Friday

Trimming Your Dog's Nails

When it becomes time for you to trim your dogs nails you just know that they just hate having that done period. If you walk your dog a lot on concrete you can reduce the amount of times you have to trim them for the fact that concrete wears them down.
Eventually you will need to get this job done by yourself or by someone who knows how to do this. You don't want to hurt him so be careful when you attempt this. If you are tense when you start this your dog will fell your tension and probably be tense himself so do this calmly. Take a few deep breaths to calm down and calm your pet down too.
OK now! You are calm and not tense then take your pet to the area where the work will be done. Make sure you have all the tools you will need. This whole process can take some time to do, may be thirty minutes or so but this depends on how big the dog is and if your dog will sit still long enough. With practice your speed will increase in doing the nail clipping. When you get the nail clippers go and get a good pair not some piece of junk. A good quality pair will last longer and do a better job. Make sure the clippers are sharp and are in good working order. If you are doing this for the first time then familiarize yourself on how these dog nail clippers work. Also make sure your dog can't do some spinning and get free from your grip. If your dog is small and you can hold him them maybe you hold him in one hand and do the clipping with the other. If he is large than you might need the help of an other person. Once you are comfortable get your clippers and start to go to work.
To start get the clippers over the dogs nail and visualize the quick. If the color the the nail is light or white the quick will be pinkish going toward the middle and the back of the nail. If the dog has darker nails then it maybe a little more difficult to see if you can. But start with smaller cuts start from the front of the nail and stop when you think you are getting too close to the quick. If you hit the quick this will hurt and your dog will let you know about it. Take light pressure to the nail to stop the blood flow. the bleeding should stop in five minutes. It you cut him and the blood does not stop within five minutes then call your vet. When cutting make sure your cuts are straight across so that you don;t leave jagged edges that can get caught on any carpet of fabrics. If you leave a jiggered edge on the nail your dog can tare his nail and it will start to bleed.
When the trimming is done give your dog a big praise and treat for being such a good boy. It will take a little practice to get this dog grooming technique down but with practice you will be able to master it. Then it will be more enjoyable experience for the both of you and your dog.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lance_Baker

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