Extremely long nails

[rottie girl]

I'm ashamed to say this but once again my Brandi's (9 years) nails have gotten REALLY long.

My fault. They grow extremely quickly, and I'm not persistent enough. The other dogs have never needed theirs trimmed, they stay short, they keep them worn down, or once in awhile just one needs a trim, but Brandi's are like daggers. :(

I feel badly. She doesn't like them cut at all and honestly, I can't cut more than a few hairs off them because the (sp?) quiks have grown to the very end.

Normally, once a year or so, I used to take her to the vet and they knock her out and cut them real short.

My question is, when they cut them way down like that, are they painful for a time after?

Are they more painful leaving them long?

She's starting to age alot, her hips bother her more, and I'm not fond of the idea of putting her out for this, however, I feel cruel leaving them as they seem to bother her on the stairs. She is an inside dog, with very little exercise as her hip dysplasia limits her greatly, but I just want her to be as comfortable as possible.

[RottiMomCT]

If the vet cauterizes them after cutting them down short, they might be a bit tender, but after a day or so it subsides.

I'm sure it's the same when we accidentally cut a quick when trimming nails....I think it hurts us more than the dog actually...

Once the vet gets them to proper length, play with her feet daily, and if you're only able to cut one nail at a time, then so be it, even if you have to do one nail a day.

I read somewhere about smearing peanut butter on the very bottom of the refrigerator and letting the dog lick it all off while you trim the nails - trust me - I had an older bitch who HATED having her nails trimmed - until I tried that! I was able to one foot while she licked away - a few days later, did another foot, and so on. We had to be careful with the peanut butter - if she saw the jar she would come lay in the kitchen waiting for her 'treat'.

With five dogs here, I was doing nails just about every two days, but it was worth it!! All have nice nails.

If taking her to the vet isn't an option - then cutting every three days should eventually get them down to a good length - trim just a few slivers off every 3-4 days and keep up with it and you should be able to get them down.

[mmgy]

Guilty here as well. We've got a couple of dogs that have NEVER tolerated nail trimming. But this year I'm making a big effort to handle this once and for all, by doing nails once a week period. They seem to be settling into it, though I know they still don't like it!

We started out doing it every five days, and hopefully soon we can go to every two weeks.

[Patty1231]

I used to struggle with Rocco all the time when clipping his nails until I found the solution that worked for us. I use cheese for reward treats if he's a good boy (couple toes, piece of cheese). I clip just a little off each toe once a week and we've had no more battles. He'll do anything for cheese!

[Carina43]

I've been guilty of this too...trimming a dog's nails never occured to me. I used to live in the city, so the dogs had frequent walks on concrete or whatever, and we did LOTS of hiking. Under those conditions, nails stay short until the dog gets old & less active. This happened with Phoebe...she was about 12 when her nails started getting too long. I wussed out and let my vet do them for $7.00 a visit. :o

I had a foster Golden whose nails were so long they were curling under his poor feet. He couldn't walk comfortably...the vet took a good 1/2" off some of his nails (yes they bled some) but that old dog seemed just delighted to have them short!

[Colbydog]

I trim Colby's nails once a week with the dremel, the only way to go.

[rottie girl]

Thanks for your replies and advice. I will take her in this one more time, and make a promise to her to trim on a regular basis, that is the key as they just grow so fast.

I think I'll try the treat methods to persuede her... perhaps the peanut butter trick, smother it on a spoon and get her to lick away. It's mostly her front paws, the backs don't seem too bad.

Thanks again for your suggestions and support.

[rottnkidd]

Hi rottie girl - Also, approach this task confidently! Don't act like you dread it and don't act like you're afraid to do it. Hum a little, gather up what you need, and get busy with it. You don't have to clip all of the nails in one day either. Get the dog used to it if you haven't been doing this regularly. Clip 1 or 2, praise, treat and life goes on. The next day clip another 1 or 2.
I've learned from experience that the less of an issue that is made, the easier these job(s) go. Whether it's nail clipping, ear cleaning, or bathing.
Just do it, and with confidence.
Best wishes and let us know how it goes for you.
kathy

[Willabeast]

I also use the dremel. It doesn't take long for the dog to get used to it. Here again a peanut butter filled bone works wonders in distraction) Get her used to the sound first then a little at a time. Using this is a much easier way to work the nails back without cutting in. With multiple dogs, its easy to become lax or let somebody get too long.

[Willabeast]

Forgot to mention. I have them lay on their side and throw a leg over them (on the floor) Gives me much more control when they want to act up or get tired. Plus I'm already in position to calm and comfort while continuing

[Rott'n'lab Dad]

If you have someone that can help you, it makes it a lot easier. We cut Bella's nails usually once a week (the front, every week and the back, every other week). My wife feeds Bella a nice treat for each paw that I'm working on. Once we got the system down it worked quite well -- we can do it with confidence and be non-stressed about it, and Bella isn't stressed about it either.

Good Luck.