Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Trimming Nails

Trimming nails seems to be an activity that is universally disliked by dogs. Some English Cockers are more foot sensitive than others and those that are more foot sensitive are generally the most difficult to get to cooperate with nail trimming. It really seems a lot like people being ticklish... some are more so than others.

That said, the technique that you use for trimming nails is very important. I have several pet owners who will not trim their EC's nails as the EC will struggle too much, yet that same dog will lay quietly for me when his/her owner brings him/her to my house for a nail trim.

Some tips:

1. If you haven't tried using a dremel, give it a try. You may *love* it. My black girl, Sophie, will literally fall asleep while getting her nails dremeled. One other benefit to using the dremel is that the nail will be soft and rounded, so will not scratch hard wood floors as much and will not hurt when your dog jumps up on you or one of your guests.

2. Try to trim nails with your dog laying on his/her back in between your legs. I don't know why, but most dogs lay still for nail trimming in this position.

3. Use cookies to make the experience more positive.

4. Don't be afraid to do only one paw each day. It is not mandatory to do all four paws at once if your dog starts struggling after one paw.

5. Keep a bottle of quick stop handy to use if you accidentally cut your dog's quick. Nails bleed quite a lot, so if you do cut a quick, it may look worse than it actually is. You can get quick stop from petsmart or petco.

Here is a great website which describes how to trim your dog's nails correctly:

http://www.lowchensaustralia.com/grooming/nailclip.htm

Here is a great You Tube video showing how to teach your dog to lay quietly for nail trimming:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHgBvnQ71ss

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