A Sticky Mess

June 2, 2008 5:40 PM

How do we clean gum from a dog's paw?

My lab has stepped in some gum. It's stuck on one of the paw pads and in the hair between the pads of one of his forepaws.

Joey's not too crazy about people playing with his feet at the best of times so I'm reluctant to start scissoring at this sensitive area. Any brilliant home remedies out there?

posted by timeistight to pets & animals (11 comments total)

Work peanut butter into it. Likely the dog will help.
posted by reflecked at 5:52 PM on June 2

rub some peanut butter on there, let it sit for a bit and then start working it out, that should do the trick. then soap and water afterwards to wash!
posted by lia at 5:53 PM on June 2

another vote for peanut butter. It dissolves gum.
posted by kimdog at 6:03 PM on June 2

Vegetable oil will also work.
posted by sebastienbailard at 6:36 PM on June 2

what about rubbing ice on the gum until it hardens? it would be easier to remove then.
i remember reading about getting gum off clothes by putting it in the freezer for the gum to harden.
posted by kryptos at 6:49 PM on June 2

Peanut butter and an e-collar for about an hour, then you can pick off as much of the peanut butter as you can and let the dog handle the rest.

If the dog doesn't want you near his paws get a kong filled with peanut butter or a partner with a spoon of peanut butter and keep the puppy busy while you much about with the paw.
posted by iamabot at 9:46 PM on June 2

what about rubbing ice on the gum until it hardens? it would be easier to remove then.

Dog bodyheat + ice + gum = wet gum.

Yes, you can freeze gum with high pressure vapor and then scrape it off surfaces, like carpet and sidewalks. But dog paws are neither carpet nor sidewalks, and are usually attached to, you know, dogs, which tend to freak out when they're fucked around with too much.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 10:00 PM on June 2

Here's an article from eHow on removing gum from your hair. It also mentions canola or olive oil. There are some other methods mentioned in the comments section. I would avoid anything toxic (like WD-40) with pets.
posted by plokent at 12:27 AM on June 3

From babsitting experience, using ice was pretty ineffective. Peanut butter worked in about fifteen seconds.
posted by 8dot3 at 5:18 AM on June 3

I honestly don't know how to remove gum from hair but do not use scissors to cut it out. As an ER animal nurse, I see an abundance of lacerations caused by well intentioned pet owners using scissors to cut out hair mats. If you do end up needing to cut the gum out, use hair clippers. You can get a cheap one at Target for about $10-15.
posted by little miss s at 8:06 AM on June 3

Thanks, all. We'll try the peanut butter. He'll like that, whether it works or not.
posted by timeistight at 10:46 AM on June 3