How to Properly Cut Your Dog Nails

he first thing you should know about dogs nails is that the blood vessels go down to their nails, and if you cut it too short, it will bleed or hurt the dog. The part you DO NOT want to cut is called the "quick". That is the part that has the pink color to it in white or clear nails. Dogs with dark nails, it is much harder to see, and you need to be more careful.

It would pay to get a quality pair of nail clippers, if you are not sure, you can ask your vet, and you could even have them or your groomer, give you a lesson on how to trim the nails yourself. It is not that hard, you just need to be extra careful not to hurt the puppy or dog.

You would be much better off if you teach your dog when they are a puppy, to have their nails clipped. If your dog is walking around, and you can hear their nails clicking on the floor, it is time to cut them. Some dogs need their nails cut once or twice a month, other dogs can go longer between pedicures.

Make sure the nail clippers you are using are sharp. You would start at the tip of the nail, and then clip a little bit at a time. When you get close to the quick, or pink part, you do not want to cut that. If you do cut that, and it starts to bleed, use a styptic stick or styptic powder, or even baby powder, and apply pressure, until the bleeding stops.

On dark or black nails, it is very difficult to see the pink sometimes, so you want to do just a little at a time. You can use a nail file to file down the rest and to file off any sharp edges from clipping.

This is also the perfect time to inspect your puppy or dogs feet. Some dogs that play outside, can get the little burs from the plants outside, and the little prickly thing gets stuck in their feet, just like a thorn, and can get infected, I know this from experience, as we had those weeds on our land, and our dog got the smallest one in her foot, and it got infected, and the vet gave us antibiotics until the infection was cured, and then I made sure I removed those kinds of weeds from our property.

If your puppy or dog did not have his or her dewclaw removed, then it would need to be clipped also. It could get caught up on something when your dog is jumping around. It is the nail on the inside of the front legs, that is a little bit up from the paws, it does not get used, so it might be pretty sharp. Do that one the same way you clip the other nails.

If you don't trim your dog's nails on a regular basis, the quick will start to get longer over time, the part with the blood vessels. Your dog's nails need to be clipped or filed down if you can hear them click on the floor when they walk. The dog should be walking on his or her paws, and the nails should not be touching the floor.

If your dog's nails are too long, it can make it hard for them to walk around properly. It is good to have your dog lay all the way down on the floor while you trim the nails. When you are done trimming your dog's nails, you should give praise and a treat to your dog, because you are going to have to do it again sometime, and you want your dog to cooperate each time.