# Grinding or trimming?



## Bonster (Feb 23, 2009)

What's the difference? We had our puppy's nails ground the other night they were really super long and sharp and the groomer(at petsmart) said that it makes the nails more even, and lasts longer. Just not sure really what the difference is, and why one would be more beneficial than the other.


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## txcollies (Oct 23, 2007)

Once the dog gets older, and especially if it's a larger dog, the clipper tends to "pinch" the nail as it cuts. 

But I use both and like both.


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## Love's_Sophie (Sep 23, 2007)

Bonster said:


> What's the difference? We had our puppy's nails ground the other night they were really super long and sharp and the groomer(at petsmart) said that it makes the nails more even, and lasts longer. Just not sure really what the difference is, and why one would be more beneficial than the other.


IF the groomer grinds the nails back as far as he can, yes, this is very beneficial to the dog. With grinding, you can get right to the quick without bleeding, because the grinder isn't going to crack, or split the nail. Some dogs object to the sound, or the 'feel' of the sand\stone grinding peice. 

With trimming, you can't get nearly as close to the quick without causing a certain amount of bleeding. It can also 'squeeze' or "pinch" at the nail, causing some dogs to object to their nails being clipped.


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## briteday (Feb 10, 2007)

We routinely grind our dogs' nails every 1-2 weeks. If it has been longer than that and the nails are long-ish, then I like to clip the tips off and then grind down to just before the quick. I like the grinder because you can shape the nails while grinding the length. For instance, I have one dog that wears her nails only on the underside. But the quick still runs the length of the nail. So I can grind around the quick to hone down son=me of the top of the nail, and that causes the quick to receded a bit for the next week.


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