Monday, February 12, 2007

Protect Paws in Winter

While we’re preparing for winter snow and ice, we need to remember to protect our pets, especially dogs, from harsh de-icing chemicals. Dogs’ paws are particularly vulnerable in winter. Snow and ice can get between their toes, and chemicals can cause their paws to dry and crack. On walks try to avoid areas that have been salted or have other chemical de-icers. Inspect your dog’s feet when you come inside. Wash them off with warm water and dry them thoroughly. And consider using a safe product like sand or kitty litter or a de-icer called Safe Paws. If you can talk your dog into it, you can also protect his or her paws with dog mittens.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I called AWLA about this very issue last week. Several neighborhood apt and condo complexes threw rock salt down instead of just shoveling snow last week, leaving my dog in agony when he stepped on it. I have contacted the County and Aileen Winquist of the Dept of Environmental Services will be updating their information about de-icers to reflect that it hurts dogs feet. AWLA should contact her at awinquist@arlingtonva.us and you can work together to make sure the property owners know this is a major problem. Thanks for posting this.