Jump to content

I Need To Cut Jet's Toenails


Guest Jubilee251

Recommended Posts

Guest Jubilee251

Molly, our "firstborn," is the kind of dog you can do anything to. She doesn't care about people handling her feet, legs, ears, butt, etc. and loves to be petted and snuggled when she is lying down on her bed.

 

Jet, on the other hand, is less tolerant. He is a complete lovebug and a big goof...but he does NOT like to be moved (understandably) or handled with even a bit of force, especially if he is lying down. There have been a few accidents (all our fault) where husband and I have been growled and snapped at. I don't really care - he is such a big, sweet lug and it's no problem to just let him be when he's resting.

 

But now I have to cut his toenails. I can just see this being a huge disaster if I hold his feet and go to town, like I do with Molly. I could muzzle him, but I'm not thrilled about being clocked in the face with a plastic muzzle either! :rolleyes: He's not afraid of the clippers, so it's not really a matter of conditioning him to them.

 

I guess I could take him to the groomer's or the vets, but he is 85+ pounds and TALL, so I'm wary of having his snarkiness come out at someone else. What should I do?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Have you tried to desensitize him to the entire process first? Like, you'd lightly touch his foot, then give him a treat. Extend the time of the light touch, give a treat. Hold his foot, give a treat. Then touch the clipper to the toe nail, treat. Then touch all toes, treat. Etc. It's can be a slow process, but eventually he should be able to tolerate it at the very least.

 

As for the groomers, sometimes dogs act differently with a stranger, especially if you aren't right there hovering :)

 

 

eta - our Molly is like yours! I can do anything to her and she's unfazed. I usually take it for granted, until I'm reminded that other dogs aren't as easy going!

Edited by arandomchic

 

 

Jennifer, Mike and the menagerie ---

Molly (Blue Sky Dreamin), Tinker (BT My Lil Girl) and their feline brothers Miles and Lewis

Visit Molly's Photo Album

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can you clip them when he's standing up? Our Diego is growly if you touch him when he's laying down, but it's no problem to do his nails when he's standing up.

Tin and Michael and Lucas, Picasso, Hero, Oasis, Galina, Neizan, Enzo, Salvo and Noor the Galgos.
Remembering Bridge Angel Greyhounds: Tosca, Jamey, Master, Diego, and Ambi; plus Angel Galgos Jules, Marco and Baltasar.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest GryffinSong

I agree with mom2four. Trying to do it while he's lying down may feel more like an invasion of his space than if he's standing. Have someone else hold his collar and have the job of talking with him, while you just focus on getting the job done.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest IrskasMom

Mine is very sensitive on his Feet and does not like to be touched . But to my surprise ,when the Groomer does it ,it's no Problem at all. She has a Table that goes up or down .Easy for me to get him on it and again of it. :):):)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hounds toenails are clipped with the hound standing up in all the racing kennels and the dogs are used to that. Try doing it while he's standing up. I'd still muzzle him but if you stand up and bend over, bending the leg at the elbow back and clipping from that angle, he may not put up a fuss.

Judy, mom to Darth Vader, Bandita, And Angel

Forever in our hearts, DeeYoGee, Dani, Emmy, Andy, Heart, Saint, Valentino, Arrow, Gee, Bebe, Jilly Bean, Bullitt, Pistol, Junior, Sammie, Joey, Gizmo, Do Bee

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Jubilee251

Thanks, guys! I will try clipping it with him standing up, and maybe husband feeding him delicious peanut butter through the muzzle. Hopefully he will not put up a fight!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whenever our group has playdates, one of our members who is a vet tech, clips dog's nails. There was one little girl who was screaming her head off and making a general fuss about the up-coming pedicure -- before even one nail had been clipped. So, one of the men just picked her up and held her suspended in the air while she got her nails trimmed. Worked like a charm. She was so worried about being off the ground that the trimming didn't bother her anymore! :lol Of course, finding someone who can hold an 85 pound dog off the ground while you do the trimming may be a problem. :P

tivvy-gigi-heaven-gabby-2.jpg

 

Waiting at the bridge: Blaze, Rodney, Lady, Spice, Sarahlee, Callie and Baby

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest krystolla

One other tip, let him sniff the clippers first for as long as he wants. I think it helps for a dog to know what strange implement it is that you are holding to his feet -- at least if it's not a case of being scared of the whole procedure.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest BorzoiMom

Dutch has always been fine about having his nails done by me, I do it when he's sleeping or awake laying down. Yesterday I was at a friend's house and we decided to trim his nails. If he didn't happen to have a muzzle on she would not have a face right now. I have never seen this type of behavior from him at all, but any potentially uncomfortable procedure will have proper restraint and a muzzle. The back of her head wasn't good enough, he wanted her face (had to work to get there). Even with me restraining him he got loose from me several times, it was a bigger production than doing cut backs on her dogs. (he was not quicked) This is the same dog that was fine getting staples in his neuter site when it opened on me after adopting him. Go figure, he's earned his party hat from now on. (party hat being a muzzle)

 

You may want to string his leash in a door to limit his head movement.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest jenznaz

Oh man, same thing here! Our first guy would let us poke and prod him all day with nary a whimper, this guy gets fed up QUICK when I try to do ANY grooming.

 

I've tried all the desensitizing methods, but haven't done it standing up yet. Would need help I think.

 

His nails are driving me insane though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

With my first grey I was really nervous about trying to clip his nails. My only previous experience was with a little Bichon with white nails that were easy and my grey had thick black nails. Sure enough the first time I did it I quicked him just a teensy bit. Although he took it well and barely flinched I was done with clipping. I took him to the vet to be clipped and was gobsmacked when my normally placid and calm hound flipped out! He was howling and thrashing like he was being tortured with hot pokers before the vet ever clipped the first nail. The vet muzzled him with a cloth muzzle that held my dogs mouth shut for safety reasons and as soon as that muzzle was on my dog stood stock still and allowed his nails to be clipped w/o a whimper. I thought we had a plan then, but unfortunately on the second visit we saw the junior vet who severely quicked him on the first nail and after that I was done with clipping for good.

I only dremel now. With a new hound I take it easy at first just letting them see/hear the dremel. I then move on to muzzling and leashing the hound while I dremel one paw on one day, another paw the next day and so on. If they get nervous I slow down a bit, but I remain calm and firm. I can't say any of my hounds LOVE to be attended to this way but over time they have relaxed and allowed it to happen. After they are totally done they always get some kind of really stinky treat for being so strong and brave and patient.

One word of advice to anyone who decides to try and dremel. If you have long hair DO NOT NEGLECT to tie it back when you do this. I always do but one time after I had finished and taken my hair down I noticed one little sharp edge and leaned over to quickly sand it off. Yup.......my hair fell over my shoulder and a second later I had a power tool wrapped in my hair up to my scalp. ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Jubilee251

Most of Jet's nails are ok because we live in the city and they're ground down by walking on concrete or running at the asphalt dog parks. But one of them, OH MY GOD, it's like a raptor claw.

 

Sheila - I never want to use a dremel after hearing that story! I am accident prone enough as it is, I will probably grind off Jet's toes and scalp myself. :unsure

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tessie doesn't like her feet messed with either, and would drop to the floor and hide her feet underneath so we couldn't get to them, so I took her to a groomer. What she did was put Tessie into the bath tub, and while I was holding her, the groomer's assistant was spraying Tessies feet with the hose one at a time while the groomer clipped. The water alternating on her feet shifted her attention eslewhere while she got clipped. That went on for about three trimmings, but now she's fine while standing on the floor without the water. I just need to be the one to hold her, talk sweet nothings into her ear while rubbing her belly. Her heart still races while she gets clipped, but she is much better with it now. I take both girls once a month to get clipped now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've had nail clipping problems with 2 of my 5 greys. After 6 months of screams and bucks, my first grey needed a gentle but firm scruff shake and a stern "NO!," then for the rest of her life she let me clip her nails with only an occasional paw jerk.

 

My 2nd male was completely unimpressed by a scruff shake and NO. By accident, I found out that having him stand in the bathtub while getting nails clipped did the equivalent of holding the dog in air from the above post.

siggy_z1ybzn.jpg

Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey

remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest goofyfoot1

HI all, Hope this helps.at first when doing buster's nail's i kept clippers and a dremal near by had him look and snif them both. then tryed both and he liked the dremal and of course a lot of treats.

 

hope this helps, as far as standing or lying down he likes lying down when doing his nails. :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i had exactly the same problem. i bought a dremel,heavy duty at home depot,& desensitized felix to it. i still muzzle him when i dremmel. someone holds the collar and feeds him dehydrated liver and i grind away. there used to be a dobie site w/ excellent instruction on how to dremmel a dog's name, my favorite link doesn't work. if you decide to try to give it a shot see if you can find the instructions. i did a google search, "how to dremmel a dog's nails". also you might find something on youtube.

 

the boys can be such babies!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I had a grey that did NOT want me doing his nails. he would snap and growl at me but never made a peep to the groomer. She said some dogs just don't want their owner messing with their feet but a stranger is OK :dunno Whatever, I now have PTS disorder on nail trimming and pay to have the greys done when I pick up Poodle.

 

That said yesterday the groomer quicked my long term foster pretty bad. She felt horrible, I felt horrible and I've apologized to him a thousand times. I just hope he's not scarred for life. :blush

 

 

gallery_8149_3261_283.jpg
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another quick FYI. Long nails can be uncomfortable for the hound. When I got DesiRay, his nails were very long, and we started dremeling every 2 weeks to try to get them worked back. I had always thought he was gimpy on his front left, and even made the vet do shoulder & knee xrays, cause I was sure he had

arthritis or ...... Anyway, when the day finally came that we got the one real "raptor claw", which happened to be on the front left, back far enough that it

didn't touch the ground when he walked, the difference in his gait was amazing. What a simple thing. I know some dogs can be real boogers about their feet, but it's worth it in the end.

 

I know a wonderful vet tech who is passionate about dremeling & has the whole procedure down pat. The dog stands, she sits on the floor with a foot in her lap, me at the front whispering sweet nothings & doling out treats after each foot. She says one thing to remember is to do the dremeling in short bursts; if you just let the dremel sit on the nail & grind, it gets hot, & they don't like that either.

 

Good Luck

Blessed is the person who has earned the love of an old dog.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Try muzzle and standing up. If I'm by myself (no one to hold/distract the dog), I just tuck the leash under my knee so dog can't wander away. Peanutbutter in the muzzle might also help. FWIW, my Joseph does not like to be manipulated, examined, etc. while he is lying down. He has gotten used to lying-down nail trims and is fine if there's somebody there to rub his ears, give him little treats, etc. If I'm on my own, I do him standing up.

Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in Illinois
We miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...