Best Pet Supplies

For most pet owners, trimming their pet’s nails can be intimidating but it doesn’t have to be.  There are many good reasons you should keep your pet’s nails trimmed.  Untrimmed nails can cause a variety of problems for your dog:

• Untrimmed nails can break causing pain and bleeding
• Long nails can affect the way your dog walks causing strain on his legs and hips
• Long term overgrown nails can actually contribute to the development of arthritis
• The quick of a dog’s nails actually grows with the nail making it more difficult to trim their nails shorter without causing pain and bleeding

There are many different types of trimmers for your pet’s nails and each has it’s own advantages.  The important thing is to take your time while trimming your pet’s nails making sure you and your pet are relaxed and not in too big of a hurry.  Trimming nails that are white are the easiest to trim as you can see where the quick is and hopefully not cut into it.  Most dogs have white nails and black nails which are more difficult to trim.  Usually you can use one of your dog’s white nails as a guide as to how short you can trim the black nails.

If your pet’s nails have grown rather long, there’s still hope.  Start out by trimming just a little bit off until you can see a dark, round, moist looking disk in the center of the nail.  This indicates you are getting close to the quick.  Repeat this about every week, and the quick will gradually get shorter.  If your dog’s nails have grown so long that it is causing health problems, consulting a veterinarian should be done.

Once you get your dog’s nails manageable, nail clipping should be done about once a month or when you notice that they are interfering with his normal walk using good quality dog nail clippers.

One last point to remember is to keep lots of treats for your dog close at hand so you can reward him when he allows you to trim his nails.  He’ll soon think of nail trimming as a good thing because he get’s lots of treats and attention when he’s being good.