One tricky aspect of grooming is figuring out how to clip dog nails at home. This is especially relevant if you have decided on grooming your own dog. If you attend a professional groomer on a regular basis, then problem solved. Otherwise, I’m sure some tips and certainly a video will be welcome.
Table of Contents
DIY Dog Nail Trimming
This article is intended to provide tips for DIY nail clipping dog owners.
Your dog will need to have his nails clipped regularly, or they will grow into claws making walking painful for him and his longer nails can, in addition, damage furniture.
In the wild, wear and tear from exercise would have served to keep dog nails relatively short. It follows that frequent running and playing on hard surfaces could mean that nails grow more slowly. But how often does your dog get to spend a lot of time running up and down on concrete for example? I would imagine not enough to take care of those long growing nails. So, let’s address the need to manage nail trimming ourselves.
3 Steps to Follow When You Clip Dog Nails at Home
If you are an experienced dog groomer, then most likely you are already very comfortable with the use of nail clippers. In fact, you probably haven’t even needed to stumble across an article like this. However, if you are just starting out as a dog groomer, then you probably haven’t quite reached a level of confidence that allows you to feel completely comfortable when clipping your clients’ nails. This guide is for you.
Similarly, if you are a dog owner and prefer to do all of your own grooming at home then I’m sure you are no stranger to the need, and the difficulty, of clipping your own dog’s nails. These steps and following video can help you gain both skill and confidence in clipping canine nails.
1. Study the Nail
When learning how to clip dog nails, it is important to have an accurate understanding of the different parts of the nail.
Your dog has a live center to each nail.
The nail beyond the quick becomes slightly narrower and is often slightly hooked.
If your dog has light colored claws, you can usually see a slightly pink tint that indicates where the quick lies. Unfortunately, dark claws make the quick difficult to see, so you will have to take extra care not to cut the nail too short.
If you cut into the quick, it will bleed and your dog will yelp with pain. Your dog will remember a negative experience and will resist having his nails clipped in the future.
If the nails are clipped correctly, you can avoid nail bleeding. Then, the whole experience can be painless and more routine for your dog.
In addition, it is very important to use sharp rather than dull nail clippers.
2. Restrain Your Dog Correctly
When first learning how to trim dog nails, it is important to restrain your dog in a way that is comfortable for him and manageable for you so that your hand is steady when clipping. A small dog can be held on your lap with your arms around him. This will allow you to more easily work on each paw.
You can read some additional tips in this article on how to restrain a dog while grooming at home so that both dog and groomer feel comfortable.
For larger dogs, it is best to lie your dog on a table. Use a non-slip mat to prevent your dog falling if he wriggles.
To trim the front nails, place your arm over your dog’s neck to keep his head down. Lean over him as you work. You might need someone to help you.
3. Follow a Proven Procedure
The following tips can make the exercise more straight forward when first learning how to trim dog nails:
- It is important that you do not cut closer than 2 mm from where the quick ends.
- If you use the scissor trimmer, face the trimmer from below the claw upwards at a right angle to the quick, and clip.
- If you use the guillotine trimmer, the blade side of the trimmer should face away from your dog. Place the claw through the ring, check that it is below the quick, and squeeze the handle.
- Dark clawed dogs nails should be trimmed in small steps to avoid cutting into the quick.
- After you cut, look at the end of the claw. When you can see the shiny gray or pinkish patch in the cut end of the nail, it is short enough.
- Always trim the dew-claw on the inner surface of your dog’s paw as well. It does not touch the ground, so tends to grow long and curl.
Video Showing How to Clip Dog Nails at Home
This question of “how short to trim dog nails” crops up frequently because most dog owners are fearful that they might clip too closely to the quick and thus cause nail bleeding.
Furthermore, most dogs do not like being restrained physically. So it naturally follows that they do not readily welcome being held for nail clipping.
Therefore, it is important to make each nail cutting session a positive experience for your pet. Reassure him and praise him continuously. Give him a treat after you have finished.
But there is nothing quite like watching a video of a nail clipping expert at work. Before figuring out how to cut dog nails at home, I suggest playing this video a few times to help build you confidence,
Equipment Needed to Clip Dog Nails
Having the right equipment from the outset can make trimming dogs nails an easier task for you and a less daunting experience for your dog. Whilst there is a wide range of tools that come under the heading of dog grooming equipment, the items that you need specifically to clip dog nails include the following (affiliate links):
- Dog Nail Clippers – there are two main types: the guillotine or the scissor version.
- Dog Nail File to trim any rough edges after cutting
- Dental Chews for Dogs
- Dog Nail Grinder
- Some Doggy Treats
- Alternatively: A Dog Nail Grinder
For tips on how to choose the right dog toenail clippers, refer to this article that describes their differences and what to look for.
Ready to Clip Dog Nails Now?
Your dog’s claws should be trimmed on a regular basis. It is a good idea to get your puppy used to nail trimming at a very young age.
Learning how to clip dog nails at home can be as simple as learning how to brush a dog correctly. It is not difficult, and it will become easier each time you do it.
So, as you can see, learning how to clip dog nails is a skill that can be easily mastered with the right approach and the right tools. Furthermore, it is certainly a skill that needs to be included in any DIY dog grooming regime.
K9 Academy: Cutting Your Dogs Nails Safely: Trim your dogs nails safe and easily 