Puppy nails

I had the Peticure which I was happy with while Bacca was still young and his nails still underdeveloped. But as he grew and his nails got tougher, I found the product underpowered and heated up too much. It took me forever to to the boys' nails.

So I bought the Dremel Stylus and I absolutely love it! No more clippers ever! It's very compact and fits nicely in my hand, so I've got complete control. I trim the pups' feet first to remove all the fur (this is the big draw of the Peticures....the little hole that you stick the claw into so it doesn't grab fur....easily dealt with). And since you go at each nail gradually, you can monitor how close you are to the "quick"

It's got up to 10 speed variations so you can go slow or fast. I tend to start fast to get most off, then switch to slow speed to round out. Because of the design, it's super-easy to round out the nails and not leave jagged edges.

Yes, it cost me $90 Cdn but it was the best investment I ever made - even better than the CC brushes!

A tip, I heard, still unproven...is to rub hemorroid cream on your pups nails before clipping/grinding. Apparently it causes the quick to withdraw so that you can get the nails even shorter. I've never tried it myself, but wonder it any else has?
 
BarbV said:
A tip, I heard, still unproven...is to rub hemorroid cream on your pups nails before clipping/grinding. Apparently it causes the quick to withdraw so that you can get the nails even shorter. I've never tried it myself, but wonder it any else has?
Click to expand...

You try it first, Barb. :lol::razz: Let me know if it works.
 
I tried and tried the Peticure/Pedipaws on Megan and she is terrified of it still :eek2:. Is the Peticure different from Pedipaws?

Where can you purchase a Dremel Stylus and is it loud like the others, cause the sound is what scraes Megan :uhoh:
 
Smudge said:
You try it first, Barb. :lol::razz: Let me know if it works.
Click to expand...


Yes please try it first so the less experienced like myself can try after you've tried:winkgrin:.

Some of Megans nails are light enough for me to see the quick, others are black so I just barely nick the tip of those nails. I know I don't cut short enough, but when I have tried I get the quick on accident and of course she yelps, which is awful :no:
 
Megansmom said:
I tried and tried the Peticure/Pedipaws on Megan and she is terrified of it still :eek2:. Is the Peticure different from Pedipaws?

Where can you purchase a Dremel Stylus and is it loud like the others, cause the sound is what scraes Megan :uhoh:
Click to expand...

I would do some pricing of it.Check amazon,Sears,home depot,Lowes,Harbor Freight.
 
Megansmom said:
I tried and tried the Peticure/Pedipaws on Megan and she is terrified of it still :eek2:. Is the Peticure different from Pedipaws?

Where can you purchase a Dremel Stylus and is it loud like the others, cause the sound is what scraes Megan :uhoh:
Click to expand...

We taught the puppies to love the petipaw by laying it next to them and treating the heck out of them. If the noise is bothering her, run the battery down a bit.
 
Thanks for starting this thread. It's great to hear all the things people use/do.

Barb, question for you regarding the dremel (or anyone who uses it). Koji tends to pull his feet away a lot. I hate using the clippers on him because this is how I get too much and he's a bleeder (thank gawd almost all his nails are white). Miko's good, would put up with the noise and am thinking of this route, because all his nails are black. My questions: would it be easier to use, than clippers, even though Koji likes to yank his feet away? How often do you need to buy new sandpaper thingy's?

My hubby is replacing the blade on my guillotine clippers today. And I have to cut Koji's nails every week. I so needed this thread. hehehe.
 
Ok, I'll try to address a bunch of questions in one reply

1) Where to buy a Dremmel. It's not actually a grooming device - its used for woodworking, actually, so you get it at a hardware store - Lowes, Home Depot etc. However, if you go on the Dremmel website, I actually found instructions once for how to use a Dremmel on your pet's nail (I'll have to try to find it again)

2) The Dremmel 1100 is actually quieter than a Peticure or Pedipaws. Partly because its just so much better quality. So the noise is less irritating to the pup.

3) Getting the pup used to getting nails dremmeled is a gradual process. I started it when I was still using the Peticure. I started with sitting on the floor with the device in front of me. Let the pup sniff at it. Pretty boring. Then I would just touch the device to the pup, not turned on, as if I was doing his nails, but not actually doing anything. Hold the paw loosely to start, and gradually increase pressure.

Then I turned it on behind my back. The next step was turn it on and touch it to his body (not the top, just the motor), to get him used to the vibration. Finally, the nail. One second blast on each nail to start, gradually increasing time per nail, though generally not more than 3 to 5 seconds per nail (it does heat up). It usually takes me 2 to 3 times around each paw to finish the trim.

4) Gripping the paw....I found that with the dremmel, if I trimmed the fur around the paw first, I did not have to grip the nail tight to "push" out the nail. A firm hold is all that is required. Bacca hated to have his nails clipped. He didn't like his paw gripped, and he did not like the feeling of the nail being pulled.

5) Hitting the quick is far less likely with a grinder. Because it's gradual, you have time to see how close you are getting. I've never hit the quick using a grinder, but if you do, it won't be as painful as that "snip". Ideal for those "dreaded black nails"

6) I dremmel about every 2 weeks. I would prefer to do it more often, but don't always have time. One thing to know: The more often you trim nails, the faster the quick recedes, and the closer you can trim. The quick grows at the same rate as the nail itself. If you leave it too long between trims, you might never get the quick to recede back far enough to get the nails short enough.

7) As for the hemmoroid cream....it can't hurt! I just haven't bothered with it. So if any of you have pups with longish nails, you can give it a try. Logically, it makes some sense.

Hope this helps!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top