Trimming toenails is always a HOT topic for all of us who live with dogs and want the best for them. I’ve blogged about this previously. In “Cutting Your Dog’s Nails: How Important Is it Really?” my friend, Dr. Leslie Woodcock DVM, shared a video lecture of how short a dog’s nails should be, and the best way to cut a dog’s toenails. For dogs who are not in love with their nails being trimmed, I show you how to make a game of it in “Does Your Dog Training Need a Shot of Joy?“.
But what if your dog HATES having his nails cut? What if he is terrified? What if attempting to do so is a danger to him and to you?
This is something I’ve experienced first hand with Tater Salad, a rescue Bulldog mix we adopted a bit over a year ago … and let me tell you, Tater let us know in no uncertain terms that nail trimming was SOMETHING BAD!
Recently in a coaching call for some of my mastermind dog training students, we shared footage of Tater’s nail trimming “before” experience. And then I did a live demo of what it’s like now … the “after”. That clip is below for you. The “before” footage is not the worst of Tater’s reactions … for my lecture I pulled out the video footage to suit the topic of that section of the coaching call which was the use of high value rewards and the transfer of value. What that short bit of film of Tater’s “before” does give you, is a good indication of his dislike of the process, because what I want you to note is all I had in my hand was a spoon, not a nail clipper in sight.
Patience, Shaping and Transfer of Value
As Lynda points out in the clip above, getting Tater to LOVING his nails trimmed so much that it is now one of the high value events in his life, took time and patience. And it was something we had to work at with frequent sessions. And by frequent, I mean daily, often several sessions. It was super important to help Tater become confident and comfortable with nail trimming. I used “transfer of value” … that is using something the dog loves to grow the value for something he does not love.
Transferring value for something like nail trimming needs to be done carefully, or you run the risk of the value transferring in a way you did not intend. An example is that if your dog loves to tug, and you used that for nail trimming, the association could go the other way and your dog ends up not liking tugging.
The KEY with using transfer of value for something like toe nail cutting is that the behaviour you are asking for initially MUST BE ACHIEVABLE for the dog. That means breaking toenail trimming down into elements and shaping your dog in each of those elements so that he has value for each.
In animal training lingo, we call this splitting the behaviour down. It means not overfacing your dog and setting him up for success with each element. Overfacing is when we ask our dog for more than our education has prepared him for … more than he is currently capable of giving us with the level of training we have given him.
Break the Elements of Nail Trimming Down
Break down all the elements of trimming your dog’s nails. Write them down. Take your emotions out of it so you can clearly see what you need to work on. What is your dog afraid of? For Tater, he clearly didn’t like his paws being held or the Clippers or the Dremel being brought towards him. What really put him over the edge and into orbit was the action of isolating one toe (and that is something I didn’t need to do). You need to dissect what elements of cutting nails your dog needs help with most.
Some of the elements of nail trimming I mention in the video are:
- The sight or sound of the Nail Clippers or Nail Grinder (Dremel)
- The vibration of the Dremel
- Paw being held
- Isolating a toe
- Clippers or Dremel coming towards the dog
- Nail being touched
What are the other elements you can think of? Let me know in the comments!
Considering all the elements of a nail trim for your dog is going to help you split the behaviour down for shaping success, so that you can create a transfer of value for your dog and put the trauma of cutting nails behind you forever.
Today I am grateful to my amazing team who have given my blog a fresh look for going into 2020. I’m also grateful to be sharing 2020 with you. I’ve got a lot planned for this year, so we can all have dogs that are happy, healthy and lifelong members of our families.
Update: There are further videos on nail trimming that will help you if your dog is not a fan of nails being clipped.
- Proactive Conditioning for Dog Nail Trimming Success
- This! One is About Conditioning the Dremel for Puppy Nails
And due to popular demand, we now have “Your Dog’s Pedicure Please Program” at our store for you to start immediately online. Your Dog’s Pedicure Please Program will create a positive emotional response for your dog to grooming in general and nail trimming in particular.
We’ve had many questions about what I use for a nail grinder for my dogs, and it’s a *Casfuy Dog Nail Grinder with LED Light that I got on Amazon. I also like to use a Dremel with a *Diamond Nail Rotary Tool Bit.
[*Amazon Links Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Susan only recommends products she uses herself, and all opinions expressed here are her own. The link above is an affiliate link that, at no additional cost to you, we may earn a small commission if you decide to buy from it. Thank you!]
Hi! I recently came accross this great Blog subject, which was so very helpfull, Thank you so much!!! I have been trimming my dog’s nail every 2 weeks eversince he came to live with me. But because he is a 60 pounds dog, I found the nails to be quite sharp. And, thanks to this particular Blog, I purchased the right equipment to do an even better job, and most importantly, was able to succeed by using desentization and games proposed here. So within a week of having received the Casfuy dog nail grinder recommended here, I succeeded trimming my dog’s nails properly!!! By the way, if you are hesitant, this nail grinder is light, easy to manipulate, and the noise low enough for a dog to be curious about, so I would definitely recommend it! Thank you Susan Garrett for transfering your knowledges to us, and thanks for this tool suggestion!
What if your dog is so scared of nail trimming that they won’t eat high reward treats (like cheese or meat) if they know that you’re trying to do anything that involves their legs or feet?
Since you’re following Susan’s training methods, think about being a splitter not a lumper. You can do this!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIPxgReFk58
I went and got my furbaby Jax from a shelter April 10th . I was told he was 1 and he had been in two shelters. Had been taken in by owner. Everything with Jax has been slow, which I expected. The first 3 days he would not leave my chair unless I was a sleep. He would play eat, drink and potty while I was asleep. It took him a long time to come sleep with me. He sometimes goes back to the chair. After about around a week and a half he started chewing things that he shouldn’t have and he is still teething. I’ve given him several bones strong enough so he doesn’t break any off. He plays by himself, when I try to play with him he will for a short time and then not interested. The only thing that I know he cares about is getting affection from me. He’s still scared of his shadow but is better. I’ve had a knee injury so I’m lucky if I get him outside once every 3-4 days right now which he was starting to warm up to. I praise him when he does things well even if it’s him walking outside. He definitely has separation anxiety when I leave so I’m trying some hemp products, we will see. I know it’s going to be a long road to get all these issues addressed. He will let me hold his paws and touch the nails, but if I’m just holding clippers and don’t put them by his paws he smells it then takes off. I’ve been also tryin to just turn on my pedi pas once in a while for him to get used to the sound and I just hold it. He smells it and leaves. I’m wondering if it could have anything to do with how they smell? I’m going to try to soak them in soapy water and see it that helps. So my questions are what are some ideas as link grooming will. He doesn’t care much about food or treats. I have to give him tummy sensitive food and treats. He doesn’t want to to play with me much at this time. He begs for attention though so I give him a lot when he is being praised. Also, should I work on other issues before I even try to do his nails. I might try a nail filing board?? I everyday see if he will let me get close to his nails. I don’t want to push too hard. He is very sensitive. When I tell him bad boy or raise my voice he shakes. So now I say no no and raise my voice slightly. His nails are too long he sounds like he’s wearing tap shoes. My arms are easily cut and bruised so I’m constantly taking care of cuts on my arms. When I’m home I trying to remember to wear long sleeves in summer lol. Not sure what to do. Sorry I know this long ,but wanted you to know some of the other issues we are dealing with because they might also play into why he won’t let me do his nails. His confidence is better, but still working on it. Thanks for any suggestions in advance.
Hi Amy,
I’m fairly new here so don’t mistake me for a member of Susan Garrett’s team. I hope you will take your inquiry directly to one of the say yes team members. I’m really fond of Sharon’s advice.
If I were in your shoes I would get your dogs nails groomed to by a professional and perhaps under sedation. With your dog’s nails at a proper length you have time on your side.
You’re definitely going to want to identify what your dog values outside of grooming sessions. Once you know what your dog values you can begin to use those to build/transfer value for other activities and rewards.
If you’re in homeschool the dog or recalls I hope to connect with you and the Facebook groups.
Blessings
My girl is from Romania. She was terrified of everything when I got her. After 4 years she does trust me in normal tasks, but cleaning her ears or touching her feet is a big no. My vet told me that it would be too traumatic for her to be sedated and the best thing I can do is walk her on pavements. They will wear down naturally.
Can you please tell me what dremel you use, I am
looking to buy a dremel but not sure which one to buy. Thanks 🙂
Here is one that Susan has recently purchased and is one of her new favourites.
https://geni.us/nail-grinder
Susan only recommends products she uses herself, and all opinions expressed here are her own. This is an affiliate link (no additional cost to you), we may earn a small commission if you decide to buy from it. Thank you!”
Please can you check this link. It shows a whole list of nail files and I can’t tell which one is the one you are suggesting.
Hi Sheila ~ Casfuy Dog Nail Grinder with LED Light
I have the same question that a lot of people have (and I haven’t seen it answered yet) – what do you do in the meantime while going through these steps on the most sensitive dogs? It’s taking me months to do with my pup, and it’s so stressful to know her nails are ever growing and she’s still reactive to either the nail clipper or the dremel (working on both in case she finds one easier to tolerate than the other). I’m at the point where I think I need to ask my vet to sedate her and trim them down, which worries me in this time of not being able to go into the clinic with her and manage her experience there as well. I think some of us are feeling a little trapped between our dog’s need for us to progress really slowly and the legitimate need to get those nails under control before the quick grows out, making things worse than they already are. It feels like a losing proposition to those of us in that are doing our best, but our dogs are the ones that need more time…
Marie, do you have an area with a hard/paved surface (road or enclosed tennis court) where you can play with your dog for 20-30 minutes a day. Broken down into shorter sessions works fine. Dogs who do lots of paved road work, often only need minimal nail care; nature does it for them!
I walk my puppy a lot, prob more than I should, but she likes it. I want to expose her to grass, pavement, woods… I haven’t done any nail work and she is about 13 weeks.
Did you ever get an answer to your question about taking your dog to the vet to have nails trimmed back under sedation while going through the process of accepting the Dremel?
My girl was terrified of the sound of the Dremel. I have a Dremel with a cover, so I can turn it on covered and not worry about her accidentally getting hurt touching the rotating file. I started off by putting the Dremel several feet from her breakfast dish every morning. Close enough that she was aware of it but far away enough that she would still approach her food and eat. Each day I gradually moved the Dremel closer to her food bowl. Eventually I put the turned on, covered Dremel on top of her dry kibble. She had to push the vibrating Dremel out of the way to get to her food. She learned to associate the sound of the Dremel with breakfast. I was also working with her on examining her feet and toes. We put the two things together and now she has her nails Dremeled a couple of times a week with breakfast. No problem!
For those who have wiggly long haired dogs, chew.com has a great Dremel with guard so hair does not get caught.
This is very valuable information. I have had my boy for 7 years now and he has never like his feet touched or his nails done by anyone. Every vet tech that my vet has and there have been many have clipped him too short on a nail and drawn blood. Even the vets have done it. He is a large doberman with black nails and it’s very hard to see the quick. especially when all 100# of him is pulling his leg back and struggling to get away. I have a very hard time with him and I try not to force the issue. I switched from clippers to a dremel and he seemed a little better at first, but he does not like his feet touched with anything. If I even come close to the sofa to sit with him he gets down because he thinks I’m going to the dremel out. I took him to “a spa day for dogs” at the votech through the high school and sure enough, the teacher showing the kids how to do it really got him. She had blood running down her hand He pulls away while they are trying to cut his nails. I give treats, I try holding him and he just has even leaned back so far that we have both wound up on our backs, which made me laugh to think he can flip me backwards, but he can! I don’t want to hurt him and I don’t want him to fear having his nails trimmed. I am so careful with the dremel I am not even getting them down to even see the quick, but he still hates it. Help!
Thks for this topic….my Malinois is so scared of the clipper….i started on a scratchboard then ordered a Dremel …..looooove my Dremel. To get him used to the Dremels vibration ( and while waiting for my Dremel to arrive from the US) i bought a disposable electric toothbrush and stuck a small patch of sandpaper to the back ….if helped a lot to get him used to the buzz and feel of a grind
Oh I love the idea of the electric toothbrush while waiting !! Good job !! 😀
We always start slow and reward a lot, and my dogs were great with nails… until Tuppy came along. We bred her, and she didn’t have a bad experience. She’s just highly sensitive to everything. I think in her case it is having the nail bed squeezed by the clippers Hubby could get her in a body lock so she couldn’t pull back at the wrong time and hurt herself and I’d do them and give treats but it wasn’t improving, so we’ve switched to a dremel and doing it just me and her unrestrained. Over time she is slowly becoming more steady, and i think chucking treats for her to chase between each toe helps her to go into prey drive instead of being all stiff and afraid, so thanks for that game Susan!
Hi Diane, this won’t help specifically perhaps, but I thought you would be interested as to a potential source. I too have had Dobes since the early 1970s and was told they all hate having their feet touched because they instinctively know it’s the only place they can really be hurt in a fight! My first big male used to be just fine with all kinds of medium and large dogs playing, but would flee tiny dogs who nipped at his feet as pretty much all they could reach lol. So you are bucking a pretty deep-seated protective mechanism. I have always resorted to a cage muzzle just in case and a pro groomer doing the trimming while I hold my guys and speak soothingly. Eventually they do learn it isn’t the end of the world, but never really relax about it. Good luck with yours too. I honestly believe they can’t help the reaction.
What do you do about keeping your dog’s nails under control while going through this process. My dog has never enjoyed having his nails done, but after watching what you did with Tater, I decided to start over to make it nicer for him. We started with IYC of coming to the blanket and laying down. We broke the elements down very similar to how you have it listed above. He is good with all of those now after weeks of work, but as soon as the Dremel head touches the nail he flinches and pulls away. So I am assuming he still needs more time, but his nails are quickly becoming an issue. Cutting them right now seems like it will undo a lot of hard work. Suggestions?
Is the one that is alwSys advertised on face book any good
This is a great article
I have one pup who loves getting her nails done, and when I pick up the dremel even to move it or plug it in, she goes and sits in chair and wait to have nails done. My other pup is a work in progress, she will let me dremel nails while someone feeds her frozen cheese( take longer for her to eat). She is getting better each time, but will try doing in with steps you mentioned, as I want to be able to do it without having to have another person help.Will also share steps with puppy classes I teach. Thanks
THANK YOU for these ideas of how to break down this process. Started it with my Great Pyr and my cat!
Thanks ! very valuable information. I hate feeling like I’m torturing my dog.
My 16 mo sheltie does not like the sound of the dremel. We have no problem cutting his nails, but he goes frantic when I bring the dremel close to his nails. Will straight breaking it down in steps, turn on dremel and try each day to bring it in closer. Will need patience and try not to rush it.
Thank you for another great blog post. I allways like reading your posts, because they are helpful.
I am working on my adoptee with nails. He will only let me trim a couple at a time. I used this same method to brush him. Now I can give him a full brushing and no more growling and attacking the brush. This dog had major issues with any kind of grooming. A year later it is only trimming his nails that we have to accomplish.
I actually have to let my dog file her own nails. I saw on Pintrest where someone glued sandpaper to a board and trained the dog to scratch it. I tried that with my dog, and it worked. Eventually, after treats, she let me hold her back paws to file them on the board, too. Granted, we have to do this frequently than nail-cutting to keep the nails at an appropriate length, but it is so much less traumatic (for both my dog and myself) to trim her nails this way.
My 48kg German shepherd won’t even let me cut my own nails, or my partners, or my other German shepherds nails. He runs up and flicks the clippers out of my hand as if he is protecting us from something that is dangerous or bad. It’s really interesting. I have taken him to 3 vets and they have all returned him and said no sorry can’t do, he’s an under anaesthetic job. I refuse to do that and I refuse to give up.in fact I think going to the vet May have made it worse.
So I play with his feet and tap his nails with things that’s make the same sound, with rewards. And we are making progress. The other day I was able to clip 1 nail. Yippee 🥳. He’s 4 years old. Small steps. But he still won’t let me cut my own nails. He’s a dufas. Thankyou for your video. Kindest regards Debs.
Awesome results Susan. How many months to get that end result?
Thank you for addressing this! I have a 6 month old puppy who doesn’t like nail clipping. My observation is that while we make progress with shaping and building value for the small steps, as soon as he actually needs to have his nails done because they are getting long, we negate our progress and are back at step one again. His nails seem to grow faster than we can progress with the shaping!
i humbly add…one factor thats missing here is root cause. EVERY dog who has had a nail nicked close to the nerve/vessel retains a memory of that degree of pain. WHETHER OR NOT you felt the “whoops, sorry”. could have been someone else who caused it. muscle has memory, tissues have issues. as a physio therapist, this is true in many areas for dogs as well as humans. perhaps the degree of fear response is personal to the dog: sight of the culprit clipper, (multiple bad sessions) scent on you as you approach w even a spoon(a highly triggered dog) isolating a toe, (ill bet its THAT toe that got injured, but he may be generally ok)
my basenji proved this to me. at home, we never had trim issues, easy peasy. at a show once my breeder took a dremel to him, purposefully while i was gone, and i heard blood curdling screaming from the bath room of the arena, my heart stopped knowing this was my very dog, went running& sure enuff… blood, freaked dog. thence, each trim time, he trusted me, yet danced, pulled on the rt hind foot and literally whimpered when i held his 3rd digit. (the injured one.)
i decided to just NOT cut this one. build his confidence back.
the high concentration of nerve is the same as human fingertips, so its justified pain thy deal with. it can zing them for wks. ever lost a nail?
instead, while snuggling and watching TV, i kept a course nail file nearby, and just played around ALL the nails, and then filed the injured one.
it took 2mo. to overcome that experience, or for that nerve to settle down. he previously trusted me explicitly with all his body parts.
i personally think that a dog who is restrained while trimming is forced; be it the vet “in the backroom” or the groomer, have strongest trauma memories. they cud be the ones who freak deepest, earliest. in addition: they can smell your scent and attitude when a session is about to begin, so keep chill yourself? this is susan’s main attribute, in all she does. dogs read this, and respond in kind: with confidence.
nail issues are re-education, re-trust, and security for BOTH dog & handler.
Oh my gosh. I have a friends dog that we have been working with for almost 6 mo. I have yet to figure out which part of clipping or dremeling her nails that sends her over the edge. We’ve broken it down to just touching a clipper to her paw, c/t. (Click/treat) Lifting her paw, c/t. Rubbing her paw, c/t. Turning on the dremel,c/t. Cutting one nail only, c/t. The food appears to over stimulate her. We’ve tried high value, Med value and then kibble. Lickimats with peanut butter, or yogurt, or cream cheese.
The dog will growl and then try to bite even with these break downs. We really don’t want to have to sedate her for nail trimming. Can you offer any other breakdowns we are missing?
Hi Robin, it’s wonderful you are helping your friend. And it sounds like you are doing great at splitting things down. The next step would be to ensure that you are working all the elements in a way that are achievable for her and keep her under threshold to set her up for success. This will allow you to help her change her emotional state about the process. Your goal would be to not see a reaction, and to start far enough back in the process so you can reward her. You might want to consider dropping the clicker while you are working through this, as what we are doing here with nails is creating a new association. Susan’s vlog on Triggers provides great background on our dog’s emotional responses that will help your friend:
https://susangarrettdogagility.com/2019/01/understanding-your-dogs-triggers/
Thanks for this sharing! This was my main priority in the Christmas break. Molly has been with me since she was 8 weeks old so I knew nothing bad happened to her, it was just her not liking it. I worked with her on this every day for 3 weeks, twice or 3 times per day and we are now at the point where the nail clipper is not a problem, she even gives me her front paws. The dremel is work in progress, she’s very sensitive to noises and the change in sound when the dremel touches the nail freaks her out.We’ll get there!
I’ve been working with my 8 mo pup. I play separate the toes by playing this little pig and giving treats and just playing. This gives me some other ideas that I an help him. The spoon is a great idea. I would have never thought of that!
I taught my boy to scratch his nails on a board with sandpaper that keeps them short. Problem is the back nails, and we are working on shaping so I will be able to use a nail grinder. Love the Casifor- much quieter than a Dremel and rechargable using USB.
I love this video and I don’t own a pet. But I do have to desensitize kids with autism to nail trimming, hair cuts, medical procedures and lots of other things. I use the same procedures to break things down, figure out the “hard parts” and use high rates of practice and reinforcement to help make these common things doable for kids and families. Thank you, Susan!
Our dog screamed like I was killing him with nail clipping – stressful for both of us. Then I got a “dremel” type grinder, with slow introduction and high-value treats after each paw – it is absolutely no problem. He jumps up onto my husband’s arms for his mini-grooming, toothbrushing….and nail grinding.
I too had this problem with my recent recycle. I broke it down with a toothbrush and nail scrub. I too had to work in increments. Knowing I have a lifetime with the animal I simply let him get comfortable with me handling the paw. I was cognizant of how I handled the paws and individual toes. I also know if I clip the nails after a walk in wet or dewy conditions the nails will be softer. This condition is not so stressful for the dog. The toothbrush, warm water, towel, clipper and above average treats is a winning combination. The toothbrush cleans out the nail for a clearer identification of where the quick is. Patience, don’t rush the process nor the dog. You have a life time to get this right. .
Thanks for sharing this, especially some of the intermediate steps. An extended version showing more baby steps would be appreciated by many dogs and owners who are now struggling with nails.
I have had this problem and am dealing just as you suggest. Isolating the steps. Lots of treats when good. I actually do fun things like scratch his ear while the dremel is on sitting close by. I want to add that I have just started filing the nails. He had accepted this and now I can dremel much easier.