# trimming nails, how often



## monsters mom (Apr 26, 2011)

My dog nails were very overgrown when we got her. She was terrified of having the trimmed by me so for a long time we've been going to a groomer(a trip she always despises). I've been working with her the whole time trying to build her trust in me up enough that she realizes I'm not trying to hurt her. Now she's pretty okay with me messing with her feet though it still makes her nervous it's better then those terrifying trips to the groomer, LOL. She's a very timid fearful dog, has been since we got her and she doesn't do well at ALL with things like that. My oldest child scratches her belly while I trim them up and it works quite nicely. Her quicks have receded a lot from where they were but they are still very long and she still has trouble with traction on smooth surfaces. I've been sorta shaving the tips every few days, I leave a little space between the visible pink quick because I'm scared to make her bleed. When I eventually get them to the correct length how often should they be trimmed at that point? Also every time I cut them she chews on them for the rest of the day. Why is that? Am I doing something wrong or is it some kind of nervous habit?


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## mom24doggies (Mar 25, 2011)

Have you ever tried a nail grinder? Some dogs are more comfortable with them, as they don't take off as much and don't go "click click" which bothers some dogs. On the other hand, the actual buzzing noise of the grinder can be scary to some; it kinda depends on the dog. Also, with the grinder you can take the nail all the way back to the quick without making the nail bleed or causing pain, although you do have to be careful not to let heat build up on the nail. If you go over the nail with quick strokes instead of holding it down in one place you won't get the heat build up. As far as how often, that depends on the dog. I could do my mini poodle's nails every two days and would still take some off. My Lhasa needs his done weekly (doesn't always get done though) and my other two need it about once every 1 or 2 months, depending on how much running they did. I've found that dogs with constantly growing hair (such as poodles) tend to need their nails done more often. I would venture to say that once every 2-4 weeks would be sufficient for your girl. 
I would _think_ that her chewing on her freshly cut nails is a result of them feeling different. When you trim the nails, it allows the dog to walk more normally; dogs with overgrown nails are forced to walk on the back pad of their feet, rather than their toes. The excessive length also breaks the foot structure down eventually both because of the length and the fact that the dog can't walk normally. You wouldn't believe how many dogs come in to be groomed with nails that are literally an inch in length; at that point, the foot structure is almost always destroyed; they have no arch in the toes or anything, it looks like a bird foot or something. Anyway, I wouldn't worry about her. It sounds like you are being very careful to not hurt her, and so I doubt you are doing anything wrong. Just keep at it, when she is 10 years old her feet will thank you for getting her quicks back when she was young because they won't hurt from being destroyed over time by long nails.


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## monsters mom (Apr 26, 2011)

mom24doggies said:


> Have you ever tried a nail grinder? Some dogs are more comfortable with them, as they don't take off as much and don't go "click click" which bothers some dogs. On the other hand, the actual buzzing noise of the grinder can be scary to some; it kinda depends on the dog. Also, with the grinder you can take the nail all the way back to the quick without making the nail bleed or causing pain, although you do have to be careful not to let heat build up on the nail. If you go over the nail with quick strokes instead of holding it down in one place you won't get the heat build up. As far as how often, that depends on the dog. I could do my mini poodle's nails every two days and would still take some off. My Lhasa needs his done weekly (doesn't always get done though) and my other two need it about once every 1 or 2 months, depending on how much running they did. I've found that dogs with constantly growing hair (such as poodles) tend to need their nails done more often. I would venture to say that once every 2-4 weeks would be sufficient for your girl.
> I would _think_ that her chewing on her freshly cut nails is a result of them feeling different. When you trim the nails, it allows the dog to walk more normally; dogs with overgrown nails are forced to walk on the back pad of their feet, rather than their toes. The excessive length also breaks the foot structure down eventually both because of the length and the fact that the dog can't walk normally. You wouldn't believe how many dogs come in to be groomed with nails that are literally an inch in length; at that point, the foot structure is almost always destroyed; they have no arch in the toes or anything, it looks like a bird foot or something. Anyway, I wouldn't worry about her. It sounds like you are being very careful to not hurt her, and so I doubt you are doing anything wrong. Just keep at it, when she is 10 years old her feet will thank you for getting her quicks back when she was young because they won't hurt from being destroyed over time by long nails.


I have looked into a nail grinder and I plan on getting one eventually. I'd have to order one online here though and it sometimes takes a really long time for mail to get here. We are leaving in a couple months so I'm putting it off for now. Plus I think she'd be really scared by the noise so I'd have to ease her into it. Her nails and hair grow very quickly, that's why I trim them every few days for now. If I waited longer I'd never get her quicks to recede! Hahaha

I figured the chewing was probably because the felt different, I also though maybe the sharp edges might bother her. We haven't worked up to filing the edges just yet. It's been a very long trying process to get her to let me trim them. 

Thank you for the advise!


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## kafkabeetle (Dec 4, 2009)

My dog came to me with very overgrown nails as well. What has worked for me is trimming with a dremel every 2-3 days for the past 6 months or so. They are now back to managable level and I think soon I'll be able to start trimming them only once a week or so to maintain them.

The dremel has been helpful because it allows you to cut MUCH shorter without quicking the dog. In fact, I have been able to sort of trim the nail around the quick so it's a tad shorter than the quick, and this makes it recede MUCH faster. The reason I trimmed them around every 3 days was because the quick receded enough that they could be trimmed again around that often.

Here's a picture that shows the progress we have made. Good luck!


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## mom24doggies (Mar 25, 2011)

monsters mom said:


> Her nails and hair grow very quickly, that's why I trim them every few days for now. If I waited longer I'd never get her quicks to recede! Hahaha


 Oh, right, I didn't clarify that in my post, sorry!! I meant that once you had gotten the quicks to a normal length _then_ she would probably need a trim once every 2-4 wks.  Sorry, I just realized that my post sounded like I was trying to tell you that you were wrong in trimming her nails so often.


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