Raw Food Diet, Day 99- Mornings are Stressful

So you may know that I sleep in a crate at night, which I love.  It's good to have a place all of my own where I can hide things like leather shoes, Chapstick, and cell phones that I steal from my humans.  The problem with my crate is that it stresses me out in the morning.  When I hear my humans get up, I wake up and realize that I'm hungry!!  I want to eat!!  But there's this stupid latch on my crate so I can't get out until my humans come save me.

Meanwhile, my people are taking baths like dorks and combing their fur and stuff.  What about my feast?!  I make sure to tell my humans how I feel about this every morning, but they don't seem to get the point.  I really do feel as if I will starve if I have to stay in my crate one minute longer in the morning.  I think I would like to start spending nights in my favorite spot on top of the sofa.  I have an excellent view of the kitchen from there, and can always hurdle my 22-pound body at my people if necessary.

Your favorite crate screamer,

Stanislaw

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Big Pupi is on the DL... again

Some of you doggie readers may have noticed in recent photos that my paw is injured again.  It's making me crazy!  I wore away the pad on a toe on my right foot a few weeks ago, and I guess that spot is now a little bit weaker because I keep getting the same abrasive injury over and over again.  (It could also have something to do with the fact that I was dragging my human around at the parade, looking for horsofficers to bark at...)  This is what my foot looked like after the tiny bit of bleeding stopped and it had been cleaned:

Ouchies!  I've never had abrasive injuries this frequently before, and my people think that it is caused by running on cement and asphalt, whereas in Texas we always ran on soft dirt trails.  And I'm also a little too gung-ho sometimes when it comes to getting my exercise... I don't stop just because I have an injury!  No way!

When my humans first see that I have a sore paw, they will usually let me take care of the first round of cleaning myself.  I'm really good at getting all sorts of dirt and stuff away from the cut, and I've even been known to re-open a wound if it closed while there was dirt inside.  They say my instincts are pretty good when it comes to taking care of my toes.  Once I've cleaned the area, my humans will apply some Neosporin to prevent infection and then wrap my paw all the way up to my elbow.  This bandage only stays on for 24 hours or so, and is only meant to keep germies away while the cut closes.  Self-adherent wrap has been found to be the best type of wrap for this, as it doesn't stick to my fur, doesn't require tape, can just be thrown away when done and I can't seem to get it off.  If I need extra cushioning for an extra sore pad, I'll have a washable fabric bandage applied and secured with medical tape.  These items are worth keeping in your first aid kit.

It is important to know that us dogs "sweat" through our feet, and so a bandage left on for too long can actually become moist and cause infection.  Plus, a pad injury appears to heal fastest when it's allowed some air and kept dry.  Just make sure you don't get too obsessive over chewing on that foot!  Keep the area clean only as needed, or else your tongue will do more damage than good.  If you're licking too much, your human will have to keep your foot bandaged for longer.

There are lots of products that will prevent and help a sore paw.  One of the most popular is called Musher's Secret.  This is a waxy substance that keeps the paw pads supple and prevents cracking.  It also creates a barrier from salt, ice and other outdoor ouchies.  My humans used to have a container of this stuff and found it to be great for prevention, but not so great for healing.  Then Miss Lilly's mommy bought me some Paw Saver by All Terrain Co.  This stuff is a waxy herbal mix and it did a little more to help my pads stay soft, and it also made a bit of a difference in helping me heal.  It's an all-natural remedy that contains Rosemary, so if you have an issue with that herb I wouldn't recommend this product.  It sure smells nice though!

There are lots of products out there that are supposed to help make your pads stronger, and I think we'll try one of those next.  And in the mean time, we'll keep using waxes to keep my pads soft and to prevent cracking, and perhaps even try using some black tea.  Black tea contains tannins, and this compound can be used externally in a myriad of ways.  Soak a black tea bag in hot water, let it cool slightly, and hold up to minor scrapes and burns like you would an ice pack.  The tannins in black tea help to reduce swelling, stop (very) minor bleeding, and prevent infection.  In fact, once the tannins have been absorbed into the tissue they will continue to prevent infection at the injury site.  A boiled and cooled tea bag can be applied to bee stings and poison oak/ivy rashes, and my human has even used one when her wisdom tooth was infected and it worked better than any painkiller on the market.  Finally, tannins are what is used in the tanning process, and so it should help to toughen my pad.  I just have to sit still long enough to have a tea bag held onto my paw...

Never gonna happen,

Big Pupi.