cracked toe pads?

[gaigeschaos]

Lucius got his first bath in his new home today! Afterwards when I was cleaning his paws/nails I noticed his front toe pads are a little cracked, it's not too bad and it doesn't seem to bother him- he's still playing and running and jumping like mad and he didn't seem to mind when I was touching them earlier. I don't know if this is normal or not, the air is super dry here so maybe that has something to do with it. ?? I'm not really concerned as he seems to be fine but I was wondering what you all thought- Kindof hard to see in the pic

but I can see bright pink skin from under the "cracks" on the pads..
I dunno, new mommy worry syndrome?

here he is all worn out from his bath <3

 

[GizmosMommy]

Awwww...I bet its dry skin. Maybe have it looked at if it doesn't get better ir gets worse.

 

[Ollie]

I'm not experienced enough with sphynx's to know but...ouch!! if it is cracked....wonder if some coconut oil would help? It helped when my Oliver had a dry tail.

PS what a cutie!

 

[Catzzzmeow]

Maybe he is excessively grooming/licking his toes. Does he sit on heat vents at all? I am just thinking what might be drying them out so much. Might try the suggestion above about the coconut oil but just watch it does not lead to even more toe sucking.

If there is no true raw/cuts through the skin he should be okay. If there are true cuts I would get it checked out since a litter box is full of germs etc...and feces on an open wound would not be good.

patti

 

[susi794]

Might try a bit of vitamin E oil....let it soak in, then wipe off any excess. The coconut oil might work too. If they are open, then should ask the vet to have a look. Did you question the new owner about what might've happened? What did they use to bathe him? Did they have carpet fresh on their carpets? Different litter? Might be a contact issue. Did they use anything on his feet? Could they have gotten burned? Are they over bathing him?

 

[gaigeschaos]

Thanks for the replies!!
They don't seem to be open wounds at all, they mostly just seemed to be a little cracked. I haven't seen any blood or scabbing. It's only on a couple of pads on his front paws. I'm using the same everything that he had before, same litter, same baby wash etc. I've been with him since bringing him home so I'm pretty positive he hasn't really hurt himself..
And as far as I can tell he hasn't been excessively grooming, licking or worrying at them at all, and he doesn't seem to be bothered by it, but I'll keep my eye on it and try the vitamin E oil tomorrow if they look the same. I'll take him to the vet if it looks worse or if I notice it happening on more toes!!

 

[admin]

Lucius got his first bath in his new home today! Afterwards when I was cleaning his paws/nails I noticed his front toe pads are a little cracked, it's not too bad and it doesn't seem to bother him- he's still playing and running and jumping like mad and he didn't seem to mind when I was touching them earlier. I don't know if this is normal or not, the air is super dry here so maybe that has something to do with it. ?? I'm not really concerned as he seems to be fine but I was wondering what you all thought- Kindof hard to see in the pic

but I can see bright pink skin from under the "cracks" on the pads..
I dunno, new mommy worry syndrome?

here he is all worn out from his bath <3

Great info thus far, they do make a product just for paw drying or cracking shown below- Also, it can be a diet issue - adding a bit of fish oil and vitamin E to their food can help with paw dryness. Always ask your vet before trying any new treatments or ingredient, all mentioned above are safe for cats if used properly. Olive oil rubbed into the paws will also help.

http://www.petco.com/product/111536/Espree-Natural-Paw-Balm.aspx