Is your dog a licker? Do they lick lick their paws, arms, chest? I am constantly telling Sophie to stop. She’s not cleaning herself. Our vet has said maybe its an environmental allergy and that it’s a common thing she sees. Without extensive allergy testing, which is both expensive and an ordeal for the dog, it’s tough to pinpoint exactly what causes this. Sometimes, it’s almost like an OCD condition, and she’ll make her arms red.

If this all sounds familiar to you, take heart. There’s something I found that really helped Sophie and may help heal red skin or rough paws on your pup, too. It’s from a wonderful, grass-roots company called Natural Paws, and in less than a week, the redness and lick lick were almost completely gone.

Read on for a special offer for Bark & Swagger followers at the end!

A Bit About Natural Paws

Elyse & Sweet Pea
photo courtesy of Natural Paws

You want to know where you’re buying from, especially when it’s products that your dog ingests or that goes on their skin, also a mainline into their system. Me, too. When I read about Natural Paws, owned by Elyse Horvath, a wonderful woman I met at the Women in the Pet Industry Network conference, I found out that she uses all natural ingredients, derived from botanicals, for her products. She formulates them with an herbalist, natural product and peptide chemist, to make sure they’re safe and they work.

What motivated Elyse to start Natural Paws? Like a lot of people I’ve met in the pet industry, it was all about solving a problem with their own dogs. Elyse’s beloved Cocker Spaniel, Sweet Pea, was her running partner. Living in the dry heat of Arizona, Sweet Pea’s paws took a beating on those runs, and Elyse set out to find a product to alleviate the dryness, which was causing Sweet Pea to lick. She couldn’t find something natural that was also very easily absorbed. I can attest to that, because what I’d seen in my search were a lot of balms and thick ointment-like products.

Saki & Katie
Photo courtesy of Natural Paws

So, she found her calling and eventually switched careers to devote herself full time to helping other dog parents with similar problems. Sweet Pea sadly passed away last year, but her legacy lives on in Natural Paws, continuing to help other dogs. She’s done her job well; there are many, many testimonials from very satisfied customers on Elyse’s site.

Sophie’s Story

Elyse was kind enough to send us a bottle of Sweet Pea’s Gentle Paws, her hypo-allergenic formula recommended for dogs with allergies, rashes and hot spots. It sounded just like what the doctor ordered for my girl.

What I loved right away about this product was that it’s a spray, not a balm. It absorbs well and dries quickly. We don’t have to deal with a greasy product getting on the furniture or being ingested by Sophie.

Here’s a picture of what Sophie’s paws looked like just before we started using Sweet Pea’s Gentle Paws:

Sophie hates getting her picture taken, which is why she’s lying there like I’m actually torturing her. You can see the redness on her arm and a bit on her chest, her favorite lick lick spots. 

After less than one week of spraying her paws and arms each night, here’s what her paws looked like:

It’s much improved. And, Sophie’s lick lick was drastically reduced. We will continue to use Gentle Paws to manage Sophie’s issue.

Elyse also offers Sweet Pea’s Active Paws formula for dogs that live a very active lifestyle, where their paws, like Sweet Pea’s, might be in need of extra TLC. And, she has Sweet Pea’s Frisky Paws, for the kitty cats.

She also makes a nice ear spray product called EARoma ThEARapy, which is the world’s first spray ear wash and cleanses, soothes, and disinfects the ears.

Testimonials

photo courtesy of Natural Paws

Here’s one that really stood out for me:

My name is Kristin. I am a 41 yr old with a brain tumor and MS. I have a service dog named Saul. He has changed my life in so many ways. He is my Guardian Angel. I picked the perfect name for him because his name means “prayed for” and I prayed for him to come into my life. You see before Saul my life was very limited. I could not go out by myself and I had no independence. There are no words to describe the freedom and the way he has changed my life. He helps me up off the floor when I get down and can’t get up, he detects my seizures and helps me get to safety. He also balances me when I loose my balance. I always worried about his paws and then I found this wonderful product called Natural Paws and his paws have never been better. He no longer has cracked dried out paws. He now lets me touch his paws which makes it easier for me to get his boots on. Thank you so much for this product. I also wanted you to know that I have used this product on all of my dogs and I have sent this product to other service dog friends.

Kristin, Arizona

Bark & Swagger’s Special Coupon!

photo courtesy of Natural Paws

Bark & Swagger family! Elyse has offered us a coupon for 10% off of any Natural Paws product, using the code SWAGGER.  If you decide to try Natural Paws, please come back and tell me how it worked for you. Let’s help each other help our pups!

Have you found a good solution to rough paw pads or a skin allergy? Please share what’s worked for you.