Cracked paw pads?

(Mods - I'm not sure if this should go here or in Care and Grooming. I'm sorry if it's in the wrong place.)

Anyway, I was just watching Socks lying in her chair and I looked at her paws and they appear to be dry and cracking, much like we get dry skin on our hands. Should I take her to the vet to get some special cream or something? What can I do to make it feel better? She doesn't appear to be in any pain and she's playing normally, but I can't imagine it can feel too good to have all those cracks.

Thanks for your suggestions, guys.

Angela, my first thought was: could this possibly be due to the type of litter used? Could the litter used be of very rough texture?

Also, have Socks been scratching/playing on some rough surfaces or something? i am trying to guess as much as possible.

Could you try following her around to observe further?

It sounds awfully painful for her.. oh dear!

Take care of socks and of you, Angela!

Cheers!

The problem with cracked pads is that bacteria can work itself into the cracks. You can cover the pads with a light coating of lanolin (which you can get at the drugstore) I would also start adding more moisture to Sock's food and perhaps dribbling sardine oil or tuna juice into the water so Socks will drink more.

When we brought Ferdy in from being a stray his pads were bery hard and cracked.

I asked the vet for advice and she said to lightly rub them with olive oil once a day.

Ferdy seemed to enjoy his massage, and now, nearly a year later his pads are as soft as anything.

I apply cocoa butter to my kitties paw pads. They all have nice, smooth pads. I put them butter on and reward them with a treat, it's so easy!

Thanks guys.
Shirley, I don't know what Socks has been doing as we were gone for an Easter holiday and had a cat sitter in. She reported nothing out of the ordinary, but Socks didn't have her moist food over the weekend. Maybe that could have something to do with it... I don't know how much water she drank. She has two water bowls around the house that I change twice a day (she's fussy about her water). Anyway, I will take your suggestions to heart. Thanks everyone.

--Jenn