Trimming a pet’s nails is a crucial part of their grooming routine. Not only does it save you from an unintentional cut when cuddling with your pup, but trimmed nails prevent discomfort, injuries, and posture issues in dogs. Unfortunately, not every canine client is a fan of this service. Why do some dogs hate nail trims? Union Lake Pet Services delves into the dislike of nail trims and how we can make it better for our canine clients.
A Past Traumatic Experience
Nail trimming requires a steady hand. It’s very easy to trim too close to the quick, which can be painful and may cause bleeding. Even an experience with a broken nail (that had nothing to do with a trim) could cause some trauma for your pup. If a dog has had a bad experience with a previous nail trim, they might now be afraid of the process. Unfortunately, this fear can make it more likely to cut too deeply when trying to trim an anxious dog’s nails.
No Trust in the Person Doing the Trimming
Some dogs have trust issues that make it hard for them to feel comfortable with people they don’t know. If you take your dog to a professional groomer, but the dog has never met the person, it can be a scary experience. Since nail trimming is such a quick process, there’s no time for the animal to build much trust with the groomer.
Instincts to Protect the Paws
Some dogs have natural instincts to protect their paws. These pups will feel uncomfortable anytime someone tries to touch or play with their paws. As you can imagine, this makes it incredibly difficult to safely trim the nails. The dog might feel uncomfortable even letting someone touch its paws, let alone trim its nails.
Scary Sounds
Sometimes just the sound of a nail clipper or a nail grinder can scare a dog enough that it makes it hard to go ahead with the trimming. Sensory issues like this can make a relatively calm dog feel anxious, which can significantly affect your ability to trim their nails.
Making Nail Trims Better for Dogs
At Union Lake Pet Services, we understand that some dogs hate nail trims, and they can be very upsetting. Our calm, talented staff has plenty of tricks up our smocks to help your dogs feel safe and calm around the trimmer. These include:
- Taking time to build trust and create positive associations with the experience
- Desensitizing the pets to the tools to decrease levels of discomfort for the dogs
- Creating a positive experience for dogs in a calm environment
- Recognizing signs of stress and stopping when necessary
- Behavior modification Victory Visits that help your dog consent to being touched
- Training your dog how to trim their nails themselves on a nail trim board
Help When You Need It
If your dog is still struggling with nail trimming, we also offer training and behavior modification services that can help, as well as sedation. Call us at (248) 363-6262 to learn more about our services and how they can help your dog.