8 out of 18!

[Mia's Mom]

Whew! It took a lot of patient bribery, but I managed to cut 8 of Mia's toenails in one sitting! I did somehow manage to scratch one of my own cuticles and MY finger bled a little, but she was not traumatized in any way! I'm pretty lucky that she will "work" for treats. She remained fairly still and fairly calm. I would say she was reluctant, but did not struggle. Maaan, it is HARD to teach these little ones that if they will just be very still we will not hurt them. There is a lot of trust involved in cutting toenails, isn't there? But every time it gets done without trauma, that's one more positive experience we have to draw on. And one messed up session can set them back a long way in their ability to trust that they won't get hurt. She got her favorite venison treats during the clipping and now she's enjoying cheese! :D

(I, on the other hand am a wreck and just want to go to bed now.)

[RocketMan75061]

:hug2: your boo boo :D

[Bobbiesmom]

You're doing great! I think that training them to not hate nail clipping time from puppyhood is really important...I know nail clipping time leaves everyone in our house traumatized...Give yourself a pat on the back & go get some well-deserved rest!

[Jacqueline]

I hate nail trimming, and I still have four more nails....rear right foot ....to go. I don't know why she won't let me do the back feet. I have offer the ultimate cookie bribes and we still have the tasmanian devil/rottweiler demon released when we go there. help2:

I have a mark on the inside of my arm from her nail, my right bosom will never be the same, and it's enough to lead you to drink. But I am not giving up. I just about have them all down to the length they need to be.

I offered to let her trim mine any way she wanted to.

[Claire77]

Good job!:cheer:

Josie will usually let me get through a paw before she becomes impossible but Collie is so impossible all the time. He squirms so much that not even two people holding him down can have any success. Result long nails on the dog and scratches on my arms. He even head butts me on the chin when he throws his head backwards. :pullhair: I cut his quick, because of all his squriming, a few weeks back. The guilt still plagues me. I think I am more emotionally traumatised than he is. Took them to the vet after that and told him to do it! And even he battled!!!!!!!!

[Mia's Mom]

See, a fight over the nail clipping is what I'm trying to avoid. So far, she hasn't been hurt, so she is just thinking it will hurt. If I can just make it a non-traumatic event often enough, I am praying she won't turn into a dog who fights nail clipping.

Does anyone have any input about the dewclaw/thumb on the FRONT paws? Are those ever removed? Someone told me they can be removed when she's being spayed? What about that? One less to clip? Or a bad idea?

[doxiemommy]

Moe moe lets me cut his with no problem... i think he will let me do anything to him with no problem... as long as he is being touched he really don't care what you do to him lol...

my other 3 i have to take to the vet to get them trimmed. they won't let me touch there feet hardly much less cut there nails.

[SirOliversMom]

I started laughing when I read the last line in your post. Oh yes after nail clipping it's REST time for the humans or head straight for the bar...

I swear it's MORE traumatic for us then for them. I cut Oliver's nails this week and I hit the quick. I was almost physically ill. Tammy's are sooo easy to cut because they're not as thick as Oliver's and the tips come off real easy.

[Suzanne R]

Congrats on having such good luck - I let my vet's groomer do my two -- better the groomer gets the evil eye, than me! The nails get done along with the anal glands, bathing, etc., once a month. I've tried it - the groomer gets my vote, and my money, every time!

Don't have any thoughts about dew claws - perhaps others with more dew-claw experience can advise you. Both of mine have theirs, but I suspect a vet would recommend removal. Perhaps talk to your vet about it!?

[Mia's Mom]

Yes, I did ask the vet. She says we can do it in the same operation as the spay, so Mia will only have to be anesthetized once. (I asked because I got a "thumb" nail caught in my sweater and it was hard not to panic.) But I am just wondering if that causes any handicap to the dogs? I have been observing that Mia uses all her digits to hold things with - chew toys, etc. Maybe I'm just obsessing, but if she NEEDS that thumb and I have it removed ... What experience have you other doxie guardians had?

(I prefer to cut my dogs nails myself because I think vet techs and groomers don't think about it the way I do - preventing trauma should be the first concern! They are usually in a hurry and just not careful enough for me and don't seem to regard cutting too deep/making it bleed/hurting the dog as any big deal. But I do. So I cut the nails myself. I don't want my dog muscled and mauled just to "get the job over with".)

[Claire77]

Thats terrible that you feel that way or have met vets and groomers that have made you feel that way. I am very grateful for such a great vet clinic. Its not the closest but the best. The two vets are caring, cautious and interested in my yakking.

[Cindi]

(I prefer to cut my dogs nails myself because I think vet techs and groomers don't think about it the way I do - preventing trauma should be the first concern!)

Really, from my point of view you are putting way too much thought and emotion in to this. :D The nails HAVE to be done; the faster it is done the less time all of us have to think about it. Quicking a nail is frequently necessary to start the shortening process (I don't mean cutting the whole toenail down in one session but juuuuust quicking will mean the long nails that frequently come in can be worked on over several sessions to get them to an acceptable length so that there is no ticking on the floors from the nails.) Sometimes the blood supply has grown right down with the nail. If you drag out the process, it can make the dog fight you more. If they don't have that much time to think about it, the *trauma* is over with fairly quickly and they FORGET ABOUT IT.

As to removing dewclaws on an adult - hmmmm. If your dog is a demon over nails or the dewclaw is really floppy I would have it removed. I certainly understand the desire for having two less nails to do - I always remove my puppies dewclaws at 3 days of age for that exact reason (and also for grooming purposes on wire legs).

Have y'all tried having someone hold the dog against their body, belly out towards you (or try various positions but protect your chin) and cutting the nails in that position? Sometimes having their butts hang makes them think about that rather than their feeties.

BUT sometimes, having a stranger do them is easier on everyone concerned :) I know that I can get Scottish Terrier (demon dogs many of the times) nails done much easier, frequently, than their owners because they know how to *work* their owners. Same is true for dachshunds :pullhair:

Cindi

[Petey's Mom]

The whole nail clipping thing makes me very nervous, and I figure Petey senses that and freaks out himself. I can get exactly ONE cut before he starts the wiggle and scrabble thing; then it's like trying to perform surgery on a furry, manic snake...sigh. I've waited till he's asleep, and that first click brings him instantly awake. I think I'm gonna try the vet since I'm taking him in for shots anyway. It wasn't this difficult cutting my human babies' fingernails!

[Jacqueline]

I took both the kids to the vet today, and without a scratch on me :party6: :party6: they have nicely trimmed nails. Uh....can't say that for the gal who did Taffy tho.....:eekdevil: She has three fairly good gouges in her arm. But....have given it up. For eight bucks each...I can be the good guy, the kids can walk on the pads of their feet, and my dh can retain the skin on his body.

Call me a cop out. I confess.

[ND_Mom]

I "drummel" Angel's nails. It is very easy and she seems to take it with ease. I always touch her paws even when I am not going to cut her nails, because then she does not associate that with only nail clipping. I bought a "drummel" at the hardware store and purchased sanding attachment at a dog show. I have Angel look outside when I drummel her nails so she is distracted. I always let her smell the drummel first and once I start she seems to ignore what I am doing. I had her dewclaw removed when she was spayed and she doesn't miss them. She holds her bones just fine.:party6: Good Luck!