Help Keep Your Dog from Slipping

Do you know the skit where an animal runs across a slippery surface and runs in place for a few seconds? It may be hysterical in cartoons, but when your dog can’t get traction on a floor in real life, it’s scary.

Dog paws slipping on a floor can cause the pup to get injured. In an older dog, it’s a terrifying problem that adds to their discomfort and fear.

No matter how old a dog is, they, like people, get insecure if they fall or can’t stand up on a slippery surface. Your pup may forget an occasional slide, but when they know it’s going to happen, they feel unstable. This can cause them to lose confidence and try to walk outwards without their legs pulled together.

Think about the damage a slip or slide can do to you. For your furry family member, it can cause pain and serious injury, too.

You could choose to have full carpeting in your home, but there are less expensive and excessive options. If you want to help keep your dog from slipping, try these five tricks!

Tips to Stop Your Dog’s Slip and Slides

Older dogs and slippery surfaces don’t mix. While older dogs slipping on hardwood floors is common, any dog can be hurt if they slide.

There are many reasons to answer the question, “Why does my dog slip on floors?” The answer depends on your floors and your dog. Try one (or all) of these tips to help increase the traction for dogs on hardwood floors and other slippery surfaces:

1. Check your pup's paw pads.

The number one reason vets say traction issues happen is because a dog has dry paw pads. Dry skin makes it difficult for your dog’s paw pads to grip the surface. Your pup needs protection to reduce dry skin.

Dry paws are often the result of chapped skin. It’s a very big, but overlooked, problem in cold and dry areas. When your pet comes into contact with pavement, snow, hot sand, or pebbles, their paws can become dry and cracked. This becomes painful and causes your dog to slip on surfaces.

Protect your dog’s paws with a stabilizing product like Walkee Paws Grippy Socks to prevent dryness and cracked skin. If it’s too late, use a lotion such as Burt’s Bees for Dogs to heal the damage.

2. Trim their nails.

When your dog’s nails grow too long, even if their paws are fully padded, they can’t get traction. The nails keep their paw from being able to get flat enough to touch the surface.

Unless you take your dog to the groomer or the vet to trim their nails, you have to be very careful. Trimming too close to the paw can cause injury. A minor cut isn’t going to require a trip to the vet, but it will create anxiety in your dog. Any time you try to trim their nails, it’s going to be an ordeal.

3. Try some paw wax.

Yes, you read that right. Paw wax is a real thing, recommended by vets to prevent your pup’s paw pads from sliding out from underneath them.

Paw wax was first designed as a way to protect the sensitive paws in sled dogs. They need protection from constant, direct contact with cold temperatures, snow, and ice. Additionally, the cold dried out their paws and caused cracks and chaps.

4. Get non-slip padding.

Hardwood, tiles, vinyl, and laminate floors may look nice, but they’re not fun for most dogs. Especially if your dog is older, you could need to invest in other options.

No, you don’t have to replace your floors (although you can if you want to). But your pup might benefit from a few well-placed area rugs in their favorite hangout spots. The rug itself is still slippery, so it will need non-slip padding underneath it to keep it secure.

Using a large area rug as your dog anti-slip option is a simple solution. Since Fido will learn that this is the safe space for him to try to stand up, it will become his favorite spot.

Dogs don’t usually slip once they get going. It’s getting up and moving that is the hard part. With a few area rugs, they can relax with the confidence that they’ll be able to get back up.

5. Use dog paw non-slip products.

Dogs have non-slip sprays and other products to help prevent slips and falls.

Coating your pup’s paws in anti-slip spray is a safe, effective way to minimize occasional sliding on slippery surfaces. All you have to do is spray the product on the paw pads and let it dry.

The best way to do this is to work one paw at a time, holding your pup’s paw gently to give the spray time to dry. This way, there’s no sticky residue on your floor and your dog won’t even remember it’s there.

It only lasts 24 hours, so it’s a good solution to use once in a while if you know your dog will be in contact with slippery floors. However, it should be a temporary problem-solver, not a daily permanent fix.

If you want a longer-lasting temporary solution, try paw grips. These are little paw-sized stickers that adhere to your dog’s paw pads.

The two-sided stickers work like a bandaid or other stick-on adhesive. You trim them down to the size of your dog’s paw. Then, simply peel off the backing and stick the adhesive to the padding on Fido’s foot!

The grips are designed in a pattern that specifically works as an anti-slip mechanism. When your dog walks on a slippery surface, the stickers prevent their feet from sliding out. Paw grips have to be replaced every week or so, making them a better choice for consistent dog help than the spray.

6. Keep your pup healthy.

When you’re in good shape, it’s easier for you to avoid a slip or fall in your path. The same idea applies to your dog.

A healthy dog can handle the quick reaction needed to avoid slipping when they feel their traction going. This fast response will help them avoid getting injured.

With regular exercise and a healthy diet, your dog is less likely to have problems with slippery surfaces. Older and/or overweight dogs are susceptible to sliding and are also more at risk of getting injured when they do.

7. Watch for medical conditions.

So it’s not your dog’s nails, paw pads, or your flooring that is causing the problem, but Fido is still slipping. Chances are, by this point, your pup is falling other places, too, if it’s a medical condition that’s the root of the issue.

Certain health problems go hand-in-hand with difficulty walking, whether the floor is slippery or not. Talk to your vet and let them know your concerns.

Your dog may be dealing with a physical injury you can’t see, and they can’t tell you about. A sprain isn’t easy to detect, but is painful for your pup.

Chronic health conditions cause the bones to slowly deteriorate. Arthritis, joint issues, spinal problems, and hip and hind leg problems usually have the main symptom of slipping. Walkee Paws can help with these diagnoses, by proving extra support with it's over the back design.

Prevention is the Key to Avoiding Injuries

No one can prevent old age from creeping up on us or our furry family members. What you can do, though, is help save your dog from the stress and injury of a slippery floor.

You probably don’t want to rip up your flooring and replace it with a non-slip version instead, unless you were ready to remodel anyway. But with these seven tricks, you can help keep your dog from slipping without an expensive, major home renovation.

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