We have an old (14 years) large (100+ lbs) dog with bad hips, and her feet slide all over any flooring that isn’t carpet. Lately her feet slip so much she can barely get herself up off the floor. I’m thinking about getting her some non-slip doggie socks. Have any Dopers tried something like this? Any recommendations for brands to look for or avoid?
I have the same problem-- hardwood floors throughout the house and Sweetie’s back legs go out from under her. I did some research on non-slip shoes/socks for dogs but decided to employ the same solution that I used with Sweetie’s (now deceased) comrade, Buddy. I bought runners and put them all over the house in the most-traveled areas. Thin yoga mats would work, too. Unsightly, but <shrug> what can ya do? I’ve also put Sweetie’s food dish on a yoga mat, because her feet would slip while she was eating.
If you come up with something else, I’d love to hear about it.
I saw these on Shark Tank. No idea if they really work or not:
Thelma Lou I have put runners down in a couple of places, but figured it would be cheaper buying the dog some grippy socks rather than spending a bunch on rugs. (My wife would never go for the yoga mats.)
We used rugs here too. It wasn’t cheap but it was much easier than trying to keep boots or socks on the dogs! Some dogs hate having them on their feet. We did use them when there was a foot injury, though, and this is what we used:
Dog Boots – Muttluks US - they sell non-slip socks.
Shop Pet Products | Thera-Paw | USA (therapaw.com) - these are more for therapeutic use, but they sell rubber booties that provide a lot of traction, along with other types of boots, slippers and leg supports.
I got three of these and put them around-- $37 each. They look okay. But my house is really small, too, so I didn’t need that many.
(The amazon box in the corner is there for the amusement of my two cats. One or the other of them will spend some time in it just meditating or whatever they do.)
We tried the grippy socks, but our dog hated them and refused to walk with them, so we also went with runners.
Has anyone wondered about the username/post combo here? 
I used these for my old boy when he was having a lot of trouble getting to his feet. It was a couple years ago now, but I chose them because they stayed on better than other dog booties, were “grippier,” and were lighter, so he didn’t try to kick them off as much.
They weren’t great, though. They were tight/elastic around his ankles and didn’t breathe at all, so his poor feet got kind of swollen and raw even though he only had them on for a few hours at a time. Also, his toenails, which weren’t especially long or sharp, cut through them pretty easily. Getting a larger size didn’t help. I also tried some kind of product where you essentially glue rubber powder to the bottoms of their feet and that was completely useless. I ended up mostly just lifting him to his feet when he wanted to get up.
I saw something like this advertised somewhere the other day and it looks completely ridiculous, but might be worth a try. It seems like a workable solution to some of the problems I’ve found with regular booties. I would probably try it for my dog if he were still alive. Worth having people laugh at you for the fashion choices you impose upon your dog if it works and makes them more comfortable.
SurrenderDorothy we saw those rubber booties at the local pet store last night. That was the only kind of foot covering they had, and I don’t think something like that would work for us.
The big question is, will she even tolerate having doggie socks on her feet? She may wind up hating whatever we buy for her. (On the plus side, she has a sore on one front paw from constant licking and chewing. If we could keep socks on her feet, it might help with that issue.)
Another thing we saw at the pet store that we are considering is a harness that goes around the back legs that you can use to help pull the dog up to her feet. The problem with that is that it doesn’t doesn’t look like something you’d want to leave on all the time, and getting it on her while she is lying on the floor could be just as much work as trying to help her to her feet without it.
One thing I like about the Walkee Paws design is that the socks are connected over the dog’s back. That’ll make it harder for the dog to pull the socks off. The problem with regular socks is that it’s not too hard for the dog to pull them off. A dog’s leg doesn’t have a narrow wrist area to help tighten the sock. Normal socks can be easily pulled off their legs, so if your dog wants it off, she can pretty much get it off without any trouble.
We got our dog a harness. She had a period after a leg injury when she needed the assistance. We’d put it on in the morning and remove it at night. When she was the least mobile it pretty much required two people, one to lift her to her fit and hold her up, and the other to put it on. But then it was super useful the rest of the day.
It had a back section and a front section, and though you could use the front section separately the back section pretty much had to be used with the front section or it would slip off backwards.
For periods when she was generally more mobile, but still needed some aid, we used a sling made out of a reusable grocery bag with the sides cut out.
It got her through a couple of recovery periods and was very useful at the end of her life while we were processing letting her go.
I’ve seen Naked Socks by Otis advertised around here by a trusted dog breeder/groomer/trainer. She sells them in her shop and her dogs have used them. But the sock company is also local so I don’t know how much of the hype is real and how much is buddy-buddy.
Those look very interesting! The testimonials page is quite encouraging. I might try some for Sweetie’s back feet.
Today I visited three pet stores - the locally owned store that I usually go to, plus two national chains - and nobody had indoor socks for dogs. Just those rubber booties and some other boots that were geared more for outdoors/hiking. So I looked online and saw good reviews for socks from a company called Pawchee. Their socks have the non-slip surface on top and bottom, in case the sock gets twisted around, and a velcro strap at the top to help keep them secure. And they were only $15 a set so no big deal if they turn out to be crap. They should be here in a few days - I’ll keep you all posted!
Sorry for not getting back on this sooner. We got the socks from Pawchie but waited a week or so before trying to put them on the dog. She was way overdue for a bath and doggie-pedi, and we were worried about snagging a toenail while trying to put the socks on. So we didn’t even try to put them on her until she had her toenails trimmed.
We’ve only used the socks on the back feet because that’s where she seems to have the biggest problem getting traction. The socks are snug and I have a little trouble getting them on her by myself. It’s one of those things where you almost need three hands - two to hold the sock open to go around the foot, and a third hand to hold the foot up. But once they’re on, if they slip down it’s easy enough to pull them back up. And the good news is that she doesn’t seem to mind them at all.
So overall I’d say this has worked out pretty well!
So glad you checked in! I was just wondering yesterday how y’all were doing as I helped Sweetie to her feet a couple of times.
Here are the Pawchie socks on amazon:
The reader comments are interesting (a couple are scary…). One of them says they keep the socks on their dog using hair bands. (I use these hair bands to keep my cupboard doors closed to curious cats, to hold business cards in a pack, to bundle pencils together-- they’re more functional than rubber bands.)
Do keep us updated. And if you could post a picture… pleeeease… 
I never was able to get a decent picture of her with the socks on. She would either have one foot tucked under her, or wouldn’t sit still, or was turned the wrong way, or something.
Unfortunately this story does not have a happy ending. Her health took a nose dive over the weekend, and we had to take her to the vet this afternoon to have her euthanized. 
Here’s a picture of Meg in happier days.
Beautiful girl! I’m so sorry.
May the memories be a comfort.
Oh no… 
I am so, so sorry to hear that. My heart is breaking for you. Such a beautiful girl.