Poorly Paws and Eating my Feet

Harumph. Dogs, I am NOT happy. I, Diesel, the cutest and coolest dog in the neighbourhood am sitting here wearing a numpty hat! Whats a numpty hat you ask? Well, its a stupid hat that makes me look like a complete numpty. Mum says its for my own good......pffff!!!

If you are wondering why i am forced to bear this humilation, then here is the story. Every few months or so i get a bit tetchy and decide to eat my feet. Well, one of them anyway. I've been sneaking a peak at Mums book and have diagnosed myself with self-destructive cycles. I chomp away and pull bits off my pads until they get really sore. Then obviously, i have to constantly lick it in order to make it better. Mum, however, doesn't undestand the sanitary, medicinal or theraputic importance of licking . Not only does she try and stop me eating my feet in the first instance, but she then refuses to let me lick them better!!! I mean, C'mon!!! Every dog knows that the only way make things better is to lick them. Buuuuut, she won't let me. so everytime i slip into a self destructive cycle and eat my feet........ on goes the numpty hat.

Fortunately my Mum isn't totally evil, so she doesn't try and humiliate me in front of my friends. When we go out she takes off the numpty hat (yay) and lets me wear my totally cool K9 trainees!!!! The other dogs are soooo jealous!!! Soooo, until i can break out of the circle, it looks like i'm in for a cycle of numpty hats, trainees and relaxing paw spas, until my feet get better.

Carls' Note: since we adopted Diesel he has had a recurring habit of chewing his pads until they are raw. at first we rushed him back and to to the Vets to see if he had something stuck in them, or if he had picked up something nasty while out swimming. £100's later we realised it was stress related. A habit he picked up from being left alone all the time at his previous home. These days we've managed to cut it out almost completely, but every so often something will set him off and it will start all over again. Here is how we fix it. In the house he wears his numpty hat to break the licking cycle. Then, when we go out, he changes into this trainers and this allows him to walk on the saw area without too much discomfort. Then, when we get back, his paw is bathed in saline salution and fully dried. Finaly the numpty hat goes on and we repeat the process. All in all it takes about 3 days if you break the cycle (licking/ chewing) early or a week if it has gotten very sore.