Cutting Dogs Toenails

[MysticMornings]

Do any of you here do this? It is something that I have always been afraid to do for fear of hurting them. I know there is a way of doing it properly but it still makes me leery of attempting to try it myself.

 

[Jessi]

I've done it before. If you do your research and know where to clip, then it's not bad:

If your dog hates it, squirms a lot, or would cause you to mis-cut, though, it's better to have a professional do it.

 

[Waynefire]

You can have the vet do it if you want to. I know my vet does it for me for a little bit of money. They are better at it then me for one of my dogs who is constantly moving.

 

[Victor Leigh]

When I trim my dog's nails, I use something like this:

The nail which I want to trim is inserted into the hole at the end of the cutter. The enclosure keeps the nail in place when I squeeze the handles to cut the nail. This will make sure that I don't shear off the nail at an angle. It also helps me to make sure that I don't end up cutting too much. Don't cut too many nails at one go. Just do one or two. Then give the dog a break and a treat. This will ensure that the dog will welcome the sight of the nail cutter the next time it sees you holding it.

 

[dissn_it]

I can usually do it but not on my basset hound. His nails are so very thick it is really difficult for me to trim them. I take him to his vet and have them take care of trimming his nails for me. They have much better trimmers than I do and he loves to go visit them. He is quite popular at the vet's office.

 

[sandooch]

I use my husband's dremel tool with a fine grain tip. It is similar to that silly PediPaw on those As-Seen-On-TV commercials, but this actually works. It was a little intimidating at first, but I got the hang of it and my poodle doesn't mind it at all, even though it's a bit loud. The reason I like it better than cutting it because I can grind down a little at a time until I see I'm getting close to the quick, then I can round it out instead of the sharp edge a nail clipper gives.

 

[misumaru15]

I have heard of using a dremel tool also. I think I would be more comfortable with that. I have taken my puppy in to have his nails trimmed. I think that is the appeal Sandooch. You can go a bit at a time.

 

[tiff]

It is pretty scary specially when you have no idea where to cut your dog's toenail. I used to let the vet take care of those matters or the dog grooming place I take my dog to. But now I do it myself with a dog nail clipper. It just takes a little getting used to.

 

[Cassia]

Initially, we let the vet or a grooming professional cut our dogs' toenails, but it could be pricey, so we observed how they did it, did some Google research and decided that we better do the cutting ourselves. My Maltese squirms a lot, so two people are usually needed when it's toenail cutting time. One holds the dog while the other cuts the nail.

 

[Melissa]

I cant rememebr the name but there is an electronic clipper that automatically clips the right amout off. Its sold at petsmart for $19.99. My bff uses it on her dachund and it works great!

 

[Sage]

I use to trim the nails of my iguana, but I found it was just much easier to let the vet do the nails of our dog. I don't remember how much he charges, but I don't think it is very much.

 

[Isabellas2007]

I always use the toe nail clippers and this is a great thing to do. However, you may have to deal with your dogs trying to pull their feet away from you. The best part is they will easily get used to you doing this and it allows you to cut your dogs nails quickly and easily.

 

[Aletha]

I've always trimmed my dog's nails. They don't appreciate it sometimes but we get through it. I have one who is a real drama queen and will hang his tongue out the side of his mouth and make gagging noises when I do it but he's fine when we get done. It's hilarious to watch him!

 

[HillbillyBone]

I have to or else my Lab will rip everything apart just from running around the house. She already digs her nails into the hardwood when she runs through the living room area. She doesn't mine though because we only do a few and make sure to give her treats and rub her face, like she likes. A minute or two later we try again and get a few more.

 

[claudine]

I always ask veterinarian to do this, because I'm just too scared that I could hurt my little dog by accident. I don't have any special scissors and the ones that I have are too sharp. My dog doesn't like when I touch his pawns and I'm sure he would try to run away.