a quick and simple solution. I’ll be checking back to see if baby is letting the paws alone.

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Well, the thing is, the other kittens, including Finny, aren't part of his litter. He came from a feral mother, so maybe she had something that was passed on to him. If that is the case, not sure why two kittens from two completely different litters are having similar issues. If it were contagious, Finny would have it, and the other kittens didn't get it until he was gone. It could be something in her house and his obsessive chewing just won't let it heal. I won't fully know until I take him in to get it looked at and go through the process of elimination.

I still have to find a vet for my boys (I am currently looking up vets in my area). I wasn't satisfied with the care from Nico's vet, so never going there again. Once I do find one, I'll set Teddy up for an appointment. Until then I'm going to do what I can to ease the symptoms.

I'll keep this thread updated once I have answers.

LTS3 said:

Looks like it could be pododermatitis. Plasma Cell Pododermatitis (Pillow Foot) in Cats - Veterinary Partner - VIN Only a vet can treat this.

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You know, a few days after I adopted him I found out about this condition and noticed it did in fact look similar to what was going on with his front paws, but then they started healing significantly once I stopped his foster mom's treatment (soaking his paws in peroxide, which only seemed to dry them out) and did my own, so I put the possibility on the back-burner. It could still very well be this. I definitely won't rule it out and will bring it up with the vet.

Do you know if she used the peroxide because of vet suggestions? If kittens from a different litter had it, not genetic. That leaves environmental, food or contagious.
catsknowme might have an idea about the peroxide drying the pads.

Jcatbird said:

Do you know if she used the peroxide because of vet suggestions? If kittens from a different litter had it, not genetic. That leaves environmental, food or contagious.
catsknowme might have an idea about the peroxide drying the pads.

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I'm assuming the vet told her to do it, he also gave him a shot of antibiotics, however, apparently, he didn't give any kind of diagnosis because the foster mom didn't have time to talk to him about what he thinks it could be. Why she didn't call him back for his opinion when she did have the time, I'm not sure.

I didn't feel like the peroxide was improving much. While I'll use a small amount on a Q-tip to clean the wounds, I stopped using that as the sole treatment. I didn't start seeing his front paws healing until I put some salve on it, so that's what I've been doing with his back ones.

I don't think it's contagious. Finny shares literally everything with Teddy and has even straight up licked his paws and hasn't had any problems. They were eating Fancy Feast for wet and Solid Gold for dry at their old house. I changed the boys' wet to Rawz, but I still haven't changed their dry yet. Could be a sensitivity to a certain protein like chicken or even clay litter.

My last cat, Nico, was special needs so if Teddy ends up having allergies or sensitivities to things, I'll adapt and figure out how to help as I did with Nico.

I just wish he would stop biting his paws so that they'd at least have a chance to heal.

I know..... I can imagine watching him biting is hard to see. I wish he would stop too.
If the foster didn’t give you all the vet files on the kitty, you could ask for them. That would be a normal request and might provide information that would help. At the very least the papers would give you a vet name and you could call that vet to explain that you adopted the kitten and just wanted to follow up on his paw issue. It might answer your questions quickly.
Maybe it’s just taking longer for the back paws to heal? It certainly could be a sensitivity to food or litter. You can try switching them. When you find a vet you like, they can advise if anything else is going on. Heal quickly little one!

I feel for Teddy and you! You seem to be on track in your quest for solutions for poor Teddy. "Pillow Paws" sounds like a distinct possibility.
As far as hydrogen peroxide goes, I would discontinue using it because it is damaging to healing skin tissues and could be exacerbating the problems. Myself, I had used peroxide for so many years, especially with my children, that I was astonished when an ER doctor told me that it was bad; convincing other people such as Teddy's former foster mom will likely be a challenge but hopefully she is gung-ho for progressive health treatments in cats. Here's a brief TCS thread about it: Is it alright to use hydrogen peroxide on cats?
Because Pillow Foot/Pads is thought to often be related to autoimmune disorder, the protocol from Ask Ariel may work. I ordered the package recommended for stomatitis which cost a little over $200 online. Because most of the products are recommended without food and are best given between meals plus spaced apart from each other, it's a challenge because my patients are semi-feral. I can administer only by using food and typically at the same time - I do see modest improvements. Co-q10 and tumeric extract seem to help as well, too, if you choose the holistic route.
Does coconut oil help at all? I have had excellent results with it. I had a cat who got severe infection from a raccoon attack and her wounds were not healing despite Rx creams and oral antibiotics; when I dropped a piece of coconut oil (I was taking it as recommended by my doctor for diverticulosis pain), the cat ran up and ate it (my vet approved oral ingestion- phew!) so I treated the open sores as well - by morning, the wounds had skinned over and soon got fuzz growing. In a few days, the wounds healed!
I will be following Teddy's story with great interest. I hope the original foster mom will follow your lead, too - all those poor cats, what a miserable condition

I feel for Teddy and you! You seem to be on track in your quest for solutions for poor Teddy. "Pillow Paws" sounds like a distinct possibility.
As far as hydrogen peroxide goes, I would discontinue using it because it is damaging to healing skin tissues and could be exacerbating the problems. Myself, I had used peroxide for so many years, especially with my children, that I was astonished when an ER doctor told me that it was bad; convincing other people such as Teddy's former foster mom will likely be a challenge but hopefully she is gung-ho for progressive health treatments in cats. Here's a brief TCS thread about it: Is it alright to use hydrogen peroxide on cats?
Because Pillow Foot/Pads is thought to often be related to autoimmune disorder, the protocol from Ask Ariel may work. I ordered the package recommended for stomatitis which cost a little over $200 online. Because most of the products are recommended without food and are best given between meals plus spaced apart from each other, it's a challenge because my patients are semi-feral. I can administer only by using food and typically at the same time - I do see modest improvements. Co-q10 and tumeric extract seem to help as well, too, if you choose the holistic route.
Does coconut oil help at all? I have had excellent results with it. I had a cat who got severe infection from a raccoon attack and her wounds were not healing despite Rx creams and oral antibiotics; when I dropped a piece of coconut oil (I was taking it as recommended by my doctor for diverticulosis pain), the cat ran up and ate it (my vet approved oral ingestion- phew!) so I treated the open sores as well - by morning, the wounds had skinned over and soon got fuzz growing. In a few days, the wounds healed!
I will be following Teddy's story with great interest. I hope the original foster mom will follow your lead, too - all those poor cats, what a miserable condition

Jcatbird said:

I know..... I can imagine watching him biting is hard to see. I wish he would stop too.
If the foster didn’t give you all the vet files on the kitty, you could ask for them. That would be a normal request and might provide information that would help. At the very least the papers would give you a vet name and you could call that vet to explain that you adopted the kitten and just wanted to follow up on his paw issue. It might answer your questions quickly.
Maybe it’s just taking longer for the back paws to heal? It certainly could be a sensitivity to food or litter. You can try switching them. When you find a vet you like, they can advise if anything else is going on. Heal quickly little one!

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One of his toes looks a little swollen, but the paws themselves aren't as raw today as they were yesterday. Still not great looking, but not worse.

I looked through his records and found nothing about his paws, which I find kind of weird since while he was being neutered they were looked at.

I'm going to be experimenting with his food this week. I honestly didn't even know his back paws had the issue too, so I might have just unknowingly allowed them to get worse. Unless he didn't have issues until recently. Idk I'm just trying to figure out how to treat the symptoms and hope that is all it'll take and he won't actually need a vet visit.

catsknowme said:

I feel for Teddy and you! You seem to be on track in your quest for solutions for poor Teddy. "Pillow Paws" sounds like a distinct possibility.
As far as hydrogen peroxide goes, I would discontinue using it because it is damaging to healing skin tissues and could be exacerbating the problems. Myself, I had used peroxide for so many years, especially with my children, that I was astonished when an ER doctor told me that it was bad; convincing other people such as Teddy's former foster mom will likely be a challenge but hopefully she is gung-ho for progressive health treatments in cats. Here's a brief TCS thread about it: Is it alright to use hydrogen peroxide on cats?
Because Pillow Foot/Pads is thought to often be related to autoimmune disorder, the protocol from Ask Ariel may work. I ordered the package recommended for stomatitis which cost a little over $200 online. Because most of the products are recommended without food and are best given between meals plus spaced apart from each other, it's a challenge because my patients are semi-feral. I can administer only by using food and typically at the same time - I do see modest improvements. Co-q10 and tumeric extract seem to help as well, too, if you choose the holistic route.
Does coconut oil help at all? I have had excellent results with it. I had a cat who got severe infection from a raccoon attack and her wounds were not healing despite Rx creams and oral antibiotics; when I dropped a piece of coconut oil (I was taking it as recommended by my doctor for diverticulosis pain), the cat ran up and ate it (my vet approved oral ingestion- phew!) so I treated the open sores as well - by morning, the wounds had skinned over and soon got fuzz growing. In a few days, the wounds healed!
I will be following Teddy's story with great interest. I hope the original foster mom will follow your lead, too - all those poor cats, what a miserable condition

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Yeah, the peroxide was just drying his paws, and considering his paws were already dry and crusty, that was the last thing he needed imo.

I always prefer to use natural/holistic products (not that I'm opposed to actual medicine). I never thought to use coconut oil. I'll have to try that. Thanks for the suggestion!

Well, the other two kittens with the paw issue have been healing, which is why she believes it's just a growing pain, so I'm not sure why Teddy's condition seems worse. I do hope I find a natural solution I can share with her.

I'll keep this thread updated!

UPDATE:

OK, so haven't taken Teddy to a vet yet. I wanted to see how my own methods of treatment would work first.

So far his paws are looking significantly better than when I first posted this thread. He isn't obsessively chewing on them like before.

The only problem we're having is, the inside of one of his paws (the part you can only see when he spreads his toes) was bleeding and looking a bit raw. Not sure if he did it or if he hurt himself somehow, but we (my mom and I) wrapped his paw with gauze and medical tape so he would allow the salve to soak in and do its job. So far we've tried two methods of keeping it on, and have a third method if this second one doesn't work.

But overall, he seems to be healing quite well. Other than some mild dryness around one of his toes and middle pad, they look more like normal cat paws.

UPDATE:

So I've decided to take him to the vet. While everything else seems to be healing (the dry, crusty parts), the part inside his paw that you can only see when he spreads his toes, looks icky. Just fleshy and chewed and raw. We're going to continue our treatment and keep it covered unil Tuesday when the vets open. I'm not subjecting him to a hour car ride to take him to the emergency when it's not an emergency. But he needs it checked it out. There's only so much I can do at home. Hopefully they won't come him.

I wonder if a soak in Epsom salts would help? My friend's dog has had issues with yeast infections between the paws and we started having her soak in a solution of Epsom salts and water ten minutes a day and even from day one it seems to help. Obviously cats are not as willing to stand in water but maybe a washcloth with the solution on it and keep wetting it down for 10 minutes.

Coconut oil also does the same thing. It's safe for them to lick as well. Coconut oil also aids in digestion issues. Hoping you find a solution soon!

foxxycat said:

I wonder if a soak in Epsom salts would help? My friend's dog has had issues with yeast infections between the paws and we started having her soak in a solution of Epsom salts and water ten minutes a day and even from day one it seems to help. Obviously cats are not as willing to stand in water but maybe a washcloth with the solution on it and keep wetting it down for 10 minutes.

Coconut oil also does the same thing. It's safe for them to lick as well. Coconut oil also aids in digestion issues. Hoping you find a solution soon!

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It could help. I've never heard of Epsom Salts, but I have thought about coconut oil. I'm going to see what the vet has to say. He kicked off his sock this morning and chewed his paw bloody again. I hope he hasn't caused any permanent damage. Thanks for the suggestions!

Epsom salts is kind of like soaking in ocean water, salt water heals wounds. And no prescription needed...

foxxycat said:

Epsom salts is kind of like soaking in ocean water, salt water heals wounds. And no prescription needed...

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Ah okay. I'll look into it, thanks! Right now I just want to know exactly what is wrong with his paws to begin with and to make sure he didn't permanently damage anything.