How to Safely Clip Your Dog’s Nails at Home
Image credit: Upstate Canine Academy via YouTube
I sometimes forget to trim my dog’s nails because I find it difficult to do as they can get pretty scared at the sight of a nail clipper easily. Most of the time, I just take them to the groomers, but when I can’t, I try my best to just do it at home, it was hard at first until I learned this technique by Upstate Canine Academy on YouTube! It took some time and patience but now my dogs trust me enough to let me trim their nails regularly.
Materials:
- Dog nail clipper
- Dog nail grinder
- Treats
- Toys
- Food
- Leash
- Muzzle
Directions:
Getting the right tools and desensitizing them
Make sure to wear a leash on your dog to prevent it from going away or from running if it gets distracted. Next, desensitize the tools that you’re using by laying them around your pet along with their toys, favorite treats, and food. Let them get used to the sight of the nail clipper so they don’t associate it with fear, then start holding their paws, give them treats, and put their paws down. Repeat this step until they get used to you holding their paws, this will take time, and you have to build it up slowly.
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Trimming their nails
You can use traditional dog nail clippers or a nail grinder, but if your dog’s paws have lots of long hair on them, then it nail grinder may do more harm than good as their hair can get tangled and pulled. Start by trimming the ends first, then keep trimming until it’s at the proper length, and make sure to do it slowly so that your dog doesn’t panic. Do not cut the nail too much and make sure to remove only the outer shell, trimming too much or too close to the center may cause bleeding as you may cut the quick itself. If you are using a nail grinder, put a muzzle on your dog first if needed, then distract them with food, and start slowly until they get used to it.
Why is trimming a dog’s nails important
Having properly trimmed and maintained nails ensures that your dog is healthy because an overgrowth of nails can cause damage and change your dog’s posture, muscles, spine, etc. Over time, this may lead to major health problems, and increase the risk of disease.
*All image credit belongs to Upstate Canine Academy via YouTube. Follow and subscribe to his channel for more!
