Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I need some advice about trimming my shiba's nails.

We've always used a dremel once a week. The breeder used a dremel, so it's all he's ever known. My husband holds him and I trim the nails. I'm very careful. I rarely hit the quick. When I have, I've only seen a tiny dot of blood. Of course I put Quikstop on it right away.

The problem is that our dog is getting more dramatic. He kicks, screams and wiggles as much as possible. It's taking us longer to get his nails done.

This week we figured out that the sound of the dremel is freaking him out more than anything else. How we get him to calm down and be more comfortable with the sound of the dremel and the whole process?

Thanks

Shiba's as we know can be real drama queens at times. What I would do would be to have him in your lap with the dremel. Let him sniff it... lick it... whatever he wants to do. Once the curiousity is over turn it on then off again and see what the reaction is. If things are okay then turn it back on for a little longer then off again. Don't put the dremel to his nails at this time. Keep building up the time you can leave it on. If he runs away let him... don't make a big deal of it and then try again later. Once he is used to the noise... put the dremel to his foot so he can feel the vibration then take it away and do it again. It may seem like it takes a long time to get him used to it but once done you shouldn't have a problem. Also keep in mind... a Shiba is one breed that simply doesn't like their feet touched.

As for me... I still use clippers and did all 54 at one time... then I used the dremel just to smooth and fine tune.
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If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.

How often do you do their nails?

How short do you go? We try to get them short enough that Nix can walk silently across a hardwood floor. That usually only lasts for a day.

I do them every three to four weeks which seems to work. Since all of the dogs have light colored nails it's easy for me to see the quick but I have nicked them before. When I'm done they walk pretty silent though there may be a click here or there. What they say is the more frequent you do them the quick tends to recede so the nails can get shorter. I have done the dogs nails before and have my vet say not to go any shorter... I suppose so they don't injure them on their own.
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If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.