Cutting my dogs dew claws

funkyjebus

Hi Folks,

Any advise / input from anyone who's done this themselves would be great.

Have a 7 month old Wheaten terrier and it seems like its time to cut his dew claws. His other nails are fine as he spends alot of time on concrete, etc. Recently though I can see that his dew claws are starting to curl back around, so it's time. I know ideally I should have gotten him used to nail clipping at a young age, but it's always been the one think I fear doing. His dew claws are about 1 maybe 1.5 cm long and black.

So what I would like to know is, how far is the quick from the tip, i.e how far back can I / should I clip the nail this first time.

Also, what happens / should I do if I clip to much and it starts bleeding.

If I cut off the tip up to / near the quick, will the blood vessels retreat back up the nail and if so how long does it take. My point being, to get them down to a managable size, should I take a few mms off every week, or am I best to try take off a much (without getting the quick) as possible the first time.

Much obliged.

This guy isn't going to have a fun weekend by the sound of it!!:P

kildara

You can get clippers with a guide on them to make sure you don't take off too much in one go.
Thats what I use on ours. Its over in about 2 seconds per foot (once you get them still enough!)

You don't have to cut them right back down to the quick. Just take a few mm off them, and repeat in another month or so.

He won't feel anything at all. You will be fine. Once you do it you'll wonder why you ever worried!

Paul91

ahhh! he's a cutie

Paul91

actually - one of the pups has dew claws whcih seem to stick out and look like they may get caught - is it cruel to remove these - wouldn't want him getting them ripped off while playing/running (to be honest i didn't know what they where called till funkyjebus wrote this - so ta for that

kildara

Paul91 wrote: »

actually - one of the pups has dew claws whcih seem to stick out and look like they may get caught - is it cruel to remove these - wouldn't want him getting them ripped off while playing/running (to be honest i didn't know what they where called till funkyjebus wrote this - so ta for that

Our Shar Pei had his back ones only removed, while the Rottie has had both front and back dew-claws removed. Prior to us getting them though. So it might be like docking whereby it must be done while the pups are a few days old.

funkyjebus

Paul91

Enquired about getting this done at the vets, has thinking of getting the little guy neutered and was told it could be done at the same time. But they recommend it as they can get caught and tear or rip off completely.

I would have gone for it if I got him snipped, but we decieded against it after hearing horror stories of anesthetized dogs never waking up:(. I think total price was 200.

But then again, they are probably fine, I can move my guys dew claws in a full 360 and they can come out 45 degrees from his leg and we've never had an issue, except with the cutting them thing above!:eek:

Paul91

our fella is only 11 weeks old - they are quite far up his back legs, just look like they would get caught when he's out and about - will talk to vet when he gets his 12 week injection - ta folks

star-pants

Re: Dew claw snipping, as said there's usually a guide with the snips that show you, so just a few mms will do the trick.

Re: Dew claw removal -- the younger the better, honestly! It's not cruel as I've heard about dogs who's dew claw got ripped off and see it on a cat and yuck yuck!
Got my dog Lilys back dew claw removed when she was 2years old and I'll never forgive myself, such an ordeal (then again I do blame the guy who did the surgery, he told me it was a tiny nick, would heal in no time) it was awful, took so long to heal, hurt her like hell, wasn't bandaged correctly and it stuck to the wound with the blood... the yelps I tell you.

When they're younger, it is just that, a tiny little cut, because they're only small, it's not cruel, it's done when they're pups or if the vet feels they're not walking on the claw enough and it might rip. Apparently purebreds - if you're showing the dog, you're not allowed to have them 'altered', so if they have dew claws, they're to be left on. *shrug*

anniehoo

I cut my dogs dew claws all the time. If its started to curl you'll more than likely be able to take off at least 5mm safely enough. Ive often cut the quick though as its impossible to see on black nails but use potassium permanganate crystals (with cotton bud dipped in water) to stop the bleeding and its fine. Just do little clips instead of a whole chunk straightaway.

funkyjebus

Thanks for the replies folks,

There are two types of cutters, one is scissors like and the other like a guillotine, with the guillotine seemingly being the better of the two (so says the internet). Anyone either agree / disagree?

Also - this one more directed at anniehoo, do you get the potassium permanganate crystals in the pet store or where.

Thanks again guys & girls

anniehoo

I prefer the guillotine style ones as they work with the angle of the nail.

Im not sure where we get the potassium permanganate but ill find out. I suppose have a google for suppliers online. Silver nitrate is another thing that'll do the trick.

funkyjebus

Ah don't worry about it, I'll have a look in the pet store over the weekend, I'm sure they have, it just sounds like something you'd buy in a chemist!

Thanks for the reply - think I'll get me a guillotine one, now you've confirmed.

Thanks again,