Plasma cell pododermatitis? Paw pad hyperkeratosis? Allergies?

[RainOnMe]

Hi there!
Wondering if anyone has any experience with extremely dry paw pads in cats? My kitten (8 months old) has extremely dry paw pads that flake and can even crack the skin if it gets bad enough. My vet directed me to Organic Paw Balm for Dogs and Cats and that definitely helps heal the paw pads when they get too dry. But I’m working with my vet to see what could be the root of the dryness.

Some possibilities would be Plasma cell pododermatitis, Paw pad hyperkeratosis, or [im hoping] an allergy. Does anyone have familiarity with Plasma cell pododermatitis or Paw pad hyperkeratosis? I know with the pododermatitis, there’s a 50% chance my kitty could also have FIV/FeLV, and I’m REALLY hoping that’s not the case.

Im hoping it’s an allergy related issue as that would be the easiest to solve. He does have digestive sensitivity that I’m currently trying to work through. His stool isn’t as firm as it could be, so I’ve been trying different foods (alongside my vets advice) to see what works best with his system, and I wonder if his digestive sensitivity and skin sensitivity could both be rooted to an allergy.

If anyone has any insight after viewing his paws, I’d love to hear about your experiences! I do have an appointment scheduled with my vet, but wanted to get some other opinions as well. Thanks so much!!

 

[susanm9006]

I have no personal knowledge of this but am wondering if you have tried switching litters. Go for something unscented and try some naturals like Swheat Scoop or Worlds best.

 

[RainOnMe]

I have no personal knowledge of this but am wondering if you have tried switching litters. Go for something unscented and try some naturals like Swheat Scoop or Worlds best.

Hello! Thanks for your thoughts here, really appreciate it As far as litter goes, I did try switching brands and removing any fragrances. He’s using Fresh Step Clean Paws Unscented (which I personally love), but I haven’t tried switching to a non clay litter, which would probably be worth trying. Have you used Swheat Scoop or Worlds Best? Do they cover odor well? Thanks again!!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I use Littermaid corn-based litter. Hek loves it, it does a pretty good job of odor control, and it's the cheapest one out there! Ticked off all of the boxes for me!

You might try rubbing those pads with a TINY bit of olive oil. It could help soften them, and won't hurt a thing, even if she grooms a bit of it off.

 

[RainOnMe]

I use Littermaid corn-based litter. Hek loves it, it does a pretty good job of odor control, and it's the cheapest one out there! Ticked off all of the boxes for me!

You might try rubbing those pads with a TINY bit of olive oil. It could help soften them, and won't hurt a thing, even if she grooms a bit of it off.

Ah, thanks for the tip!!! I’ll look into that litter for sure. And yesss, the paw balm the vet told me to get has oil in it and it definitely helps!!!

 

[RainOnMe]

Hi there!
Wondering if anyone has any experience with extremely dry paw pads in cats? My kitten (8 months old) has extremely dry paw pads that flake and can even crack the skin if it gets bad enough. My vet directed me to Organic Paw Balm for Dogs and Cats and that definitely helps heal the paw pads when they get too dry. But I’m working with my vet to see what could be the root of the dryness.

Some possibilities would be Plasma cell pododermatitis, Paw pad hyperkeratosis, or [im hoping] an allergy. Does anyone have familiarity with Plasma cell pododermatitis or Paw pad hyperkeratosis? I know with the pododermatitis, there’s a 50% chance my kitty could also have FIV/FeLV, and I’m REALLY hoping that’s not the case.

Im hoping it’s an allergy related issue as that would be the easiest to solve. He does have digestive sensitivity that I’m currently trying to work through. His stool isn’t as firm as it could be, so I’ve been trying different foods (alongside my vets advice) to see what works best with his system, and I wonder if his digestive sensitivity and skin sensitivity could both be rooted to an allergy.

If anyone has any insight after viewing his paws, I’d love to hear about your experiences! I do have an appointment scheduled with my vet, but wanted to get some other opinions as well. Thanks so much!!View attachment 366414View attachment 366414View attachment 366415View attachment 366416View attachment 366417

UPDATE: in case anyone else’s cat has a similar issue, wanted to share an update. My vet gave him a steroid shot, and it has definitely cleared up the cracking paw pads. It’s been about 15 days since he got the steroids and his paws are a lot better, but the skin is still a little dry. No cracking though, and they do look a million times better. My vet said he may need a second steroid shot, but that we’d review in 30 days. Hoping the steroids cleared it up and it doesn’t come back.

 

[SarahMT]

UPDATE: in case anyone else’s cat has a similar issue, wanted to share an update. My vet gave him a steroid shot, and it has definitely cleared up the cracking paw pads. It’s been about 15 days since he got the steroids and his paws are a lot better, but the skin is still a little dry. No cracking though, and they do look a million times better. My vet said he may need a second steroid shot, but that we’d review in 30 days. Hoping the steroids cleared it up and it doesn’t come back.

Hi there -

I adopted an 8 year cat that was in the shelter for 5 months - he had hair loss, scabby, itchy. His paws look very similar to the pictures in this post. Was it ever determined if your cat had an autoimmune disorder/disease or an allergy? We started a diet trial last week to rule out allergy. My little guys paws haven't cracked open, but they have really thick patches that are greyish in color. He's feet are actually a mess and he is losing nails. Our vet said the next step is a steroid trial but that could potentially have side effects whereas this is not the case testing for food allergies. Just curious about the long term outcome and if this ended up being a one-off.

 

[fionasmom]

OP has not been back in a year, so you may not get a reply.

R RainOnMe

 

[RainOnMe]

Hi there -

I adopted an 8 year cat that was in the shelter for 5 months - he had hair loss, scabby, itchy. His paws look very similar to the pictures in this post. Was it ever determined if your cat had an autoimmune disorder/disease or an allergy? We started a diet trial last week to rule out allergy. My little guys paws haven't cracked open, but they have really thick patches that are greyish in color. He's feet are actually a mess and he is losing nails. Our vet said the next step is a steroid trial but that could potentially have side effects whereas this is not the case testing for food allergies. Just curious about the long term outcome and if this ended up being a one-off.

Hi! I tried a bunch of things - food allergies, litter, steroid injections, etc., but nothing cleared it up permanently. The steroid injections would work for the month, but once it was done, the cracking would start again. We never did testing for it because it’s expensive and required a skin sample, but my vet basically said we exhausted other options outside of plasma cell pododermatitis, so that’s likely what it is. I took him to a dermatologist, which was extremely expensive, and she agreed with the plasma cell pododermatitis assumption. I’ve been treating him with doxycycline, it’s a daily immune suppressant. His paws are not 100%, they still crack occasionally, but not nearly as bad as it was without the medicine.

I will say, my cat didn’t have any other symptoms, so no hair loss, scabbing, or issues with his nails. It was only the paw pads, so your kittens issue may be allergies or something else. Fingers crossed for you!! Hope you’re able to figure out what’s going on so your little one is back to normal as soon as possible.

 

[RainOnMe]

Hi there -

I adopted an 8 year cat that was in the shelter for 5 months - he had hair loss, scabby, itchy. His paws look very similar to the pictures in this post. Was it ever determined if your cat had an autoimmune disorder/disease or an allergy? We started a diet trial last week to rule out allergy. My little guys paws haven't cracked open, but they have really thick patches that are greyish in color. He's feet are actually a mess and he is losing nails. Our vet said the next step is a steroid trial but that could potentially have side effects whereas this is not the case testing for food allergies. Just curious about the long term outcome and if this ended up being a one-off.

Also, as far as the steroid injections go, my cat didn’t experience any side effects. He was probably around 4 months or so when we tried it initially. Like I said, it definitely worked, but wasn’t a solve for us because once it wore off, the cracking started again. We did 3 months of injections, then switched to the daily immune suppressant (doxycycline, also tried atopica, but it was expensive and the dermatologist said she usually starts with doxycycline, so we went forward with that, but both worked). Also didn’t experience any side effects with the doxcy or atopica.