Nails

Discussion of grooming tips and questions.

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abbyneo
Posts: 415
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2011 6:53 am
Location: Illinois

Nails

Post by abbyneo »

I know that I need to try and cut Neo's nails, but she hates having her feet touched. We've really tried to make sure that we always touched her feet as she was growing up so that we wouldn't have this problem, but apparently we didn't do that enough. We've tried cheese, hot dogs, etc, and she just won't have any of it. We've tried fiancee sort of holding her down by laying on her while feeding her the cheese and she's still just too wiggly. I don't know if this is something I could work on with the clicker, or if there's anything else that could be tried..it's making me crazy looking at her long nails, and I don't want them to get crazy-long. While Abby was living in a shelter, her nails were never cut and her quicks grew out so far that we basically can't even cut them anymore and I don't want Neo to have the same problem.
Ari_RR
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Re: Nails

Post by Ari_RR »

We do it this way:
viewtopic.php?f=22&t=14177
Erica
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Re: Nails

Post by Erica »

It is something clickers work well on. :) if she's not comfortable having her feet touched, start with her lying down and click her for staying still while you touch her shoulder, for example, theme gradually move down the leg to the paw. If she's just wriggly, start be clicking for her letting you touch her paw without pulling it away, then move to picking it up and holding it for lOnger amounts of time. There's a great video on YouTube of an Airedale puppy who did NOT like being groomed but was clicker trained and quickly began not only staying still but offering his paw to have his nails trimmed. :) I think it's well worth a watch!

Onyx hated having his feet touched and still isn't fond of it, but has improved greatly with clicker training. He used to bark warningly if you touched the lower parts of his legs, and now I can hold his paws for about a second. :D soon I'll introduce the nail clipper and start at his shoulder again with that.
Delta, standard poodle, born 6/30/14
Suzette
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Joined: Sun Jun 26, 2011 6:45 am

Re: Nails

Post by Suzette »

Piper is like this too. I have touched her from head to toe since she was 8 weeks old. She will tolerate me touching her anywhere (even inside her ears) without a flinch or a worry. But most times when I touch her feet (especially if I touch a nail even briefly) she goes on high alert. So even when you do it right, you can still get a dog that is touchy in that area. :?

Like Erica, I'm going to go the clicker route for this. Right now her walks keep her nails pretty trim since there is a bit of asphalt road and cement sidewalk between our house and the field she loves to run in. But she's also this way about her grooming brush, so I guess I have two tasks to tackle with the clicker. :wink:
My avatar is Piper, my sweet Pembroke Corgi. b. 5/11/11
abbyneo
Posts: 415
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2011 6:53 am
Location: Illinois

Re: Nails

Post by abbyneo »

Thank you for the advice! I'll start working our way down to the feet with the clicker and see what happens. Every time I look at her nails I just cringe because I know they shouldn't be so long. I wish she'd just sit still enough to let someone else do them for me ! :lol:
ladybug1802
Posts: 1991
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Location: Surrey

Re: Nails

Post by ladybug1802 »

As has been said, this is perfect to work on with the clicker. Just take it very slowly! Also, do this kind of training when she is tired...so later at night rather than in the morning when she is full of energy, so you set her up to succeed. Dylan is OK having his claws trimmed now but I still do it latger at night because otherwise he wiggles round playing!
abbyneo
Posts: 415
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2011 6:53 am
Location: Illinois

Re: Nails

Post by abbyneo »

Going to start trying tonight working slowly toward her paws. I can't stand to look at those long nails, and I really don't want them to grow out as long as Abby's, to the point where they can never be short again.
ClareMarsh
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Re: Nails

Post by ClareMarsh »

Here's a video that might help http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHgBvnQ71ss
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