iceballs between pads

[elsasmom]

My friend that I walk dogs with has a Springer and he gets iceballs in the hair between his pads when we hike the fresh snow in the woods. I told her I would check what people on the forum do about it.
We have to stop quite often and try to break them up when Sam lays down and bites at the snowballs. They can be hard and icy and difficult to remove. I thought that perhaps some cooking oil sprayed on his feet before we go out might help.

Any suggestions? We hike year round and the snow is just beginning to accumulate on his feet again.:(

[Shells_k]

booties ;-)

[lucysnewmum]

deffo booties or wait till the snow has melted! lol

[woppitt]

Is a difficult one - it would help to trim the hair between the toes, it would be less easy for the snow to trap, but then springers have quite hairy feet as the hairs protect the area between the toes. So... it would be worth considering where you do most of your wealking, if its through woodland then he needs his hairy tootsies!!! if not, it might bee worth giving them a trim. My Poppy gets snow stuck between her pads, but thats not because of hair trapping it, its because she sprags her toes apart as she walks. We have to stop every so often to clear her pads if the snow is icy and hard - You might find it helpful to carry a small teaspoon in your pocket to use the handle in the same way you would use a horse's hoof-pick.
Hope this helps xxxxx:)

[k9mania]

You can get the booties that sled dog people use off of one of the sites on sled dog central. It is not just the snow but when they lift the feet up and the snow balls turn to ice it is way too cold for them. The fleece like ones are pretty cheap.

[Shara]

I use Mushers Secret

http://www.amazon.com/Mushers-Secret-Invisible-Shield-200/dp/B0002XIZXY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1260234114&sr=8-1

;)

[speedwayspringer]

For my springers I keep the hair in between their pads trimmed short. And then i Spray Pam cooking spray on the hair that is left. This also works on their feathering that hangs from chest/belly/rear legs.
They will still get snowballs but they will slide right off when you pull on them.
Have been doing this for 5 yrs now and it works great:)
and my oldest girl just LOVES the snow!

Best of luck