How to cut my dog's overgrown nails?

We havent cut my dog's nail in over a year and a half. They are really long nails. He is very fussy when we try to cut them. Now do we cut them? when we take him to the pet store, they cut off about a millimeter.How to cut my dog's overgrown nails?
Get a grinder and see if you can get a good groomer to teach you how to do his nails. You need to do them regularly to get them back. I usually try to get to mine at least every other week - they stand or sit and allow me to pick up their feet and grind the nails back but then they are used to it and have been trained that I am going to do it. It is like any grooming, if you do it regularly, they learn to accept it better than if you allow them to go neglected for months and months and then expect them to accept something that is frightening to them. The pet store groomers or vets are not going to amputate the dog's toenails down far just because you haven't been responsible for the dog's proper grooming. Why should the dog suffer horribly for that -- you need to be dilegent and simply learn to do it properly and then do it on a very regular basis and frequently to get them back to a reasonable lenght (where they do not touch the ground). I start my dogs off when they are nursing and continue throughout their puppyhood - just easier to get them used to proper grooming. I also clean their ears when I do their nails and check them over for any issues - just part of taking care of a dog.How to cut my dog's overgrown nails?
When the nails are that far overgrown, your dog needs to go to a vet and be put under for a ';good cuttin';. Dogs have veins (quiks) running through their nails and if your dog hasn't had them cut in over a year the vein has definitely grown to the tips (all the way through). That is why the pet store only cuts a little because if they cut anymore they will bleed and cause the dog some pain. If that happens, your dog will never let anyone cut his nails again. He will associate and remember the pain as a bad experience.





Once you have his nails under control get them cut once every 2 weeks. If you don't want to take your dog to get them cut, talk to your vet and they will gladly show you how to properly trim your dogs nails at home.
Yes, you should cut them. The quick is certainly grown far out on these nails because they have not been trimmed in so long. I would take him to a vet to get them done. If you do it yourself a trick my dogs groomer told me is if you look at the nail from the back you can see the quick in the little opening that runs down the back of the nail. You want to cut below that.


There is also a device they are advertising that shows you where to cut.
you can cut them yourself or take him to your vet and he can do it. you'll need professional nail cutters, not the cheap kind, because they crunch the nail which can lead to pressure on the skin under the nail and that could hurt the dog and make him not want to walk. it's easier to cut their nails if they have clear nails. if they have black ones it's sort of harder, so if your dog has black nails take him to the vet so you don't accidently mess up. if your dog does have clearish nails, take him to some place in your house thats quiet and bright. take his paw up and look at his nails at the light. theres the tip of his nail then a pink thing. cut the nail quickly with a little force to prevent smashing of the nail. cut it right above the pink skin, making sure not to touch the pink skin at all.. it'll hurt your dog and he might bight and it will bleed. i like having my vet do it when i take my dogs to get their yearly shots or when i take them twice a year for worming. the vet does it for about $10 extra and he does a nice job. i wouldn't always trust a pet store to cut your best friends nails.. they could hurt him and since they aren't as professional as the vet, they could cut it wrong, make him bleed, and not know what to do. not to mention, they don't wash the cutters after they use it on a dog....
When a dog's nails have not been trimmed in a while, the quick (blood vein) also grows. It is easy to see on white nails, but not visible in black nails. You will have to clip just a little every couple of weeks until you get the nails at the proper length. As you clip, the quick will recede each time.
If you feel like doing it yourself, buy a muzzle so that he can't bite you. Also, have him on a leash. If he does good, give him a lot of treats or pats telling him ';good boy'; so he knows it will be okay. Oh and supposedly don't tell him ';it's okay'; because he will think something is wrong, making him act crazy. If that doesn't work, take him to the vet.
well too cut ur pets nails u must see closely and see if u see the red in is nail the blood try keeping away from the blood part and cut is nail like that cuz if u dont do it like that u may hirt ur animal!
check out this page on how to trim a dog's nails. It even covers black nails and dew claws. I would definatly recommend having one person hold him while the other one clips.
i would take him to a groomer or vet..have the vet do it them..have him show you how to do it so you can do it yourself once every 2 weeks
i always take my dogs to the vet to get them done, they cut them and then file them down so they arent so sharp it costs about $12 to get both things done
take them to a vet..thats the only possible way to get your dog's nails cut..
If he is fussy in a vicious way, first get a muzzle.


If he is fussy in an ';I don't want my nails clipped so I'm going to squirm and run'; way, and is a generally gentle-natured dog, then you probably don't need a muzzle.


But either way, so he doesn't move and hurt himself, I would have a strong, dominant person hold him in place so he can't squirm and cause you to cut into the quick and make it bleed or anything of the sort.





I would reccommend for the long nails a Dremel tool. You can just barely file off the end of every nail. Each time the nail is shortened, the quick recedes a little bit. You should start off in small amounts though because the quick is probably very close to the surface of the nail and will bleed if you hit it. Do it every week until they are to a proper length. It might take awhile but it'll be safe and they'll look so much better in the end.





Also, try to be very positive while you're doing it. Instead of scolding him when he squirms, reward when he sits still. We got my dog from the humane society and she was deathly afraid of everything, especially getting her nails trimmed. She now loves it because I put her on her back and sit on the floor. I then ';cradle'; her between my legs (this works even on the biggest dogs). It shows them both dominance and security. Then, after every nail I got done, I would praise her, give her a belly rub, and a small piece of a treat. When she'd squirm and fight, I just stayed calm until she stayed still and then trimmed her nail and gave the praising process. She quickly learned sitting still means good things. She now loves the weekly nail trimmings!





Just try to remember to stay calm and don't get frustrated. Once you get it down, it's easy. Good luck on the trimming!





Oh, and if you do accidentally hit the quick and it starts bleeding, don't panic. You can put flour, corn starch, or a product called quickstop on the end and it'll stop. Or just wait a few minutes and it will naturally.