How Important Is It to Trim My Dog’s Nails?

 Dog’s nails, just like humans, grow continuously. Wild dogs wear down their nails naturally from hunting, traveling and moving along the different terrain. They, therefore, don’t need any trimming.

Domesticated dogs, however, spend a lot of time indoors and on soft surfaces from which their nails wouldn’t wear down and therefore require extra help in managing the length of their nails by clipping them.

How can you tell your dog’s nails are too long? First it’s visible and secondly, you might notice that they make a clicking sound when the dog walks on the floor or tiles. If they’re overly grown, you’ll also notice your dog walking in an unusual manner.

 

Importance of Trimming Dog Nails

 

1. When the nails get too long, they are vulnerable to breaking and chipping especially when the dog is playing. This can cause a painful wound that might demand the attention of a veterinary doctor.

 

2. When playing outside, the dog risks tearing their toenails which can lead to infection, extreme pain and difficulty walking.

 

3. Overgrown nails in dogs can also affect their gait. They can compromise their ability to walk properly because with each step they feel pain. You might notice that your dog avoids walking. This is because the overgrown nails are likely causing pain as they walk, move or stand.

 

4. In extreme cases, the nails can curl around and end up embedded into the paws of the dog’s feet.

 

5. Long term, overgrown nails can lead to a realignment of the foreleg joints making the dog’s feet look splayed and flatted.

 

How & Who To Trim Your Dog’s Nails

 There are varying tools that can be used for clipping your dog’s nails all of which you can use on your own, or have a vet or groomer clip the nails for you.  Despite who does the clipping, the tools used are the same.

Dog nail clippers come in a variety of styles. When choosing a nail clipper, buy depending on the size of your dog. If the clipper is too big, this increases the risk of slipping and cutting more nail that necessary which could cause bleeding on the dog.

There are also small Dremels that can be used for trimming. They usually have a grinding tool that can used to sand off some of the dog’s nail. It’s great for rounding and buffing the nail edges thus giving a neater finish.

Trimming your dog’s nails might be an advantage especially for the dog because they’re likely to be calmer with you. You could also use treats to reward him after cutting each nail and encourage him to keep calm until the process is over.

You could also have your vet trim the nails during your dog’s check-up in which case the vet will include the cost of nail clipping in your total bill. If all you need is to have the dog nails clipped by your vet, you can spend $10 or less on the job.

Groomers normally include nail clipping in the grooming package. The entire job which normally includes washing, hair and nail trimming, as well as styling costs an average of $30 to $90 but getting your nails don can cost as little as $5

We have some fabulous groomers in our area so check them out and book an appointment ASAP!

Here are some awesome locations we recommend we even know a great MOBILE groomer!

Groomers in Portsmouth, NH

Club Cainine

Your Pet’s Peeve

Pawtsmouth Grooming Salon

InDogneato (MOBILE)