Hello Dog Trainer? My Dog Hates Having Her Nails Trimmed. Help!
A guest blog by Jane Wolff of Good Wolff Dog Training
Scratches on the floor, extra sharp greetings when you get home and the tell-tale click clack as they walk around the house — these are all frequent reminders that your dog’s nails are getting too long. You know they need to be cut, but you know your dog hates it. Even so, you to feel the pressure to “get it done” even if it is a struggle. You’ve seen a whole slew of tempting gadgets and hacks that promise to make it easy and quick but you’re still struggling with basic nail care. And your dogs still hates it.
If your dog struggles to tolerate nail trims, you are certainly not alone! Many dog people struggle to keep their dog’s nails short — including people who specifically worked on it while their dogs were puppies! The combination of physical restraint plus having things done to them they don’t understand is often what sends a dog running when you get out the clippers. It is in an animal’s best interest to avoid being restrained and to feel stress when handled, when you consider the dog from an evolutionary or biological perspective.
Imagine for a moment that a family member or spouse sat on your legs and began to clip your toe nails without saying a word to you. It’s a hilarious thing to think about but if my wife did that to me I’d probably freak out. I might get upset with her and I’d absolutely try and make it stop/get away. And I have the privilege of understanding the concept that nails need to be clipped and that it likely won’t hurt!
Training dogs to be comfortable with nail trims consists of two fairly straight forward parts: getting them comfortable with the implement you’ll use (clippers, Dremel or nail file) and getting them comfortable with foot handling. Work on those things separately, then put the two together! That can sometimes be easier said than done when you’re overwhelmed — without a good solid plan and understanding of when to move to the next step, it’s hard to make significant progress.
In my online course: Fresh and Fearless, you’ll find a step by step nail trim plan with instructions and video demonstrations that you can follow along with. There is also space to ask questions and get some extra support if you get stuck. In addition to teaching the basics, I also like to teach dogs to do something that makes nail trims easier. My favorite is teaching them to lay on their side for easy access to their nails. That way you can take your time and can feel confident that you won’t cut them too short.
Rushing things is where people often get off track and have to step back. Because convincing a dog that something they find scary is actually safe can often be a slow process, it can be extremely temping to push it “just this once.” I really like to have some management ideas in place to keep nails shorter while you’re training to avoid the temptation to push it. Here are some of my favorites:
Walks or runs on cement
Playing tug or flirt pole in the driveway or other paved area (keep a close eye on their foot pads or hot pavement!)
Digging
Teaching them to use a scratch board (we’ll cover that more below!)
Calling the vet to ask for a sedated nail visit
A scratchboard is one of my favorite management solutions because it’s fun and easy to train and can keep the front nails short. I’ve used it for years at a time with my very handling wary dog, Indy. I’ve created a fun and easy to follow instructions and training plan that is free for anyone who wants it. You can check out the course and sign up to receive the plan and video here.
So, whether your dog is an adult who has a long history of disliking nail trims or you have a puppy who has never had their nails trimmed you CAN teach them that it’s fun, safe and easy. The key to success in any case is patience. Going slower always goes faster in the end so resist the urge to push it! Get yourself the free scratchboard course to help you out with that and have fun training!
Cover photo: Brown Short Coated Dog Lying on Wooden Floor by Karolina Grabowska