Dog Nail Trimming

Trimming a dog’s nails is called a pedicure, not a manicure

It’s really best for you to get a vet or one of his or her assistants, or a professional dog groomer to demonstrate cutting your dog’s nails before you actually do the job yourself.

You don’t need instruction, because trimming dog’s nails is a difficult job.

It isn’t.

It’s actually very simple, but you want to be sure that you don’t hurt the dog.

It’s actually more important to know what NOT to do

You don’t want to cut back into the quick. If you do, it will cause pain for the dog, but it will also open his or her body to germs, bacteria, and fungi that can make him or her ill.

All dogs don’t need to have humans trim their nails.

The nails of most of the larger breeds of dogs that spend most of their time outdoors will simply thin and flake off. No trimming is necessary.

But for almost all dogs that spend most of their time indoors, nail trimming needs to be part of regular grooming.

He needs a bath.

He needs his ears cleaned.

He needs his teeth brushed, and he needs his nails trimmed.

There are basically two types of nail trimmers used to trim a dog’s nails: the Resco type, and the Safari Claw type.

The type of nail trimmer you choose will be based on the size of your dog’s nails.

The Resco type is the one that is the easiest to learn to use and is suitable for most dog breeds, but the Safari Claw type might be needed for large-breed dogs with particularly large nails like basset hounds, for example.

Examine the nail clippers closely

They don’t look like the nail clippers used by humans.

Put the main part of the trimmer in the palm of your hand. The moveable part is controlled by your fingers. Now squeeze the handle.

You should be able to see the small cutting blade that slides as you squeeze.