First, gently hold your dog's paw in your hand. While looking down at your dog's semi-transparent nails, locate the pink region in the center of each nail. This pink area showing through the outside of the nail is the quick. It's that simple!
Place the nail clipper over each nail. Hold your dog firmly but gently and reassure him, provide a treat or distraction. Start squeezing clippers near the toes to make a clipping sound but do not actually clip the nail. Place the clipper on your dog's nail, but near the end, far away from the quick, and clip the nail.
Ask for a sedated nail trim.
Unless there is a medical reason not to sedate your dog, your vet should be able to do a sedated trim. Being sedated should make the nail trim process less traumatic for your pup.
At the center of every dog nail is a bundle of nerves and blood vessels called a quick. Cutting this quick, or even applying pressure to the area around it, can cause your dog immense pain. Some breeds, such as Shiba Inus, pugs, shepherds, labs, and bully breeds, seem to have exceptionally sensitive quicks.
Trimming black nails
Hold your dog's paw firmly but gently. Position the clippers to cut the nail from top to bottom (not side to side) Trim a very small length of the nail, about 1/16th of an inch.
It's best to not cut within 2 millimeters of the quick. As you cut the nail deeper, a gray to pink oval starts to appear at the top of the cut surface of the nail. Stop cutting the nail at this point as additional cutting will cut into the quick and cause bleeding. Styptic powder stops bleeding when applied.
Your goal is to cut the claw within approximately 2 millimeters of the quick. Ultimately, nails should be trimmed so that when dogs step down, their nails don't touch the floor. If you accidentally cut into the quick, the claw will bleed and your dog will experience some pain.
Nails cannot be allowed to grow without being trimmed or naturally worn down so if they are long enough, your veterinarian will need to inject a sedative into your dog in order to safely trim the nails. Physical restraint should not be performed if a dog is struggling and trying to bite.
If the clippers don't suit, try a Dremel. The noise and vibration take a little getting used to for most dogs, but some greatly prefer it to the clippers. Nails soften if soaked in water. Try trimming nails after bathtime or let your dog stand in a few inches of water in the bathtub for about 15 minutes.
Hold the Paw Firmly When Cutting Your Dog's Nails
You want to prevent your dog from moving its paw while you work on the nails, as this can cause unwanted injuries. Place your forefinger on the pad of a toe and your thumb on top. Make sure your dog's fur is well out of the way.
A dog's nails should be clipped often enough that they remain short enough to not click on the ground when a dog walks. Long nails that touch the ground may cause discomfort for your dog, and potentially cause problems down the road.
The QuickFinder Deluxe Safety Nail Clipper by Miracle Care is a state-of-the-art grooming tool suitable for professional or home use. The built-in QuickSensor technology detects the quick (blood and nerve supply) of your dog's nail and alerts you before you cut.
As long nails hit the ground, it puts force on the foot and leg structure. This force can potentially lead to arthritis and ongoing pain. The growth pattern of a dog's nails forms a curved shape. If left untrimmed, the claws will eventually curve under the dog's paws and dig into the skin, creating pain when they walk.
Nail Basics - The nail of a dog has a blood supply and a nerve Inside of it; this is sometimes referred to as the "Kwlk". When trimming a dog's nail you must try not to cut the nail to short and cut Info this area. If you do cut into this area you will cause pain and the nail will bleed.
Pain is the main reason that dogs hate nail trims. If your dog has ever been cut too close, even once, he will remember it. Nature provides pain as a protection and if something hurts, an animal must learn to avoid, and even fight it. This is a survival instinct.
Regular nail trimming will cause the quick to recede from the end. Short quicks are the preferred length for the dog's well-being and easy maintenance. Long nails can turn a sound paw into a splayed foot and reduce traction, and they can cause deformed feet and injure the tendons over an extended period.
Clipping and grinding are equally efficient and safe ways to trim your pup's nails. Clippers are cheaper and less noisy, while dremels are louder and more expensive but more precise and efficient.
Prepare The Paws
If you're trimming your dog's nails after a bath, do it while their paws are wet. Wet nails are softer and easier to trim than dry nails and if you didn't trim your dog's hair, you can easily move it. Also, make sure to check for any cracked nails before you start trimming.
Trazodone. Trazodone can both sedate a dog and relieve anxiety. This is a good dog sedative for grooming, veterinary visits, thunderstorms/fireworks, and other short-term stressful events.