Clipping toe nails... I need your help!
 

I feel like such a bad mommy and I'm close to tears... It was the long dreaded time to clip Maggie's toe nails and it was a big fight like always. Maggie is our 4 y.o. rescue and the sweetest and most patient little girl you can imagine. There is not a mean bone in her and she knows nothing but kisses and obedience... until the nail clippers come out... :(

She was not always like that but when we first got her I wanted to show some gratefulness for the local groomer who gave a good review of our place for our adoption application and took Maggie there to get groomed and her toe nails clipped. I did hear a commotion in the back and Maggie protesting and the lady told me that I had to work with Maggie so her toe nails wouldn't be a problem. I was puzzled b/c when I did it the time before she was like an angel. Long story short, I never took Maggie back to their place but have big trouble when it comes to the manicure part of her weekly spa treatment.

I tried the PetiCure dremmel thingy and she is calmer with it but she also has such hard toe nails that we almost have no results to show for after a good 20 minutes of dremmling. Also the walking on concrete side walks does nothing for her toe nails, just the concrete gets worn out... ;)

If you have any advice for me please let me know b/c I'm really desperate and so want it to be a good experience for her as it is for my other four babies...

bump...

I tried the petipaws, and it took too long, and Joey's breeder said I wasn't doing it short enough. So after watching her do it, I decided to try again, and we did pretty good until I made him bleed once and that was the end for me. So I either have her do it about every three months, or take him to the vets in between visits to her house. One tip she did give me, is that most pain is caused by wiggling the nail bed, so hold the nail firmly and cut fast, making sure your clipper is sharp.

I am able to trim Barney and Daisy's nails without a problem. They stay pretty short from walking on our porch which is stone. Teddy has to have his done by our petsitter (former vet tech) or he goes to the vet and they do it there. He just hates his feet being touched and it freaks him out so I just gave up.

The only way I can get Dolly to cooperate for nails or baths is having special treats that she really likes, but only gets when she sits still for those 2 things. I trim her nails with clippers then smooth them with the pedi paws. It took too long with just the pedi paws & she's not that patient. The baths are her least favorite. I give her a treat every 30 seconds to bribe her to not jump out of the sink.

I have the same problem I can not get anywhere near my 5 yr old with nail clippers in my hand and sidewalks don't help at all...

Thanks for your input, it's good to know that I'm not alone...
When I got first Mikki and then Mylo as puppys I introduced them to the nail clippers very slowly just by have them smell it, then touch them with it everywhere and then I used them to just knock a bit on their toe nails before I actually cut one at a time all accompanied by a lot of praise and treats. Both have no issues whatsoever with the nail clipping. I did the same with Maggie after her ordeal with the groomers and I have no problems to touch or even knock on her nails only when it comes to the actual clipping she freaks out...

What else can I do???

take her to the vet, somehow the vets have the magic touch.

I have had such success with my vet, But I believe he is a saint with magic hands it is incredible.

And it is not that expensive, about $10-15, but definitely worth it for our babies.

That's a good idea... I'll try that and hope it also will help her to get over her fear of the vet.... Maybe they can sedate her a bit...

I take mine to get her toenails clipped and grinded. She holds still and does great but I'm so scared of hurting her or making her bleed.

I accidently cut Cali's nail where it bled years ago and she will not let me do her nails now. Even with help she goes crazy and wiggles out of control. My other 3 I have no problem with. I just take Cali to the vet and get hers done.

Ruger is sometimes cooperative and sometimes not. The best advice I've received, some of it here and some watching others do it, is to 1. Try some kind of sedative if it's a real problem, natural or script, talk to your vet. 2. Wrap her head in a towel. 3. Often it's a two person job. 4. Handle her paws a lot. The more comfortable she is with this the easier it "might" be.

Oh yeah. 5. Good luck. :rolleyes:

We did Baileys for the first time tonight!! She's three years old and I credit my groomer for our ability to at least give it a try. My groomer admits that trimming Bailey's toenails is difficult - but it seems that after 3 years, Bailey is at least calming down.

My daughter held her and I clipped. I feel so good for having done this for the first time.

Good luck everyone!

I think like everything else, just go super slow and be patient. Does she let you handle her paws at all? If not, start with that. Hold her paw for a second, release, give her a treat. Repeat five times. Then after a week, move to checking her nails. After another week, cutting the hair between the toe pads. After another week, show her the clippers, Another week, put the clippers on the nail, but don't cut. Finally, finally, finally, cut a nail. :) At this point she will have dragon nails, but it will be temporary!

I cut one of Thor's nails way too short a few months ago and I felt so incredibly awful about it. I let the nails grow pretty far over the quick before I cut now. However, it's part of our nightly ritual, along with haircut touch ups, tooth cleaning, and brushing. I only cut one nail per night, and a lot of nights, I just examine all his paws (he gets a treat after each successful paw check). He's pretty chill about it, and since I'm looking at the nails all the time, I feel more confident about when they need a trim. Thor also has dew claws, and those are such a pain to maintain. There's like one day between "too short" and "growing into the pad". And once they are too long, it's really hard to get the clippers around them.

I also have accidentally pinched Thor with the scissors and made him yelp. I really do try to be careful, but I also want him to be able to take occasional mistakes in stride.

I have trouble with my 3 too. When they see the nail clippers, they run for the hills. I don't have anyone to help me - I do it by myself and you talk about a battle!

My two littlest ones are so cute and innocent until I start to cut their nails, and then you'd think I was fighting with a bear or something.

They all have black toenails, and it's hard to keep from hitting the quick. If I accidentally do, it makes me sick to hear them yelp, and they remember that and it makes it even harder the next time.

By the time it's over, I'm worn out and so are they!

Mine view the nail clipper as some sort of torture device lol. Have her associate grooming tools, in this case the dreaded nail clipper, w/her fav treat or whatever else that motivates her. Some dogs respond very well to praise. Put the nail clipper next to her & give her a treat. Let the nail clipper touch her paw & give her a treat only when she doesn't freak out, & so on. It will take some time, but she'll learn to associate it positively.
This has worked for my girls, but the boys still act like I'm killing them, they huff & puff & give me the wild eyes. kekee

Thanks a lot for your input! The problem is that Maggie lets me handle her paws without any problems and tolerates the nail clippers on her nails as long as I don't try to cut them... :confused: I guess she still remembers the pain the groomers gave her when they cut to deep into the quick :mad:. What I'll try next time is to give her some childrens benadryl to calm her down and have my dh help me. That way it might be less of a fight...

So you're able to actually get the clipper around her nail? Shouldn't it be very quick at that point to actually cut the nail?

If she is freaking out after the nail is cut, I'd recommend getting treats out, and lavishly treating her before and after cutting just one nail. I think if you do one nail every night, she'll eventually calm down. Also, I assume you're sure you're not cutting them too short, right?

Yep, that's the funny thing, I can actually put the nail clippers on her toes, knock with the clippers and I also can use the electric Wahl clipper to trim the hair on her feet even between the toes. But as soon as I try to get a good grip to CUT the nail she freaks out. I never have cut into the quick, she never bled once when I did it only the groomers did...

If you can actually get the clippers around her nails, can you just cut it super-fast? I would pick a nail where there is some room for error so you don't need to carefully position it. Just take off a teensy, tiny slice.

OR, maybe try "fake" clipping, where you don't even cut the nail. Just position it at the very end of her nail, and clip, so she feels just a tiny sensation.

OR, break it into an even smaller step: since she freaks out when you move the clipper into position, just densensitize her to that in tiny steps. Move the clipper into position and RIGHT before she flips out, remove the clipper and treat her. Then after a week, squeeze the clippers just a little bit, so she feels it on the nail, but don't actually cut. Then the next week, squeeze a leeeetle more.

Bottom line, I'd say you can always, always break a task into tinier pieces, and move at a pace the dog can handle. Hope this helps, or maybe gives you another idea.

By the way, I know a few trainers who actually trained their dogs to PULL on their leashes on command. They do this on cement to retard nail growth. I know you said her nails are super hard, but if she's really dragging you behind her, maybe that will do the job.

It might also help to have a really special treat she only gets at this time. Maybe little steak bits or something.

When I use nail snips, I only take off the tips, like 1/16th of an inch or less at a time. This way I can see the quick before I cut into it (usually). I may have to cut each nail multiple times, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Also, for comfort, some dogs don't mind cutiing fron side to side, which may pinch the nail a bit, but if that bothers them, I turn the snips to cut back to front. Back to front works best to take off tiny shavings to work towards the quick. Chipping away I call it. Not time efficient but works well.

I use a similar method with the PediPaws. I call it tap grinding. Grind for a second or two then inspect. Grind, inspect. Repeat till I see the quick. A continual grind can cause the nail to heat up, and cause uncomfortable vibration. Tap grinding avoids these problems.

Try standing her in water during her bath/shower to soften her nails, then trim/grind afterwards. Also horse hoove conditioners can be used on nails and pads. Luxurious stuff. May help to condition dry, hard nails. Available at tack shops, feed stores. (good for people hands and nails too)