Best ways to introduce toenail clipping to puppy - Page 1

I am hoping some of the groomers have some good tips about this.  I have had rescue dogs who were beyond me, to clip. I also have had dogs, I have had no problem clipping. Now my problem is, I don't want to start a problem!  

Beau has had a few clips... at vets, and a few odd toes here and there by me. He is very much against it, and I don't want to make it an issue for life. I believe in leaving situations like this on a happy note, so I haven't pushed it, but he's going to need a proper clipping, soon. I did his dewclaws, real quick, and stopped and let him investigate the tool, even mouth it, and used my best happy baby voice to let him know it wasn't anything to worry about.

I also have a slight fear of cutting the quick and never really cut as close as I should, I am pretty sure.  I am worried I will transfer this fear to his fear and make a mess of toe clipping for the future. Any ideas? 

i know what you mean...at first i would have to sit on Tank to get him to stay still, than i had someone scratch his belly while i trimmed his nails (once he started getting coconut oil his fur became fabulous and so as his nails, i have to clip them every 2-3 weeks)....last month i tried giving him nearly empty peanut butter jar and it works great, at first he would jerk his feet away and i would remove peanut butter jar, but now he does not care, as long as he gets the jar i can pretty much clip and reclip his nails, i nipped it too far once and he started bleeding, he didn't even flinched...i do take away his jar once i am done so he knows that clipping and peanut butter go hand in hand....it may not work on all dogs  but it did work  on food driven one...LOL..just my 2 cents.

I have a no nonsense approach to it.  I don't make it into a big procedure, I just do it.  With my puppies they both struggled at lot at first, but it's easier to have this "discussion" with an 8 week old puppy than an 8 month old, lol.  So as babies I clipped them one or twice a week, even if I wasn't actually clipping anything.  By the time they were 5-6 months they didn't care anymore.  I just tell my dogs to "sit", I quickly move around them and clip each paw, and then give them a release word and handful of treats at the end.  I don't really do training to desensitize them or try to pair it with treats, I just make them deal with it when they are young and then by the time they are big they just don't care and it takes me under a minute to trim all four feet.  I've also done a few older dogs that aren't mine because their owners were afraid to try and I've found that unless you have a dog that has personal space issues in general, it's not that hard if you are really confident about it.  I've quicked my dogs before too so the hardest part for me is being confident! 

Here's my advice from 10 years as a groomer and from always doing my own dog's nails.
Start by standing the pup in a normal position. Lift the foot and turn it over so your looking at the pads. Do not life the foot in front of the dogs face. When you are looking at the underside of the nail you can see how the nail grows from thick at the base to a thin point. As the nail becomes thin the space between the outter shell of the nail starts to come together. Forming a tight V. The tip of the V where the nail is closest is the end of the "Quick"
Start by taking just a nip from the tip of the nail. If the puppy doesn't notice then tell it they are good and take a nip from the next nail. Be conserviative and don't take a big chunk.  After you get all the tips clipped use a heavy duty acrylic nail file and give the nails a quick sanding to reduce the sharp edges.
Always lift the feet back and away from the dog in a natural position. Like a ferrier does a horse. Do not streach, squeese or twist the legs or feet as this will hurt and the pup will fight you.
Be positive but firm, tell them to stop if they squirmey. Give treats if they are good and don't stress it.
Have quick stop handy in case you miss, and hit a quick. It happens no big deal. i've clipped thousnags of nails and i've hit a few quicks. Nobody died but they might be a mad at me for a bit. :P
Best of luck!

I start when puppies are just a few weeks old...and continure clipping them every couple of week...I use very small (small animals) clippers...I always thought this would teach them for later life...But after doing it for a long time now I don't think it really translate into later nail clipping...

I too have a No-Non-Sense type attitude towards clipping nails...I always try to have someone help me when clipping nails...but sometimes you aren't going to have the help...So I've found the thing is that the dog has to understand that you're in charge...With Big Dogs you can be pretty physical...but with my wife's Yorkies you have to be firm but be careful not to hurt them...Because I think they can fight it so hard that they could hurt themself...

So sometimes you just have to STOP and re-think what and how you're doing it...

~Bob~

I agree with Vkgsd. I dont make a big deal about it and I also dont play pansey. Once the dog is done, they get a treat. If the dog is aggressive, I might do a toe or two and come back to it. The more you fuss over it, the worse it will be. Make sure you have some syptic powder just in case. If I happen to cut into the quick, I will sooth the dog but again for a mintute, then hurry and finish with the job.

Barb

I quicked Nikon when he was a puppy and didn't realize it (he doesn't react).  I went to take a shower and when I came out, there was blood covering every square foot of the off white carpet!  Ugh...my landlords put offwhite carpet in that house knowing we have dogs and then as soon as we bought our new house and moved out they removed it.



I also think it's important for a dog to accept handling of the feet because you never know what can happen.  A few years back Nikon split a nail while I was on vacation.  It became infected and then turned into this nasty toe/nailbed infection that required twice daily soaking, trimming off bits of the nail and bad tissue, and wrapping.  We were trying to avoid a toe amputation.  A lot of it was painful for him but since he was so used to having his nails trimmed he never fought me.  I also teach my dogs "bang!" (I pretend to shoot them and they play dead) which was super helpful when I needed him to lie still on his side.  I don't have anyone to help me groom or handle my dogs and I don't think it's too much to ask that my own dogs allow me to groom and treat them even if it is uncomfortable or a bit painful for them.

LOL...@ VKGSD's....how did you teach them to play dead?

The first few times I say BANG! (and point my finger like a gun) and then push their head to the ground or lure it down with a treat, then give them the treat once their cheek hits the floor.  I started with them in a platz so they didn't have as far to go, but once they knew it I can say it and they will fall down and flop over.  My GSD is pretty dramatic, sometimes he even yelps (because he's so food driven) like he's really been shot and slams his body down.  I give them the treat while they are still down, so that they learn to stay down until I give a release word.

I never cut my dogs nails unless and until I have to and most have never needed to have them cut, once you start cutting, you have a job for life because the nails seem stimulated to grow.

Margaret N-J