Calluses and wet paws in dogs: what a flooring substrate study found
Published by Planète Pets · managing editor: Clément Lacaille · how our guides are written
Concrete, gravel, wire mesh: flooring type is often blamed for calluses and paw irritation in dogs. A recent US study on dogs in commercial breeding facilities lets us test that assumption with numbers rather than guesswork. Our bedding and set-up guidance is gathered in the dog bedding and habitat section.
Contents · 4 sections
373 dogs, three flooring types
Judith Stella, Paulo Gomes, Traci Shreyer and Candace Croney, of Purdue University, published, in 2025 in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, a cross-sectional study of 373 dogs across 20 commercial breeding facilities, housed on combinations of concrete, gravel and diamond-coated expanded metal (see the study). A veterinary dermatologist examined each dog's paws, nails, elbows, hocks, body condition and cleanliness.
Conditions found: wet paws (12.6% of dogs), calluses (11.26%), erythema (6.97%) and matted paw fur (6.17%). But in the mixed-effects logistic regression models, flooring type itself was not the factor that emerged as significant: it was sex that was associated with wet paws (odds ratio 6.08, CI 1.23–29.92, p = 0.03) and age that was associated with matted fur (odds ratio 1.52, CI 1.12–2.07, p = 0.007).
What this study does not show
It does not prove that a hard or wire floor is harmless for a dog: the setting is commercial breeding, with time spent standing and collective management very different from a family home. It measures visible skin lesions, not joint comfort or pain, which remain a separate issue covered in our article on the orthopedic dog bed. It also does not compare bare flooring to a padded bed, only three floor substrates against each other.
What it changes at home
- Do not rely on flooring alone to judge a dog's comfort: a suitable cushion or bed remains useful regardless of the room's floor.
- Keep a closer eye on older dogs, more prone to matted paw fur according to this study, with regular paw grooming.
- For an outdoor doghouse, favour a dry floor, insulated from the cold and easy to clean, rather than a raw material laid straight on bare ground, following the guidance in our outdoor dog house buying guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is concrete flooring bad for a dog's paws?
This study does not establish that on its own: in its models, a dog's sex and age explain some abnormalities better than flooring type.
Should a padded bed be provided anyway?
Yes: the study covers visible skin lesions, not joint comfort, which remains a criterion in its own right when choosing bedding.
Do older dogs have particular paw needs?
The study links age to more matted paw fur, which justifies extra grooming attention for senior dogs. Find all our guides on the dog hub.
An accessory from our shop for this use: Ice-silk cooling mat for dogs (62 × 50 to 100 × 70 cm) (€40.90) · the whole shop
An accessory from our shop for this use: Folding 3-step wooden pet stairs for beds and sofas ($75.90, ships from the US) · the US shop
This guide is part of Planète Pets’s Dogs universe. Our advice is general in nature: for any health concern, your veterinarian remains the only reference.