Chihuahua Crossing Forum Closed

WeepadQueen · Senior Chi

How Often?

WeeKidsMom · Senior Chi

Every two weeks here. We do it ourselves. Not all at once, it kills my back. Eveyone reacts differently. Yoshi will lay in my lap and let me cut them, most of the others are not thrilled, but don't argue. Julianna, we have always had to wrap a towel around her head and wear something we don't mind getting dog pee on. She snarls and tries to bite and pees all over the place. The past few times, I've decided to out-ornery her ala the Dog Whisperer.

I'll be darned if it isn't working. She still isn't thrilled but when she knows I am NOT stopping and she's going to be there until we are done, she doesn't bite me any more. I don't always agree with Ceasar, but in this case, calm assertiveness really worked.

Nana_Becky · Senior Chi

I think the black ones are thicker. But I thought it was just Abby. Guess not huh? Roxies are light and they are thinner.I got 3 of hers a little too short the last time. On Abby I just nip the ends and do it about every 2 weeks. If I do it often I don't have to clip much. I can just nip them a little and then file to make them smooth to where they do not scratch us when they get in our laps.

WeepadQueen · Senior Chi

Karen,
When you say calm assertiveness, can you splain it more, I have always held mine like babies in my arm, Back when Maybish was younger, she liked being carried everywhere this way and would hang her head upside down and with her ears, she looked like a bat
If I hold them this way, I can use the hand of the arm I am holding them with to hold the paw I am working on. and the other to cut the nails, mine know that I am not going to stop, they lay there and shiver, but when it is all done, they get lovings galore

Island_Girl · Senior Chi

I agree that the black ones are thicker...all but two of Merries are black, and Mater has two black ones, go figure, lol. I do them myself about every 3-4 weeks, depending. I find that the short coats grow faster...maybe it is just me, i dunno. Misti's always need to be done before the other two, and same with my Moms two sc's. Mom's Chica has rear dew claws too, and they are a bugger to get...but i cheat now and have used people nail clippers turned sideways to get to them and it worked so much better, I couldn't get the claw clippers on them things! Now I just use the nail clippers on all the chi's dew claws (turned sideways so I don't split the claw), and then the claw clippers for the rest. Merrie used to be horrible, now she has given in and lets me do it. I just try and be consistant with taking the same amount off each time. But having black claws, it can be nerve wracking!! Mom's little Lacie....well, I can't do her's, she screams when you get even close to her with the clippers. We have wrapped her in a towel, but she manages to wriggle out. Both my Mom and daughter hold her down, and i try and clip and she manages to maybe let me get 3 claws in 15 minutes...so I gave up!!! And then there is Misti, who stands there looking like I am doing something really horrible to her, but she won't budge, lol...I even clipped to far down and made her bleed, and she didn't budge or wince, so I guess it goes to show that it really doesn't hurt that badly, lol!!

WeeKidsMom · Senior Chi

WeepadQueen wrote:

Karen,
When you say calm assertiveness, can you splain it more, I have always held mine like babies in my arm, Back when Maybish was younger, she liked being carried everywhere this way and would hang her head upside down and with her ears, she looked like a bat
If I hold them this way, I can use the hand of the arm I am holding them with to hold the paw I am working on. and the other to cut the nails, mine know that I am not going to stop, they lay there and shiver, but when it is all done, they get lovings galore

OK, before when Julie would start growling, I would saying NO and trying to dodge her teeth, and Pam would have her in a headlock kind of, and she would be growling and it was INTENSE. And if we got her in a decent position, she would pee on us so we'd move in surprise, and then she would start biting again. So we rolled a towel and wrapped it around her neck and she'd be biting the towel and carrying on. And I'd be saying NO, and trying to calm her. A real circus. Sometimes we'd only get a couple nails done before it was just over the top. And then we'd tell her she was SO good and give her treats.
Now, this is what we do. Pam picks her up. I say hello to her, and that is all that is said. VERY calm. I show her the clippers and start cutting her back toenails. She growls, I ignore her. She snaps, I ignore her. But I don't stop. This is the assertive part. I am in charge of what is going to happen. I will decide when she is done. She will NOT bully me into stopping or doing a nail at a time.
The first time, she was REALLY angry. Peeing, yodeling, and trying to bite for about half the time I was working on her. Then she just kind of gave up the hysterics. When she is DONE, I pat her head, tell her good girl, and off she goes. No big fuss, no cookies. She does not get rewarded for doing what is expected of her any more. The last time we did nails, she muttered under her breath a bit but that was it. No peeing, no biting, just the stink eye. LOL Seven years of getting bitten so this was a MAJOR breakthrough for her.
Next up, a bath. I'm not looking forward to trying to wash her and not get bitten so we haven't done it yet.

WeepadQueen · Senior Chi

Sounds like you found a cure for the toenail part of it.. Good job!!

WeepadQueen · Senior Chi

Becky, what do you use to file them?

Eren · Adult Chi

I do mine about once a month, most of them are fine, but Money HATES to have his nails done. He has super sensitive feet! If it is too cold outside sometimes I have to go and rescue him because he freezes up,not literallyLOL! I am thinking about getting one of these http://www.peticure.com/ and see how it works. We have never cut a quick on him or hurt him in anyway, his little tootsies are just super sensitive. Take a look at this and tell me what ya all think of it...or if you have seen it before.

WeeKidsMom · Senior Chi

I had a Dremel dog file like that. They hum a bit and vibrate. If you have a dog that is already weird about nails, good luck with that. Mine got used twice and it's in a drawer somewhere. I know some people that LOVE them, but I think you'd have to start off as pups or spend hours getting them used to it.

Stacey · Best Dressed Duo - 3rd Place Win

Corona's need to be done about once a month. I have been doing it myself... but the vet did it last time when she was out for her surgery and I've decided Im going to see if the groomer down the street will do it. C-Dog puts up SUCH a fight, screaming and twisting, and I have no one around who can help me.

Nana_Becky · Senior Chi

WeepadQueen wrote:

Becky, what do you use to file them?

Ellen, I use one of those black nail files with a really course grit to it like they use when you have nail tips put on. It takes a lot less time than an emery board. And I guess if you used it every week a little you would not have to clip as often. I had thought about one of those little dremel tool looking things but I hate to spend the money and then the dogs freak out about it and it be money lost.

WeeKidsMom · Senior Chi

Nana_Becky wrote:

WeepadQueen wrote:

Becky, what do you use to file them?

Ellen, I use one of those black nail files with a really course grit to it like they use when you have nail tips put on. It takes a lot less time than an emery board. And I guess if you used it every week a little you would not have to clip as often. I had thought about one of those little dremel tool looking things but I hate to spend the money and then the dogs freak out about it and it be money lost.

Becky, I have a friend that SWEARS by her Dremel and she has mostly rescue dogs. You would think they would be the least accepting of something like that. They are all fine, one dog even sleeps in her lap.
My dogs? Once that thing touched their nails, they acted like I was holding a butcher knife, not a file. And some of them were so upset by the sound, we never even got to touch a nail. I'm sure I could have pinned them down and insisted, but it just wasn't worth it to me. If I find mine, I'll send it to you to try. It may have gotten tossed in a garage sale though.

-- Edited by WeeKidsMom at 14:08, 2008-03-09

Island_Girl · Senior Chi

Yeah, I too have a nail drill for my acrylics, and it is basically the same thing a dentist uses in your mouth. When you turn up the speed, it sounds like a dental drill, so I don't know what most pups would think of it, besides the people in your house that don't like going to the dentist, lol. I havn't tried mine on my chi's. I don't think the noise would bother them as they have been hearing me run it every so often when I do my nails since they came home with me, but I don't imagine they would like the feeling.
My longcoats never look happy when I am clipping their paw fur, I am always afraid I am going to clip their pads by accident!! I haven't btw, they actually lay fairly still, and I get my daughter to pet them and we talk to them at the same time to distract them. But darn they look so cute when they are finished with their manicures!! Especially Mater with his liitle handsome boy paws looking all spiffy, lol!!

WeepadQueen · Senior Chi

I have one of those rotating nail filer buffer things for me. I was using it last night and Izzy is always running up wanting to see what it is, so I flipped her over and used it on a couple of her nails, she seemed fine with it.. Not sure about sharing my grooming tools with the dogs though, they run about 10 bucks, I think and these little pooches do not need the high powered thing anyway

Nana_Becky · Senior Chi

WeeKidsMom wrote:

Nana_Becky wrote:

WeepadQueen wrote:

Becky, what do you use to file them?

Ellen, I use one of those black nail files with a really course grit to it like they use when you have nail tips put on. It takes a lot less time than an emery board. And I guess if you used it every week a little you would not have to clip as often. I had thought about one of those little dremel tool looking things but I hate to spend the money and then the dogs freak out about it and it be money lost.

Becky, I have a friend that SWEARS by her Dremel and she has mostly rescue dogs. You would think they would be the least accepting of something like that. They are all fine, one dog even sleeps in her lap.
My dogs? Once that thing touched their nails, they acted like I was holding a butcher knife, not a file. And some of them were so upset by the sound, we never even got to touch a nail. I'm sure I could have pinned them down and insisted, but it just wasn't worth it to me. If I find mine, I'll send it to you to try. It may have gotten tossed in a garage sale though.

-- Edited by WeeKidsMom at 14:08, 2008-03-09

Aww thats so sweet . Thanks Karen. You are a

WeepadQueen · Senior Chi

this thing I got at walmart in the nail polish section I used it on my regular nails, it is small and cheap, and Karen, if you find it that would be great,
I like the idea of the regular clippers on the dew clawes, least you could see what you were doing

Island_Girl · Senior Chi

Yeah, the regular clippers definately work way better for me. Chica's rear ones are soooo hard to get ahold of with the dog clippers, I was so afraid of clipping her little toe things the claw grows out of, and with the regular clippers, I can totally see what I am doing and they work quite well. I just got tired of having to try and clip my LC's dew claws too with all the fur around them and by the time I got the claw in the darn clipper, they had wriggled back out again. UGH!

WeepadQueen · Senior Chi

Yes, I am so scared of clipping the skin there at the dew claws and the ones on the back legs are super tricky... I know when you mess with them too much trying to get the clipper around them, they have to get sore..
Maybish tore one of hers out one time on an afgan I had on the back of the couch, those are all put away now