I just love this picture! You can "feel" the rough pads on that foot. Composition nicely done, even if it's centered. Should be a top ten finisher, maybe even a ribbon!
Ha! I tried getting some similar shots of my cats paw but she just wouldn't stay still! I really like this but I wish you had selected a plain white or black background instead of the rug as I feel it conflicts with the interesting mixture of textures in the paw itself. Nice work.
Seems to lack the detail needed to really communicate a sense of feeling. Quite possibly that is because of the light - there just isn't that progression of light and shade needed to produce texture in images.
The only suggestion I would make is try to compose it so that there isn't part of the body showing at the top. My eyes kept following it out of the frame and away from the subject. good contrast of textures.