Best Dog Paw Balm For Winter: Maintain Healthy Paws!

The best dog paw balm for winter is Musher’s Secret Dog Paw Wax: a natural, wax-based balm that forms a breathable barrier against snow, ice and de-icing salt and soaks in without staining your floors. For a budget option, Burt’s Bees Care Plus lotion is a good alternative, and we compare five picks in total below.

Why bother? Just as extreme heat or cold causes our feet to crack, dog paws can get dry, chapped, and irritated too, and many dogs suffer this fate come winter. If your dog is limping, walking gingerly or licking his paws more than usual, the problem might lie below in their paws.

Though cute-looking socks and shoes can prevent this fate, only a few dogs are comfortable in them (if yours is, see our guide to a dog snowsuit with attached boots). This is where paw balms for dogs save the day. In addition to preventing cracks and irritation, they also nourish your dog’s paws.

Why Your Dog Might Need A Paw Balm In Winter

Winters in the United States can get unreasonably cold. This drastic drop in the temperature takes a toll on your dog’s overall health, especially the paws. The curb on the usual walk route is now colder, there is snow in the streets sprayed with deicing chemicals that wreak havoc on your dog’s paws.

Once there are cracks in your dog’s paws, the cold makes them itch like hell too. Chapped paws can turn a comfy winter into a nightmare for your doggo, where he is in real pain and almost unable to walk as he did.

Just as you start wearing winter boots to tread through the snow, your dog’s paws need an invisible layer of protection in the form of dog paw balms.

Benefits Of Using Paw Balm For Your Dog

Dog paw balms are thick ointments that you can apply to the skin of your dog’s paws. Applying the balm to his paw pads before walking will protect them from the extremes of excessive heat and cold. It is a healthy practice to reapply the balm once you’re back home from the walk.

If you need further convincing to use paw balm for your dog, here are four reasons to do so:

1Paw Balms Protect Against Extreme Weather

The pads of your dog’s paws can dry out and crack in extreme cold. Snow can also pack into ice balls between the toes, which are painful and can cut the skin, and long exposure to freezing conditions can lead to frostbite. Snow-loving breeds spend the most time out there; we look at one of them in do Border Collies like snow.

If you think it’s okay to skip balming your dog’s paws in the summer, try walking barefoot on the concrete on a sunny summer afternoon. Paw balm works as an insulator against the heat by moisturizing them and acting as a calming barrier.

2Dog Paw Balms Protect Against Wear And Tear

If we were to walk barefoot all our life, we’d have lifelong calluses on the sole of our feet. Though a dog’s paws are relatively strong, they are conditioned for the wild and not concrete floors. Roads can also leave sticky residue behind, which we cover in how to remove tar from dog paws. 

In the long run, his favorite walks can cause considerable wear and tear to his paws, causing him immense pain and discomfort. Dog paw balms prevent this wear and tear and save you and your dog a whole lot of pain and suffering.

3Paw Balms Soothe Irritation And Repair Damage

Paw balms are great for soothing dry, rough, or mildly cracked pads and minor irritation. The natural ingredients in the balm help moisturize the skin and support healing of minor damage to the paws of your fido.

A balm is not a treatment for burns, open wounds, deep or bleeding cracks, swelling, or a paw that looks infected (redness, discharge, a bad smell). In those cases, or if your dog keeps limping or licking one paw, call your vet.

4Dog Paw Balms Are A Great Treatment For Hyperkeratosis

Have you ever seen a dog with crusty, hard, almost “hairy-looking” paw pads or nose? This is often hyperkeratosis, a condition where the body produces too much keratin, so the skin thickens and forms rough, hard growths.

This can cause your dog’s paws to thicken, crack and bleed. A good moisturizing balm can soften the thickened skin and help keep it from cracking. Hyperkeratosis can have underlying causes, so have your vet check it out before you rely on a balm alone.

What Does an Ideal Dog Paw Balm Look Like

Now that we’ve established why dog paw balms are useful, let us dive deeper into what an excellent paw balm should be made up of.

Firstly a dog paw balm should be safe and non-toxic to your dog. Secondly, the balm should penetrate the tough skin of the paw pads and seal in moisture. When you start looking at the product labels of dog paw balm products, ingredients such as shea butter, vitamin E, and oils of coconut, jojoba, and olive may keep popping up. These oils are natural moisturizers and are effective yet gentle on his paws. 

For dogs that like to frolic in the snow, dog paw wax made of carnauba or beeswax will safeguard your dog’s paws against the adverse effects of prolonged exposure to snow.

If your dog is the “always hungry” type, choose an unscented balm rather than having your dog lick a scented balm right off his paws as soon as you apply it. Either way, pick a balm made for dogs: human products can contain ingredients such as zinc oxide or certain essential oils that aren’t safe to lick.

Don’t forget to wipe paws after winter walks

Balm works best together with a simple routine: after every winter walk, rinse or wipe your dog’s paws with lukewarm water, dry them well (including between the toes), and check for cuts or ice balls. This removes de-icing salt and chemicals before your dog licks them off, which can irritate the mouth and stomach. Trimming the hair between the pads also helps prevent snow from balling up.

5 fantastic dog paw balms for winter

Now that we have turned you into a dog paw balm fan, it’s time to help you pick the best dog paw balm for winter. The below list contains products that are unique in their own way. Feel free to pick one that appeals to you and your doggo the most.