Reptile & Amphibian Forums

how do i clip my turltes nails his nails are real long....

I've never heard of anyone doing it. If it's a male they are suppose to be long. I would leave well enough alone.

it comes up now and then as various tortoise zealots think they need to obsess over every issue. It can be done, some use a dremel tool, other wire cutters. But it IS dangerous. You can cut the vein just like with birds and you will likely terrify the turtle. This is to say nothing of the difficulty of getting an aquatic turtle to holds out its feet long enough for you to do the job safely. I think it nearly impossible to do safely. Most importantly, turtles NEED their claws. They use them in courtship, for digging, and for tearing their food. I think its quite lazy, arrogant and foolhardy to think that cutting a turtle's nails so he won't hurt you is a good idea. I fpeople get bothered by the nails they either need to find better ways to hold the turtles or hold them less often or get gloves, or all three. So given all this, i can't find a good reason to cut a turtle's nails, ever.