How to Clip Dog Nails

This will not only enhance the appearance of your pet, but most importantly ensure better foot health and eliminate painful injuries.

1. Make sure the dog is relaxed and comfortable. If he has never had his nails cut (as with young puppies), sit with him a few times per day for a minute or so and tap the clippers you will use to his nails gently. Use a soft questioning tone of voice to relay to him there is no threat. Slightly distract his attention and decrease his anxiety by rubbing his ears. Have the dog sit, and talk to him softly to keep him calm.




2. Always include a favorite treat during the session and at the end. The treats you choose for this exercise should be used only for this and nothing else through the interim of the nail grooming training. It should be very special to the dog.




3. Have a styptic powder or cornstarch and snacks readily available in plentiful amount.




4. If your dog jerks incessantly or strongly, revert to the initial approach in step one until it seems appropriate for you to try again. Remember, your dog will learn very quickly whether he can trust you or not, especially when it comes to participating in something that has traumatized him in his past. But also remember, you are the leader and he will need to trust you in this and accept it so, as with this and any future endeavors with him, plan on taking as much time as it takes before you ever start out.




5. Grasp the foot from the ankle up in the palm of your hand, firmly but gently. Do this in a position that allows your hand to be facing in the same direction as the paw, away from the dog. Never hold the paw between the pads, even a cooperative dog will find this ticklish and will involuntarily jerk. Fingers can gently wrap under the pads as you use your thumb to stabilize from the top of the digit you are working on.




6. Take a look at your dog's nails. If your dog has white, clear, or light colors nails your job will be easier. With clear or light color nails, you should be able to see the the "quick" which looks like a tiny tube inside the nail center. With black or dark nails, you have to be very careful because you won't be able to see the quick.




7. If this is the first time you have clipped the nails, or if the nails are unusually long merely 'tip' the nail on the first session. The reason for this is that the quick can be very close to the surface and it is safe practice to become accustomed to your dog's nails through subsequent clippings. 'Tipping' the nail simply involves stabilizing the guide portion of the clippers to the surface of the nail and taking a very thin shaving of the nail off with the blade. Tipping the nail will cause the quick to recede a bit more each time you do it. This is especially comforting if your dog has black nails.




8. When you are ready to proceed to actual clipping of the nail, calmly and gently place the guide of the clipper securely to the surface of the nail. Slowly bring the blade to the area of the nail you plan to cut. Only then should you proceed with one quick snip to cut the nail. (Don't forget the treats). Your dog will instinctually pull away a bit but be quick to reassure him that this is what he should expect to happen. Dogs learn by our lead, if you reassure him, he will take his cue from you, proceed to the next nail as matter of factly as possible.
   

   • If by chance you happen to hit the quick of a nail and the nail starts to bleed, don't allow your dog to wrench away from you and run around. The reason for this is two- fold, by not taking control of this problem he will learn to fear the nail cutting. If you hold him firm and reassure him that you know it hurt, he will trust you. Second, you need to get styptic or corn starch powder onto the end of the nail. Simply keep the original grasp you had on the paw and press the powder to the end of the nail until the bleeding stops. You may have to keep packing powder for two to three minutes, but the longer you are able to apply steady pressure, the more effectively you will stop the bleeding. (Don't be concerned if your dog wants to lick the wound after initial bleeding stops. Do keep him from prancing about for at least fifteen minutes).

   
   

9. After clipping the nails, file the ends of each until smooth.

Tips

• Puppies are easily adapted to this grooming step, but at times, older dogs will come to you with a past experience that was unpleasant to them. Most important for success, is patience and gentle handling.




• If the dog won't sit quietly on his own, have an assistant squat behind the dog, wrap one arm around the dog's neck to control the head, and hold a paw in position with the other hand. This should prevent the dog from attempting to escape and keep him still enough to prevent injuries. However, this is a last resort and is likely to create a negative association with this routine, making it difficult in the future.




• Well groomed nails prevent painful injuries such as gait deformities and dew claw rips. A dew claw is the 'thumbnail' of a dogs paw, when allowed to grow too long they often become snagged and ripped from the paw, causing life threatening bleeding and severe pain. Dew claws also curve and left untended, grow into the pad of the dog's paw, this is extremely painful to the animal and can cause deformities in the gait of the dog.




• Intermittent reinforcement can begin after the first two or three successful sessions with your dog. You can taper him from the treat to every other nail, then every three nails, then each paw, until he gets the treat only at the beginning and end of each session. When he graduates to once per session he is ready to go on praise alone with you using your judgement when the treat should be given.




• At the point the dog is able to have his nails clipped with only occasional treats, then you can consider the next behavior you want to start him on using the same treats. It helps to have a treat bag that rattles quite loudly as dogs are sensory animals and the more senses you take advantage of during training sessions, the quicker will be his learning. Also, with the rattle of the bag you may want to use a key word for him, this may be a word you plan to use for other training purposes to let him know its time to participate with you in something.




• Another sense to pay attention to when training your dog for anything is his sense of play. By incorporating play into any training you do you will afford the dog the opportunity to feel successful even if he hasn't 'quite got it yet' and will always keep him coming back for more. A happy dog is 100% more receptive to communication than a dog who feel's she has failed her master.




• Kind words and gentle, or at times, firm and loving hands are like money in the bank between you and your dog. She will always be assured of your reactions and self assured in her efforts. Stay persistent. A dog feels more secure with clearly developed boundaries.




• To get the quicks to recede at a steady rate the nails should be clipped every ten to fourteen days. A tremendous aid to this goal is to use a moderate to rough file each day or every other day. When doing this try to imagine the action on a dog's nails that a sidewalk has. You will notice after reading this that dogs who spend most of their time on rough surfaces such as concrete patios, blacktop or sidewalks don't need their nails clipped nearly as often as a dog who leads a cushier life on lawns and carpets. Their quicks tend to be quite a bit more receded than our pampered dogs.

Things You'll Need

• Dog nail clippers, (there are two types, one resembles a pair of scissors with short curved blades, the other resembles the giant eye of a needle. This model allows you to slip the nail into the clipper guide and allows greater precision in exactly where to place the blade).
  
• Styptic or Cornstarch powder.
  
• Treats.
  
• Small hand towel, or large if you want to swaddle your pet.
  
• Quiet space and patience.
  

If you are clipping your dog's toenails, and you hear a loud yelp from your dog, you probably cut their quick. The quick is the tender part just above the dog's nail. If the quick is cut, there can be excessive bleeding. Here are some tips to help you stop the bleeding.

1. Cover the the bleeding nail area with a napkin or clean, soft cloth to stop the blood from getting everywhere.

2. Get a small bowl. Fill it with flour.

3. Remove the napkin then dip your dog's bleeding toe into the bowl.

4. Hold it for a few seconds.

5. Take it out. The bleeding should stop.

6. Carefully and gently wipe off the flour surrounding the nail in about 10 to 15 minutes.

7. Use lukewarm water to wash off any remaining flour. Cold water will make it sting.

Have you try using a dremel yet? As seen on TV, the PediPaws electric nail file (its not a cutter) is the most revolutionary product to help you safely grind your dog's nails to a dull head without hurting your pet.