Clipping nails... (vet, black, train, noise)

[*Danielle*]

Our new puppy has black nails. I have clipped several past dog's nails but they were always pink/white. So I could easily tell where to cut...Is there anyway to tell where to cut the nails when they are black? I don't want to hurt him and I am so scared to cut his nails. I have had him in my lap with clippers out twice and I get too nervous.

Any advice? Should I just take him somewhere to get it done?? Will a groomer just clip his nails or will she think I am nutty?

[mytimenow]

I agree, its a little scary if your dog has black nails. I just take the very tip off -- I'm basically a big chicken and would probably never get over feeling guilty if I hurt my little pal. Groomers are fine with just coming in for a nail clipping.

[Viralmd]

I HIGHLY recommend using a Dremel tool (get the rechargeable, cordless kind). My pug, with black nails not only is hard to see, but is NUTS when I try to clip his nails. The Dremel works exceptionally well! Follow the directions in this post:

How to Dremel Dog Nails @ DoberDawn.com

and you can train your dog to lie quietly while you do his/her nails. And, remember, you don't have to do ALL the nails in one sitting. One a day, as they get used to this is fine!

[Katie1]

Groomers dont mind Just Clipping nails...there is a charge for it. But they could also show you how to do it. Katie has a black nail on each paw...so I clip them the same lenght as the others.

[Blondie621]

I would let the vet do it, maybe! I did have a bad experience with my little white deaf pit at the vet. The vet cut all her nails on one foot tooo short. There was blood everywhere, even on the walls and the dog was screaming like someone was killing her. I can imagine the pain she felt! Patients in the office were coming to the room to see what the heck was going on. This went on for 20 minutes. My poor dog freaked. They then could not keep her still to get the Quickstop on each nail.....never again.....my poor deaf Lyla. What she went thru with that! It was sooo tramatic for her and I was freaking out too!

[Viralmd]

The reason I like the Dremel is that you're essentially GRADUALLY SANDING the nail. No blood, no pain, no struggles!!!

[Sam I Am]

Danielle-

Way back in the day when we had puppies, we had one door they came in and out. My husband would attach "buttons" of sandpaper across the steps - not big chunks that would hurt their pads, just about quarter sized. It was on a covered back porch. Occasionally they would hit their nails on the paper and it kept them somewhat trimmed down. I'm not a puppy person and that was more years ago than I care to remember, but it DID work. Sort of the same effect as with the dremel. There's something called Peticure out now, a protected dremel. You might look into that. There were some shipping problems when it first came out, I don't know if those have been worked through, but you might Google it and see what the reviews say about them now.

[MAK802]

We use the Dremel too and love it.

Our neighbor's dog has black nails, and if you look at the bottom of the nail, you might see a color difference, so you know how far to cut. It's almost as if his nails are reversed. Some (not all) black-nailed dogs have a different color on the bottom, so you might be able to tell where the quick is by looking at the bottom of his nails. But I do highly recommend the Dremel.

This might help as well:

"If your dog has black nails, it may be difficult to locate the quick. So, instead of making a large cut, make several small cuts with your clipper. This way, you can avoid the quick (Your dog will thank you for that!) Continue making small cuts until you see a black dot appear toward the center of the nail. That is the start of the quick. Stop trimming when you see the quick."

[SD snowbird]

We have a golden retriever, nails are not black, but I use one of those thick nail files that women use for their nails and salons have for doing acrylics. Titan has gotten used to laying quietly once a week and letting me file each nail down at the tip. Works great for us. I don't think he'd let me use the dremmel because of the noise it makes, hates noises like that.

[titaniummd]

I have a Peticure (like a Dremel) and just round out the nails. It is well tolerated by our dog.