Hi Sonya:
How are you?
We found out that Leo's skin problem and maybe the redness in his paws could be due to Zinc deficiency. Some breeds, especially the northern breeds, husky and malamutes, are more prone to this problem genetically. Zinc is found in meat, bones, fish, and whole grains. I think Leo's previous diet was most likely lacking in good nutrients as well. We are hoping that the high meat diet that he has now will improve the pinkness in his paws which had shown maybe a little improvement if any since when we got him. We might try Zinc supplement which should be safe since any excess will be excreted from the digestive system; at least that's what the info from internet says. One good sign is that he is no longer chewing on his paws during his leisure times. This is for your info in case you get such breeds with similar problems in the future.
Leo is quite enjoying himself. Although he's unlike our other dogs since he doesn't like to go on car rides. He doesn't like the raw meat much. He likes my cooking so we try to mix it up a little since we believe the raw meat should be better for his skin condition. Today I had cooked fish mixed with rice for my babies; he and Krissy devoured it in an instant. Leo also had some pizza which I know he's not supposed to. We had a good walk in the snow this morning and I took a really good picture which I will e-mail you later. He is so gentle when I hand feed him. Yesterday, he bit me slightly by accident. I didn't say anything since he didn't mean it but he looked so guilty about it so I had to comfort him to tell him it's ok.
Krissy is more used to Leo now which is a comfort. However, her limp is still bad despite the pain killers the vet prescribed. The good signs are she still likes to eat a lot and she wants to go and walk around. I hope she's not in too much pain but it's hard to tell with dogs since they are so stoic. Although it's only been less than a year since we had her, we have grown very attached to each other.
Carmen
