How do you trim a dogs nails ?

Get yourself a RESCO nail trimmer, they seem to work the best. There are other trimmers available but the RESCO is the easiest to learn with, too. Or for large breeds and Basset Hounds (they have very big toenails) a sturdy Claw cutter works well. Place the main part of the trimmer in the palm of your hand and the moveable part is controlled by your fingers. You should be able to see the small cutting blade that slides when you squeeze the handle.





The nail should be cut from underneath, not from the top downward. Slide the opening over the end of the nail while staying in the whitish part of the nail. The pink area of the nail is the live part and has blood vessels throughout.





When you are ready to cut, and you are sure you aren't at the live, pink part of the nail, just close your eyes and SQUEEZE HARD!!! Just kidding. To cut the nail, be decisive and make a smooth, quick squeeze on the handle while holding the trimmer steady. Don't try to ';pop'; the end of the nail off; it will fall away on its own. You can file the edges or just let the dog wear the nail smooth. Some people will cut the nail back until there is a slight amount of bleeding in an attempt to shorten the nail back further. Not a bad idea to keep some Quickstop Powder on hand in case you do accidentally cut too short. On the dark nails where you can't see any pink to know where the live part of the nail starts, you can check the end of the nail. The dead area usually is whitish and as you cut deeper into the end of the nail you will begin to see a dark area. This dark area is where the live part starts.





What To Do If You Cut Too Short!!


Place a tiny piece of tissue paper tightly against the end of the nail and hold it for a few minutes. Better yet, have some Quick Stop Powder available and put a small amount up against the bleeding end of the nail. This works right away. Or... do nothing. The bleeding will stop in about 5 to 7 minutes. Any more than that...give your veterinarian a call.





If you're not comfortable doing this, take your dog to the groomer.How do you trim a dogs nails ?
They make nail clippers for dogs. buy at wally world etc.


Be careful not to cut to short because they really bleed


just cut the first 1/4 inch off, if they do bleed it doesn't last long, so don't panick good luckHow do you trim a dogs nails ?
with a speical kind of pet nail clippers
there is a way if your dog has clear nails it easy if not you look under the nail you will see the end of the wick of the nail tou dont want to take to make off beause you can hurt the dog some can bleed to death they make a power patse to put no if you go to far i would just take a little off and then file the rest off thats what i do with mine
You can actually buy something that clips them. All you have to do is slip the nail through the little hole and then clip it off. My friend has one. you can get it at wal-mart usually.
In a word, ';carefully';.





If you look at the nail, you will see a light coloured, v-shaped area within it. This is the quick. It will bleed if you cut it. Stay away from it by cutting up to, but not through it. It will be tough to see in dark coloured nails. Get a good quality pair of nail trimmers (they kind of look like a cross between pliers and short-bladed scissors).





The bigger problem could be getting your dog comfortable with you touching his feet. Some dogs don't like this. Start slow, by just rubbing their feet while they are already relaxed. Work up to trimming slowly. You can do it with the dog lying down or standing, it depends on the size of the dog and how you can get the best angle while keeping them calm.





By the way, most dogs don't need their nails trimmed more than every couple of weeks, in my experience, especially if they walk regularly on pavement. This naturally files them down.





If you do hit the quick, dip the nail in a small bowl of cornstarch and keep pressure on it until the bleeding stops. It's a good idea to have the cornstarch ready before you start. Even pros sometimes nick it.





If all of this is too much, groomers don't usually charge very much for nail trims.
You can buy special nail clippers for dogs at Wal-mart or any pet store....I have a pair they sorta look like pliers but they aren't...they work great!
You can get dog nail clippers from a pet store or your vet. You clip the nail back to the edge of the quick (The dark part of the nail at the base of the nail), but din't clip them too short or you will clip the quick and it will bleed. Or you can take your dog to the vet, and your vet will probably show you how to clip them the first time. mine did. Be sure to trim them every week so they don't get too long and if you trim them enough the quick will grow back and you will be able to cut the nail even shorter. If you want the dog's nails really short take it to your vets and see if they can do this laser thing. they cut the nail back as far as it can go and then they use a laser to make the quick shorter. Its really cool. Then you don't have to trim the dog's nails quite as much and if you have wood floors (like i do) you will barely be able to hear it when it walks around. :-) Good Luck
buy a nail trimmer specially for dogs at a pet store or at target....





or take it to a groomer, they will trim them for u
There is a special kind of clippers that you can buy. I think Wal-Mart has them and you just put the dog's nail in them and clip. Just be careful not to clip too close to the foot. If the dog doesn't like it, you may need to get someone to hold him down.
Take the nail clipper, slide it over the dogs nail BE SURE TO LOOK AND MAKE SURE YOUR NOT CUTTING THE PINK PART!!! That is call the quick and if you cut it, it will bleed really bad and be very painful for the dog. This website gives you step by step directions with pictues to guide you http://www.thepetcenter.com/gen/nailtrim鈥?/a>
I would suggest taking it to a groomer or a place like Petsmart, at least for the first time. They will be able to tell you how short you can trim them because if you get the nails too short, it can cause the dog serious pain and problems walking.
they make special nail cutters for dogs, you can get them at pet stores or at your vet
I prefer the Dremel grinder...I hate the rough edges that cutting them leave.
If it is the first time, take your dog to the vet. Other than that, get a nail cutter in the dog section at Walmart. Be careful though because dogs have veins in their nails, so you have to cut it at the correct place.
take it to your doggie's hair groomer place.
Clipping your dog's nails might be easier than you think. Have a groomer or your veterinarian show you how to do it. Most pet stores sell a special dog nail clipper. When the blade is dull, you can replace just the blade instead of buying a whole new clipper.





The blood supply to the dog's nail is called the ';quick';. If your dog's nails are too long and you immediately cut to the length you think they should be, you will cut into the quick and cause your dog's nail to bleed. Don't worry, you won't have mortally wounded Fido, but the nail can bleed for quite some time and be rather messy. Most people keep some styptic powder (available at pet stores) on hand to cauterize the bleeding if necessary. ( I use flour)





The trick to trimming dog toenails is to train the quick to retreat backward. Remember, simply cutting a large chunk of the dog's nail will only cause the nail to bleed. Instead, use the following method to avoid cutting the quick.





Cut or file the dog's nails only a little bit every couple of days. This will cause the blood supply to get shorter at the same time as the nail is being shortened. When you get the nail to the length you would like to maintain, clip every few weeks or as often as necessary to maintain that length. This will prevent the quick from growing too long and prevent the nail from bleeding.
you trim a dog's nail by a dog clipper nails i trim mine with a regular nail clipper. cut to the part where the white ends not pink that's blood.
Well you should invest in a dog-nail clipper, they are about $7-ish in pet stores. And make sure you don't go past the ';quick'; (that's the pinkish part of their nail) because it will bleed. If you do happen to clip it, just put some baking soda or baking powder on it.