Is Nail Trimming Time A Battle?

Does the idea of trimming your dog's nails send chills up your spine? After all, Giving poochie a bath - no problem. You might even be ok sticking a tooth brush in Lassie's mouth. But trimming doggie's nails is never going to happen!

Actually, giving your dog's nails a clipping is not nearly as difficult or freighting as it seems.

Nail trimming in dogs can be done very easily if you know how. It's always a good idea to watch someone else first (vet, groomer or friend) who is experienced in nail trimming.

Some dogs never need to have their nails trimmed. Many will naturally wear the nails down or the dried ends of the nails will simply flake away without you even knowing. But some breeds, especially Basset Hounds and Dachshunds will likely need your help in keeping the toe nails reasonably short.

There will be times when you accidentally cut a nail too short. It just happens sometimes, even with experienced groomers. The nail will bleed if you cut it too short, so just be prepared for that.

Get a good nail trimmer. Ask your vet or the clerk in the pet store which kind they recommend. Place the main part of the trimmer in the palm of your hand and the moveable part so that it is controlled by your fingers. You want to be able to see the small cutting blade that slides when you squeeze the handle.

Make sure you're not cutting from the top downward; but rather from underneath. Slide the opening over the end of the nail while staying in the whitish part of the nail. The pink area of the nail is the live part and has blood vessels throughout. Hopefully you'll be able to see where the pink part starts.

If your pooch has dark nails you won't be able to see any pink to know where the live part of the nail starts. Just do a little bit at a time with the dark nails. Check the end of the nail. The dead area usually is whitish and as you cut deeper into the end of the nail you will begin to see a dark area. That dark area is where the live part starts.

When you are ready to cut, make a smooth, quick squeeze on the handle while holding the trimmer steady. Don't try to "pop" the end of the nail off; it will fall away on its own. You can file the edges or just let the dog wear the nail smooth. Taking your dog for a walk on the sidewalk or street can help them file down.

Remember that at some point you will cut too short. When this happens, place a tiny piece of tissue paper tightly against the end of the nail and hold it for a few minutes. Better yet, have some cornstarch or flour available and put a small amount against the bleeding end of the nail, hold it there with your finger. This works right away. Or you can do nothing and the bleeding should stop in about five minutes. If it continues to bleed much more than that, give your vet a call.

Always remember, you can do this. Play with your canine's feet first to get them used to the idea. If you do it once a week, it won't seem like such a tragic event. If you can only do one paw a day, that's ok too. Relax and enjoy your dog!

Suzy Kanninno, webmistress for http://www.wdogtraining.com, is a dog trainer and groomer and operates http://www.wdogtraining.com, the premier dog training site on the internet. Check back for additional articles by Suzy.

In The News:
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table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.wsaz.com/news/headlines/30577179.htmlcid=1255250300ei=QtzrSI3KJ6jk6gOdgv39CAusg=AFQjCNEmg6eaxi-IerUWctPhq8PRY3ABzAPolice Rescue bPets/b from Vacant Apartment/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fWSAZ-TV,nbsp;WVnbsp;-/font nobr2 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) —Huntington police rescued 5 dogs and a cat from a vacant apartment in Huntington. The animals were in a 2nd floor apartment in the b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://news.bostonherald.com/news/regional/general/view/2008_10_06_Woof_and_worship:_Weymouth_church_welcomes_pious_pets/srvc%3Dhome%26position%3Drecentcid=1255198354ei=QtzrSI3KJ6jk6gOdgv39CAusg=AFQjCNG2U_6IyQ9MrKGGxvYPu1KXPjEH_QWoof and worship: Weymouth church welcomes pious bpets/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBoston Herald,nbsp;United Statesnbsp;-/font nobrOct 6, 2008/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1By AP WEYMOUTH - The Pilgrim Congregational Church in Weymouth is going to the dogs, and that’s just fine with the Rev. Rachel Bickford. b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.newsandtribune.com/homepage/local_story_281094024.html%3Fkeyword%3Dleadpicturestorycid=1255137956ei=QtzrSI3KJ6jk6gOdgv39CAusg=AFQjCNEHsUgk_w7_4nY172z-uUlcwLal9QHarvest Homecoming dog show brings together owners and bpets/b for b.../b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fEvening News and Tribune,nbsp;INnbsp;-/font nobr8 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1“There’s no way he can do that,” one boy, who was waiting to take his bpet/b on stage, said with his two friends agreeing. Griffin, 11, then told her dog to b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.money.co.uk/article/1001615-overweight-pets-costing-owners-dear.htmcid=1255193776ei=QtzrSI3KJ6jk6gOdgv39CAusg=AFQjCNEzlO4Uz-B-r36goS4lHZOzyu2ZSAOverweight bPets/b #39;Costing Owners Dear#39;/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fMoney UK,nbsp;UKnbsp;-/font nobr7 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The increasing numbers of overweight bpets/b in the UK could cause an insurance headache for owners, vets claimed today. Research commissioned by bpet/b insurance b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.easier.com/view/Finance/Insurance/Pet/article-208275.htmlcid=1255193776ei=QtzrSI3KJ6jk6gOdgv39CAusg=AFQjCNFsoLVBFTyFgblKDEL2zOcrZC6HtwFour in 10 of our bpets/b are overweight according to vets/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrEasier (press release)/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1255193776hl=ennobrall 2 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2008/10/pets-that-can-h.htmlcid=0ei=QtzrSI3KJ6jk6gOdgv39CAusg=AFQjCNEjcMNUZQyCSnELaBzv1li6ZrRxCgbPets/b that can harm your kids/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fJulie's Health Club - Chicago Tribune Blog,nbsp;ILnbsp;-/font nobr3 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Most nontraditional bpets/b--such as rodents, reptiles, monkeys, and illegal exotic animals--pose a health risk to young children and people with immune b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/veterinarians-say-good-hygiene-common,569542.shtmlcid=0ei=QtzrSI3KJ6jk6gOdgv39CAusg=AFQjCNFBvAhVVfaWm8-BHEwFAEecGYHBrgVeterinarians Say Good Hygiene, Common Sense Key to Healthy bPets/b b.../b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fEarthtimes (press release),nbsp;UKnbsp;-/font nobr9 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1AVMA responds to news reports claiming exotic bpets/b are a health risk to young children SCHAUMBURG, Ill., Oct. 7 SCHAUMBURG, Ill. , Oct. 7 -- In light of b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table
pets - Google News


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