help me cut my dogs nails

[I~love~pie]

so I think I am finally ready to cut Daisys nails. I should really say we , as she has been great.

So I have some nail clippers, I just dont know how to go about it.... she has had them cut by the vet awhile ago but its been awhile, they are just starting to get long.

should I just try one nail. then do another tomorrow, so its not so overwhelming for her. although she let me hold her down with the tick incident and that was for a few minutes at least.
the thing is her nails are so dark colored , I feel im just going to do the tip, and let it be, until she gets very used to it.

she has been letting me brush her everyday with any fighting. shes had baths, she does squirm but I truely believe she knows im not stopping.

yes I know she doesnt need to be brushed everyday but I only do it for a few minutes to show her im in charge....I also touch her paws , belly, nose ears too.

[greenmulberry]

You should start by getting comfortable holding her paw and touching the clippers to them. Try and convince her this is a fun game! That ends in a treat! Do that several times, then end the session with clipping just ONE nail, end with praise and love 9and a treat!). When you clip a nail, if you are unsure how far to clip, start with just the very tip. It sounds as if you are being very cautious and thoughtful, so it should go well.

[nurturebaby]

I would also recommend touching her feet a lot, to get her used to that. Before you try to clip them though, I would strongly recommend you go out and get some styptic powder - if you do accidentally clip the quick, it will bleed a lot and will not stop easily unless you've got this powder - just tap out a little powder onto a dish (or the lid of the container) and press the nail into it so the tip has a nice thick layer of powder. It will be much less stressful for you both if you get the powder ready before you start clipping! It's very easy to clip the quick on dogs with dark nails! They recover quickly though - I don't want to scare you out of doing it! It's not a big deal - it happens... but it is best to be prepared...

I also think it's a good idea to have lots of treats handy!

[beanma]

I just want to say that I have never cut my 10 yr old dog's nails. I did cut our other even older dog's nails when he broke one, but it's never been something that I viewed as regular maintenance. On the even older dog, I did ask the vet to clip them once or twice when he was geriatric and no longer taking long enough walks to file them down, but it's not something that we needed to do regularly as long as they were getting walks on the street. Puppy (8mo now) has never had it done.

[kimmypoo]

On dark toenails, sometimes the top part is kinda dull and then on the tip it's kinda shiny. Only cut the shiny part and you won't get the quick.

[Sol_y_Paz]

I trim dog nails often. I am glad you are doing this for your dog. This is what I do.
HTH
http://homepages.udayton.edu/~merens...el/dremel.html

[rhiOrion]

Oh man, I tried to use the dremel type thing on our dog, and even though she's deaf she still FREAKED. Of course she hates having her nails messed with in the first place. I wish she'd let us use the dremel type thing, though, because it certainly looks easier.

Dark nails can be difficult. If you're uncomfortable, why not have the vet do it one more time, but ask them to walk you through how to do it yourself.

A couple of tips... there's the shiny/dull thing that a PP mentioned. You can generally cut safely where the nail is "C" shaped, or kinda half-moon. The other thing you can do, if she'll stay calm enough, it clip just a little tiny tiny bit at a time. If you start seeing a little dot of darker color in the midde of what you're clipping, that's the quick getting close to the surface. We always called it the bull's-eye...but a bull's-eye to avoid!

And I totally second the recommendation for the styptic powder! It's sold under the brand "quick stop" at the pet store... but there are probably cheaper brands, too.

[Sol_y_Paz]

I dremel since I deal with thick black dog nails and I don't like to cut quicks.

I am sure people here are well aware of why to cut nails, here are reasons just in case some reading want more info
http://wisedogblog.com/blog1.php/200...trim-dog-nails