First of all, untrimmed nails cause a lot of problems including broken nails, which are very painful and can bleed profusely. Long nails cause the dog to walk incorrectly and adds undo strain to their legs. They may find it uncomfortable to put their full body weight on their feet with the overgrown nails, causing sore feet, legs and hips. This can lead to development of arthritis and disfiguration.
A lot of owners bring their pets to the vet or a groomer. This can be a very stressful experience for the dog, because there isn't any time to make sure the dog is calm and comfortable. Sometimes, restraint is necessary by using a muzzle and holding them in place. This by no means will make the experience a positive one and so the answer lies with you doing it yourself.
For me, the most important part of this process is to be calm yourself. If you are not then, don't attempt to cut their nails as this will cause a negative experience and they won't forget this either.
Before the Trim:
Exercise your dog. It releases all kinds of pent up energy and allows your best friend to be more pliable. Make sure your dog is already tolerating your touching his paws. While playing or TLC time just keep on touching their paws to make it a very natural thing. Let them smell the tool you are going to be using to trim their nails. Bring a bag of small treats to further entice them. Your demeanor must be of peace and calm. They will sense all your moods so make sure you are peaceful and calm or no matter what you do it will not work. Check yourself first and proceed from there. Dogs can pick up on your stress so be confident and secure before cutting.
Here are 2 Trimming Tools:
1. Clipper Tool
2. Dremel style tool
Trimming nails with clippers
Keep these sharp as dull ones will cause more harm than good. There are 2 different styles to choose form: scissors style and guillotine style.
The guillotine-style clipper has a stationary ring guide through which the toenail is placed, and when the handles are squeezed a cutting blade moves across to slice the nail. Scissors-style clippers are positioned at a right angle to the nail with one blade on either side; squeezing the handles moves both blades together to cut the nail.
You need to avoid cutting the quick, which is the name for the blood vessels and nerves that supply the nail. Cutting the quick can cause bleeding and considerable pain for the dog (and will likely undo much of the work you have put into getting your dog to relax for paw handling!) It is far better to cut small bits off of the dog's nails and do it more frequently than to try cutting too much and running the risk of hitting the quick.
Rewarding the dog after cutting a few nails works really well. This creates a wonderful experience for the dog. Being frustrated or stressed will cause more harm than good. Keep trying until you and your dog have a routine. Belly rubs are acceptable ways of getting them to relax and will of course, relax you as well.
Trimming nails with a Dremel-style rotary tool:
The most important step is to make your dog comfortable. Let him smell and be with the instrument while it's turned off until he is comfortable and then, work with him while it's turned on. Make it a positive experience. If your dog has very long nails it is better to do more frequent grindings of small amounts at first. You can then, plan twice-weekly times and take off a little bit at a time until nails are within the length you want. Make a schedule based on these time tables.
Tips:
o Keep Styptic powder on hand to have in case you do nick the quick and need to stop the bleeding.
o Keep on hand plenty of treats
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