Claw clipping

[Aprilx]

I have two dogs but I have an issue with one of them in that he doesn’t like his feet being touched but he really really needs his claws trimmed. He is short haired but he has regularly gone to a groomers for a bath and quick grooming but she has side she can’t do his claws. I have tried another groomer and they couldn’t do it either, he was getting too distressed and of course I have tried. A little while ago, DH and I said we would do one a day but we haven’t even managed that.

The only thing I can think of is sedation at the vets but I really don’t want to do that and I don’t even know if the vet will agree.

Hoping for any suggestions?

Walk the dogs on pavements / roads / tennis courts / playground for a few weeks. We have a daily grass walk and a daily pavement walk now - no more need to clip! Not clipped either dogs claws in years and both are greyhound shape dogs with long claws for sprinting.

Your vet can give medication to relax your dog prior to a nail clip appointment. Usually trazadone or gabapentin, or both. Unlikely to need full sedation unless they're very aggressive.
I'm a mobile vet nurse and do home nail clip appointments and the pet's vets often prescribe these drugs for my appointments for very anxious dogs.
Going forward, lots of pavement walking can help reduce the frequency of nail clips.

Can you do it at home, just one or two a day? I used to do this with my whippet- a pain but gets it done.

I had this problem with my dog when I adopted him too. His front claws grow crazy fast and we don't do much pavement walking with him to grind them down.

If his claws are really bad, as in causing him pain, starting to curl over, etc., then sedation would be the best option IMO, if it's possible.

But longer term, you can genuinely fix the problem through desensitisation. It takes time. Maybe a few days, or weeks, or it can take months. Depends on your doggo. But it will make all the difference and will mean that groomers can do it in future, or you can do it yourself.

This is what we did with our dog, and I was convinced it would never work. But now he's fine with having his nails trimmed. I'd say it took about 6 months to really get it sorted, and now we trim them once or twice a month. One of us feeds bits of cheese/sausage, while the other clips the claws.

All you need to do is start slowly. Get him into a weekly or even nightly 5min routine of being stroked, brushed, fussed, etc. Treat him and softly praise him - make it a really chill, relaxed experience. Don't even go near his paws for the first few sessions.

Then once he's good with that, just once in a while gently touch the top of his paw as you're grooming and petting him, and give him a treat. Over time, you'll be able to hold his paw, then examine his claws, then show him the clippers, then eventually snip a bit of one claw, then eventually multiple claws. Just take it slowly, keep it calm and positive, and you'll get there.

There are lots of videos on YouTube you could watch for the process. This one is really great:

Thanks for comments. No one a day is not currently possible, we thought we would give that a go about a month ago but we haven’t managed even one, he is that bad.

He is not an aggressive dog, but he does wriggle to get away. When people have tried to clip, we all stop because he is getting too upset not because he is being dangerous. The last groomer we tried said she thought he was going to have a heart attack!

The claws are pretty long now, they are making his paws splay out when he walks, he doesn’t seem to be in any pain, but I know I need to do something.

I think I need to do the desensitisation. My other dog was my first ever dog and we got a dog trainer to come to the house the day we got him and for a few weeks afterwards to teach us about having a dog and help us get started with training. I remember now that she said keep touching his feet when he is a puppy, it will make life easier down the line. So we did for him, but then forgot about it when we later got the second dog (this one) and here we are. 🙁

There is a Nail Maintenance for dogs group on Facebook, loads of useful information.

Some dogs have fast growing strong nails. I have an active example of an active breed, she needs her nails clipped a few times a year. (See her Tractive stats)

We used ham and carrot omelette to train her to have her nails done. Every time I make an omelette, she is quite torn as whether to surrender to the process or leg it. The first time she had her nails done it took two vet nurses and a vet. With perseverance it is possible to turn around even the most awkward dogs.

Good luck, have a word with a vet nurse. Real life advice is even better than the internet.

I haven’t done this yet myself, but have read good things and am tempted to try Susan Garrett’s Pedicure Please programme.

My pup isn’t too bad with claw clipping, but I want it to be a more relaxed and comfortable experience for him.

Sneak up on them when they're asleep - one a day. That's the only way I ever managed it. And then lots of treats to apologise!

I have thought about that, but I haven’t been stealthy enough so far, I wake him up she I go to get the clippers. I think I need to start carrying them on my person. 😄

*when

We have caved today and taken him to the vets to have his claws clipped under sedation. He has just been in kennels for a few days as we went away and when we picked him up even they pointed out that they needed doing.

So we decided to go for the urgent fix and then start working on some techniques to help him get used to his paws being touched plus do more walking on pavement and so hopefully it won’t be required again.

I am just waiting for the call to pick him up, hope he is ok.

How is he?

Carrying clippers around is not a bad idea. Just give him a treat every time he sees them and work on getting them nearer his paws. You now have months to perfect this.

I take my whippet to the vet to have his nails clipped by a vet nurse. He doesn’t need to be sedated but it’s two person job. Being a whippet he’s not heavy enough to wear his nails down even though he gets walked on hard surfaces.

The vet and vet nurse tried to clip them without sedation at first, but were unable to. I had told them there is no way they will be able to do it without sedation but I am glad they tried. He was a bit sleepy for the rest of the day but back to his usual self and doesn’t sound like he is in stilettos when he walks over the hard floors any more.

How big is your dog? We bought a harness from Amazon, you put their legs through the holes and then lift them up and hook it over a pole. It means he can’t move his legs but his body weight is supported, then we just use clippers to trim the nails. It’s the best thing we have found. He hates it but it only takes 5 mins.

Intrigued by that idea so I have just looked it up. I suspect he will go ballistic with wriggling if we tried that. He is a small / medium dog about 10-11kgs.

Sorry, I should have given you a link to the Harness Our boy is 7kgs. The first time we used it my partner was trying to give him treats and keep him calm while I trimmed. He didn’t try to escape or wriggle and was really calm. it was like he just totally zoned out, wouldn’t accept any treats which is really not like him. We made a right fuss of him afterwards and he was fine as soon as we let him back out. Didn’t seem too traumatised at all!