Best way to clip dog nails, keeping a dog’s nails in perfect condition goes beyond aesthetics, it is a health issue that can prevent the appearance of wounds on their legs and other problems derived from excessive length.
If we get the right tools, we can carry out the task of cutting them ourselves, in the comfort of home, in order to save the cost of going to a specialist and rid the animal, for once, of going through The much-feared visit to the vet.
Of course, mandatory periodic visits cannot be missed in any way if we want to stay healthy and strong for many years.
Table of Contents
Best way to clip dog nails:
Now that we know the scissors that we should use to cut a dog’s nails, we can proceed to explain step by step how to do it.
However, before moving on to action it is essential to clarify how the dog’s claw is, and that inside it is living tissue that we should not cut if we do not want to hurt our furry companion.
In this way, the first advice we give you is to examine the nails of your dog and identify that tissue, which will be shown as a pink line on the inside. Once found, we proceed to carry out the following: the best way to clip dog nails:
1- The first thing is to create a relaxed and, above all, calm for the animal. In this sense, we recommend that you accustom your dog to this practice since childhood so that it seems normal and part of his routine. To do this, in addition to cutting your nails regularly, touch your paws and nails gently daily. Although it may seem an insignificant act, this fact will help our dog not to be frightened or alarmed when we need to fix his nails or trim the hairs that are between the pads.
2- Once the relaxed atmosphere is established, place your dog on his feet to observe the remaining piece of nail and know exactly where to cut. Remember that the ideal measure is one that is at ground level but without touching it.
3- Then, take one of its legs and if it is the first time you are going to cut the nails to your dog, pass the scissors for them, just rubbing them, and reward it with a treat so that it associates the tool with a positive stimulus. Repeat this step until you notice that your dog is totally calm.
4- To cut the nail simply put the scissors at the appropriate height and exert the necessary pressure to make a quick and clean cut. The right position is one that shows a straight cut, or slightly downward. In this way, avoid cutting your dog’s nails diagonally upward. Look at the image.
5- When you have cut the nails of the first leg, congratulate him and offer him a treat before moving on to the next one.
Cutting dogs nails – Why should I cut my dog’s nails?
If you have inspected the legs of your dog you will have noticed that on the soles of the feet, they have pads on which they support all their weight when walking.
The nails of the can never exceed said pad because, when they do, they prevent it from walking correctly, causing the twisting of the fingers to try to support the pads on the floor.
Likewise, little by little they will adopt strange positions that can develop serious problems in their legs.
In addition to causing health problems by not being able to support the legs properly, not cutting the nails of a dog can also lead to the appearance of wounds on the fifth finger,
as it will eventually penetrate the skin. Therefore, cutting a dog’s nails on a regular basis represents one of the basic cares that we should not overlook.
How often dog nails trimmed?
After seeing the importance of maintaining the health of your nails and knowing when to start, we may ask ourselves how often we should cut them to avoid that the previous problems appear in our canine.
Well, the truth is that there is no period of time since each dog breed has a specific growth rate.
Similarly, depending on the type of exercise performed by the nail, the nails are filed naturally and, therefore, do not need to be cut as regularly.
In general, toy and small dog breeds show a much higher growth rate than medium, large and giant dog breeds. If your hairy companion is a Chihuahua or a Yorkshire, for example, it is likely that you should cut your nails every two or three weeks, while if you enjoy the company of a boxer, once a month will be enough. What you should have clear is that the dogs’ nails never stop growing and, therefore, you should review them every week and cut them when you notice that the time has come to do so.
What do I need for trimming dogs toenails?
To be able to cut the nails to a dog at home without hurting it, it is essential to get the right tools. In this way, we recommend that you do not skimp on expenses and run away from those products of low quality, remember that the health of your furry companion is at stake.
In the current market we can find a variety of scissors to cut the nails of a dog, with different shapes and sizes. However, the most used are the following:
⦁ Common scissors
This type of scissors to cut the nails of dogs has a shape similar to scissors for humans but adapting the leaves to the nails of these animals. Likewise, some models incorporate a small spring to facilitate movement. To use them we must simply hold the nail in the right area and exert the precise force to cut it quickly and cleanly.
When selecting this type of scissors you should look at the size of it and choose the one that best suits the size of your dog. Although we can get them for all breeds, the common scissors are usually recommended for those toy dogs or small, since it is not necessary to exert a high degree of force when cutting the dog’s nails.
⦁ Guillotine style scissors
This type of scissors for dogs have a built-in spring to facilitate the task of cutting the nails to the dog. To use them, we will have to introduce the nail in the hole and place the scissors at the appropriate height to cut. The advantage that scissors present compared to the previous one is that it allows us to exert a greater degree of strength when cutting without any type of difficulty. In this way, it is more recommended to cut the nails of large dogs, or with thicker nails.
Now that you’ve learned the best way to clip dog nails, it’s important to learn how short to cut them.
