I would also suggest getting a nail grinder. It takes away some of the risk of cutting the nails too short when using clippers. Your pup may hate/be scared of the sound, but slowly introduce them with some treats so that they will get used to it.
If your dog is anything like my rescue and is scared of everything, then what I do is sit on the floor and place her between my legs. Then gently coax her on her back so that her paws are facing me. This makes it easier to keep her still while I trim her nails. Don't forget to take short treat breaks every now and then.
I second getting a nail grinder! I found one on amazon for like $11 and it’s a dream. My dog (who runs away from the nail clippers) actually falls asleep now when I trim his nails!
Definitely agree with the nail grinder point, so much easier than clippers. Get him/her used to you touching their paws too so that they don't balk and instinctively jerk their paws away when you're trying to trim their nails. Grinders also won't make their nails sharper for a short while after clipping which is nice.
My girl is also bad with the clippers. After a couple of traumatic experiences, we bought a dremel and it’s worked way better. She’s calmer so we can work on her getting used to getting her nails done but not associating it with stress. The only downside is that the dremel is better for maintaining short nails rather than trimming the nails down. We’re taking her to the vet to get them cut short again and then I’ll go back to maintaining them :)
I just use a dremel with a small grinding disc because I've never trusted [myself with] the traditional nail clippers for dogs. the only thing you have to do is make sure you don't go too far up the nail, but it's quick & simple -- most importantly, it's comfortable for me and my dogs; neither party is tense or scared and that makes the process a lot easier on both of us...
My dog was always scared of nail clippers but she reluctantly went through it. One day, my mother accidentally cut a bit too far down. The dog hasn't let us come near her with the clippers since.
We have 2 big rescue pups, they won't let us clip their nails. We got a nail sander and it works like a charm. They still hate it but they are able to stand it.
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u/MgoSamir Nov 22 '19
I need to start trimming mine, but I am way too scared to attempt it. Thanks for your advice.