Cutting my Dogs Nails?

Question

my dog has a specific phobia about nail clippers and getting nails cut. Yes i have the special dog clippers but she won't come near me when i hold them or them when they are laying on the ground. I tried to cover her head and trim. No-Go. Also feeding treats while clipping. she is ten months old and i have never cut all her nails please help

she is a pure golden clear nails should be easy. can't afford to take her to groomer or vet

Answer 1

my dog would probably bite me if I tried to cut her nails!! lol!! so i take her to the vets and she just sits and lets them cut them!!!

Answer 2

I'm sorry, but if you can't afford a vet for a nail trim, what will you do if she gets sick? Has she had all her shots, is she spayed? IF the answer to this is no perhaps you should rethink having a dog. My vet only charges $12 for a nail trim... most groomers are the same or even cheaper.

That being said... a dremel tool with a grinding (sanding) wheel is what some of our clients use and since it doesn't crush the nail as it shortens it, many dogs tolerate this much better than the clippers. Also, for many dogs trimming nails is a 2 or even 3 person job... maybe you just need an extra set of hands.


Good luck

Answer 3

I will tell you that if you can have someone to hold her firmly and possibly can cover her head with a towel she might be able to let you clip them. Remember that since she has clear nails you should be able to see her blood vessel ( It is the dark line you see inside the nail. Make sure to cut the nail just right below the line. Now, if you accidently cut her and make her bleed make sure you have cornstarch or flour around and take a pinch of one of those ingredients, and put it on the tip of the nail where she is bleeding and give it a few seconds and the bleeding should stop. The person holding her should get on one side (either the left or right side of the dog) and with one arm go under and wrap the arm around her neck and the other arm go under and wrap their arm around her waist/stomach and hold her close to that person's body, firmly. Remember, don't hold her too tight around her neck or you will choke her. Now, if she tries to fight, just let up on her and take a break and don't lose your temper. If you lose your temper with her she will only be frustrated more and will not let you touch her. I would also suggest that once you start clipping her nails, clip them every 4-5 weeks so they can stay short and help the blood vessel stay short, because when the nails are long so are the blood vessels, and to prevent that is clipping them every 4 weeks. If you decide to take to a veterinarian, ask them to show you how to clip her nails and bring your nail clippers with you to make sure those are the best nail clippers to use since I am not for sure which ones you are wanting to use. I say this because there are more than one type of dog nail clippers. I would also suggest playing and messaging her feet everyday just for a few seconds, so she can get use to you touching her feet. I would start early because if you don't she will only possibly get worse later on. I have clipped many dogs feet and some dogs are easier than others and my thing is don't get mad. Unfortunately, dogs cannot always understand what their owners are doing to them and sometimes that just act out as instinct.

Answer 4

Try when she's really tired out from a long walk. Have her lying on her side with you right beside her. Handle her feet for a while first. Then, hold the clippers close to her feet and just pretend to cut. Let her get used to the sound the clippers make and realize she's not getting hurt. When she's ok with this (and don't rush the process), try trimming just a tiny bit off the tips of a couple of nails. If she won't let you do more than a few, that's ok, do a few each night until she gets to realizing that it's not too bad.

If she still persists in her fear, try giving her Bach's Flower Essences, Rescue Remedy. It's all natural, no side effects like from tranquilizers. I use it for my dog who has a bad fear of thunder - it takes about 20 mins. to take affect and is enough to calm him and take the edge off. I don't know the size of your dog, mine's 70 lbs and gets 4 drops. You can get it from some drug stores, health stores or from a holistic vet.

Be very calm and patient with her and she will improve.

Answer 5

Don't do it, leave it to the professionals.
Dogs has meat right under their nails.
Some parts of it are numb but if you go a little deep it can hurt, or even worst, bleed. And once that happens your dog would never let anyone cut it's nails.
Besides if you walked your dog everyday there's no need to trim it's nails. Having the need to cut the pet's nails shows the lack of exercise and how the owner isn't taking good care of it.
Dogs doesn't care about taking baths or looking good, only people does. Being outside, having fun, and eating is what they prefer the most out of any activities.

Answer 6

if your dog is an outside dog put the dog on a concrete slope and the concrete will wear the nails down

if its is an inside down
well around where i live there is a volunteer place. people that want to work in vets volunteer here.they specialize in phobia,and abused pets.they are cheaper then the vet they take away 50% off your bill. you could see if there is a vet like that where you live.

also if there is a petsmark or petco you could take your dog there and sometimes they will clip them if they dont ask for tips

Answer 7

Ask someone to help you. You may have a bit of a phobia too-so you may need help holding her. Do you have a dog friendly neighbor you could ask? Or you might go to the dog park and ask someone there to help you....

She is a puppy and she's just at the goofy age where she's gonna fight and holler. With my dogs, it was always the yelping that bothered me more than any fear of being bitten, etc.

Even better-YOU hold her and ask a friend who doesn't mind to cut them.....then everyone is happy.

Answer 8

You know, a lot of dogs fear stuff that they think will hurt them, especially at a young age. I would suggest you take her to the veterinarian and he/she might be able to give you some professional pointers about clipping nails.

If a budget is keeping you back, you could always call them and ask for advice as well.

Answer 9

this is a bit more expensive, but you can buy a nail grinder which all you have to do is get a special dremel head and learn to use it. if she does not like the pinching sensation or the actual clippers this might help.

Answer 10

Haha, my dog does the same thing! He flips out when we even come near him. His nails are like 5432 ft long. All you have to do is go to a doctor - see if they could cut them - or you could just give him ' Doggy Downers' pills. Sounds werid but it makes them like half alseep they wont even notice! It is safe too - it wears off in a few hours so don't worry. I use it for my dog all the time.

Try wearing gloves also if he's biting you.

Answer 11

I'm a guy, and individually, I don't like long nails. I know a lot of like lengthy, painted nails cause they're "so pretty", but I don't like them.