Nail Trimming for your Iceland Sheepdog

Clipping Your Pet's Nails

Trimming your pet's nails is not just a part of grooming, but is important for your pet's health as well. It is important to remember that untrimmed nails can cause a variety of problems including broken nails which are painful and bleed profusely. In some cases, nails will actually curl and grow back into the dog's feet.

A good indication that dogs' nails are too long is a telltale "click-click-click" when walking on uncarpeted areas. Cats may tend to get their unclipped nails caught in the carpet, furniture or your clothing.

How many of us put off trimming our pet's nails until the inevitable veterinary check-up comes around and the veterinarian must do it? If you're like many pet owners, you may be hesitant to trim your dog's nails because you're afraid of cutting the quick of the nail which may cause pain or bleeding. Once you learn how to do it, clipping your pet's nails is almost as easy as clipping your own.

When you are trimming your pet's nails, you are only cutting away the excess. Recognizing what is excess and where the nerves and blood vessels begin is what you need to know to make nail trimming a painless process for both you and your pet.

To trim your pet's nails:

1. Assemble what you will need - trimmers and some styptic powder, Kwik-Stop, CutStop Styptic Pads or other product to stop bleeding if you knick the quick.

2. You may want to sit on the floor with your pet, hold your pet in your lap, or have someone hold your pet on a table. Hold your pets's paw firmly and push on its pads to extend the nail. Locate where the quick ends. With clear or light nails, it is easy to see the pink color where the quick ends.

3. Using a nail trimmer for pets, cut the nail below the quick on a 45-degree angle, with the cutting end of the nail clipper toward the end of the nail. You will be cutting off the finer point. In cats, the quick is generally easy to see, and you can cut the excess away with one cut. In dogs, especially those with dark nails, make several small nips with the clippers instead of one larger one. Trim very thin slices off the end of the nail until you see a black dot appear towards the center of the nail when you look at it head on. This is the start of the quick that you want to avoid. The good news is that, the more diligent you are about trimming, the more the quick will regress into the nail, allowing you to cut shorter each time.

4. In some cases if the nails are brittle, the cut may tend to splinter the nail. In these cases, file the nail in a sweeping motion starting from the back of the nail and following the curve to the tip. Several strokes will remove any burrs and leave the nail smooth.

5. If your pet will tolerate it, do all four feet this way. If he won't, take a break. And don't forget the dewclaws. On most breeds, if they haven't been removed, dewclaws are 1-4" above the feet on the inner side of the legs. If not trimmed, dewclaws can grow so long they curl up and grow into the soft tissue, like a painful ingrown toe nail.

6. If you accidentally cut the quick, wipe off the blood and apply Kwik-Stop or styptic powder to stop the bleeding. It's not serious and will heal in a very short time.

Some valuable tips

Remember, it is better to trim a small amount on a regular basis than to try and remove large portions.

Try to trim your pet's nails weekly, even if long walks keep them naturally short. The "quick," a blood vessel that runs down the middle of your pet's nail, grows as the nail grows, so if you wait a long time between cuttings, the quick will be closer to the end of the nail. This means more likelihood of bleeding during trimming.

Trim nails so that when the animal steps down, nails do not touch the floor.

Invest in a good pair of nail trimmers in an appropriate size for your pet. They can last a lifetime.

Make trimming time fun and not a struggle. Trimming your pet's nails doesn't have to be a chore or unpleasant.

If your pet is not used to having his nails trimmed, start slowly and gradually work up to simply holding his toes firmly for 15-30 seconds.

Do not let him mouth or bite at you.

It can take daily handling for a week or more to get some pets used to this. When your pet tolerates having his feet held, clip just one nail, and if he is good, praise him and give him a tiny treat.