Pedicure Please: 3 Steps To Dog Nail Trimming Or Grooming Success At Home!
Trying to cut a dog’s nails can be one of the most difficult jobs for many dog owners. When I asked who was interested in the topic of consent in dog training for nail trimming on my last podcast episode, there were many comments from people wanting help. So, we’re going through the steps to help everyone clip their dog’s toenails so that all dogs can enjoy a pedicure.
00:00 Teach Your Dog to Love Having Their Nails Trimmed with Pedicure Please
01:44 5 Categories Dogs Fall into Regarding Nail Trims
03:11 Dr. Leslie Woodcock on the Importance of Your Dog’s Nail Length
03:30 How to Tell a Dog’s Nails Are Too Long
04:09 Why Nail Length in Senior Dogs Determines Their Quality of Life
04:38 How Long Nails Impact Dog Posture and Leads to Injury
05:59 The Fallacy of Keeping Long Nails on Sporting Dogs
07:26 How I Used to Cut My Dog’s Nail in the 90’s
07:41 Why I Created the Pedicure Please Program
09:18 3 Steps to Shaping Your Dog’s Love of Nail Trims
09:54 Creating a Positive Conditioned Emotional Response to Trimmers/Dremels
10:05 Teaching a “Game On” Position for Dogs to Offer Consent
10:36 The Right Way to Trim a Dog’s Nails
10:48 My 3x3 Approach to Creating a Positive Conditioned Emotional Response to Nail Trimming Tools
14:44 How Dogs Show Signs of Consent or Displeasure in the Game On Position
22:00 How to Build a Scratchboard to Keep Your Dog’s Nails Short
In the episode you'll hear:
• The 5 categories of feelings dogs can have about nail trimming, from terrified through to love.
• About the importance of trimmed nails for our dog’s health and longevity.
• What my friend Dr. Leslie Woodcock shared about toenails and posture, and wellbeing for geriatric dogs.
• How I used to cut nails and what my dog Twister experienced.
• Why I developed Your Dog’s Pedicure Please Program.
• The three stages of cutting your dog’s nails: CER, Game On, and Trimming.
• About creating a positive conditioned emotional response for clipping nails.
• How to condition positive emotions to the sight and sound of nail clippers, Dremel or another pet nail grinder.
• Why you want a “game on” position and “game off” indicator so your dog shows you consent.
• How to keep your dog’s nails short while you are working on them saying “yes!” to a pedicure.
Resources:
Get Your Dog’s Pedicure Please Program - dogsthat.com/product/pedicure...
Podcast Episode 106: Consent In Dog Training: The Misuse, Misunderstanding And Misapplication - • Consent In Dog Trainin...
Video Blog with Dr. Leslie Woodcock: Cutting Your Dog’s Nails: How Important Is It Really? - susangarrettdogagility.com/20...
Susan’s Favorite Dremel and Nail Clipping Equipment - dogsthat.com/favs/#tve-jump-1...
Susan on Instagram - / susangarrettdogsthat
KZhead Video: Target Stick Training Part One - • Susan Garrett's Target...
KZhead Video: Target Stick Training Part Two - • Susan Garrett's Target...
Learn the ItsYerChoice Game - recallers.com/iycsummit-join/
Video Blog: Help! My Dog Hates His Nails Cut ... What Do I Do? - susangarrettdogagility.com/20...
Video Blog: Proactive Conditioning for Dog Nail Trimming Success - susangarrettdogagility.com/20...
Video Blog: This! One is About Conditioning the Dremel for Puppy Nails - susangarrettdogagility.com/20...
P.S. Subscribe to our KZhead Channel so you get notifications of new videos!
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Dogs That is brought to you by Susan Garrett and the Say Yes Dog Training Team.
Susan Garrett’s interest in animal behaviour started at the University of Guelph where she earned a Bachelor of Science majoring in Animal Science. Since then she has developed into a preeminent dog trainer and canine sports instructor and competitor. Susan is one of the most successful agility competitors of the last three decades. She has won multiple Gold Medals at National or World Championship events with every dog she has ever owned over the past 30 years.
A natural teacher and an entertaining speaker, Susan is world renowned as a leading educator of dog trainers. Her understanding of how to apply science-based learning principles to both competitive and family pet dog training has been pivotal in changing how dogs are trained.
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Start Your Dog’s Pedicure Please Program today for only $19.97: dogsthat.com/product/pedicure-please/
Near the end of the 4 months, will there be an offer to extend to the 1 year enrollment ($10 additional)? I may be getting another dog. And I can use the extra time to digest everything, lol. P.S. I forgot to say that I was also an Agility Nation+ student. And, I so love all of SG's free courses/PDFs -- I share them on to less experienced dog folks and dog FB groups. SG is amazing!!
Any ideas?
I just wanted to take a minute to share that I was able to apply the principles here to our 12 year old cat Toby, who didn't need a nail trim but he needed to be able to tolerate handling by the veterinarian for a bad ear infection and blood work. He was so terrified at his visit that he had to come back another day for sedation to have both done. (He growled and snarled, and did not allow any exam.) After the sedation, he was to return for a re-check in two weeks, then 2 weeks later for another blood draw to evaluate the effects of his new thyroid medication. I couldn't stand the thought of another sedation, so my husband and I began a twice daily program of spreading out a small towel (that he already likes because it's been in his crate where we've been feeding him to help him feel positive about travel) onto a small table, where I would cuddle him and my husband would peer into his ears while brandishing an implement, and then tourniquet his leg with a rubber band and apply pressure with a pen or a chop stick, etc to simulate the blood draw. This was immediately followed by a spoonful of his favorite food. We moved the table to various locations around the house over the weeks. We noticed him being more and more amenable to the whole process and we got encouragement when he aced his ear exam two weeks later, allowing the vet to do a very thorough exam, and then feeling confident enough to eat when I pulled out his food. So, the next two weeks we focused more on the blood draw aspects of it, and yesterday I took him to the vet. Hallelujah! He happily sat on his little towel and willingly let the vet apply the tourniquet and draw a large vial of blood. He ate a little bit right afterwards, as well. The vet said he was like a different cat, and asked more for more particulars about what we had done, saying she was going to suggest it to other clients. This whole positive emotional response concept is a game changer!
Ann, so wonderful!! How awesome for Toby, and you, and your vet!! Congratulations and thank you for your love and dedication to help Toby.
I followed Susan Garrett’s pedicure please Program to teach my Golden Retriever Puppy cooperative care to allow me to trim her nails with a Dremel. We went slowly with Susan’s program. I listened to my puppy every step of the way. Within six weeks, at five months old, she voluntarily flops on her mat and lets me trim her nails. Her ‘game on position’ is head down. When she lifts her head, I stop. Typically she puts her head back down and we continue. She absolutely loves the sound of the Dremel. Dremel sounds in her world mean cooked chicken! Thank you for such a wonderful program Susan!
@horsefun0422 super going, thank you so much for a wonderful note 💜
OMG! I am over the moon today….my 9 month old Golden Retriever gave me permission to clip his nails and trim his toe fur today!! This is my fourth large dog( third Golden) and I’ve never had issue grooming before, but this guy was “ reluctant “ today the least and similar to Tater Salad! I’ve taken him to a groomer twice with hopes of some conditioning, but in hindsight it may have worsened him, as he was eventually diagnosed with elbow dysplasia and possibly having pain when grabbed. I began “shaping” him about 3 weeks ago, with my many purses/ buckets and containers full of uninteresting stuff. I also consistently played itsyerchoice with him, and laying flat was fun! This past few days, I could manage a quick snip of one nail, then two and this morning three. I was encouraged! After his walk we played again and voila! Got them all done, fur trim and was even permitted to touch a few nails with the dremel( new for us)! I am so thrilled!! Thank you, thank you!!!
@rhondajanes7839 thank you so much for your dedication for helping your boy, and for your wonderful update 💚
I love that tater is both the hate example and the love example
Thank you Susan
This program totally works. My dog is ascending from "like" with "love" on the horizon. Working on going from "tolerate" to "like" with toothbrushing. So worthwhile. 🍪🍪🍪🍪🍪
Love your videos, I appreciate that you take the time to train us humans😅❤❣️🫶
Thank you! ❤️❤️❤️
Your training style is fantastic Susan. I am so pleased I have found you, your knowledge and advice is really helping me understand animal behaviour, so I can become a better dog owner. Thank you for your generosity in sharing your knowledge, skills and wisdom. I hope I can successfully transform your advice into applied skill when my puppy arrives.
I followed Susan Garrett's Pedicure please program to teach my yellow lab with amazing results!
This works
I'm a groomer. Very often I spend hours to train the dog to accept the clipper (no charge!). Some owners to save $10 decide to clip the nails at home. Mess it up, come back, and I have to start from square one. Frustrating!!😔😔😔😔
Such great information, wish I knew this sooner. Plus you make it sound so easy. Thank you
Brillant! All the baby steps well described and explained, will watch again and take notes! Thanks so much for your content, your videos are so helpful!
Thank you - I was looking for the angle of the cuts.
That's a great video with some great information. Would really love to see a video on the process that you mention at the end
Thank you. I used to have for my dogs "The S'paw' Experience" for my dogs. Somewhere along the line that all has fallen apart. Now that I have a Border Collie, he isn't impressed at all. He finally got to the "OK, I will tolerate it" until I nicked a quick with only 2 more nails to go. It got ugly after that. I was so mad at myself. He still loves me. I signed up for Pedicure Please and will work on my skills as Conditioning what I want until my boy is relaxed and giving me what I want. I am so ashamed. I hope I will learn my lessons.
I must take the time to thank you for sharing this good information. I try and do my dogs but this information helps so much with more skill on my part.❤
Thanks so much for sharing this. Lots of people (and their dogs) struggle with nail trims. Mine tolerate trims but I'm going to work to get a better CER to make it that much easier to keep nails nice. Thanks again!
Amazing! Thank you so much! I have a puppy and want to start off on the right foot with her nail trimming!! (no pun intended) She is definitely tolerant but I want to make it more than that! I am excited to get started!
You are so generous, what a price and so worth it but of course I'm a Recaller so it is part of it so forgot to be doing this and honestly, I'm scared of hurting them so scared to start but pushing myself to do it. Again you are so Awesome ❤️❤️❤️❤️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I went for the pedicure program. I've been looking for a way to support your work that isn't a significant upfront cost. If you do a KZhead membership program, I'd probably do that too. Thanks for all that you do, Susan!
My dog is not liking clippers ... so I bought a smaller type to just desensitize her [even tho I have several older Dremels from my prior dogs). I'm one of your senior Recallers :). I'm glad I noticed this video when I was looking on your DogsThat site. Thank you for all the great information that you always give to dog owners!! [I'm also an old student from Say Yes to Contacts, your free Shaping Course, Inner Circle, Crate Games DVD & online, and maybe 1 or 2 other courses that I can not bring to mind now.] You are the best!!
Great idea, to buy smaller clippers! We're grateful to have you in our community ❤️ and happy new year!
We are so glad you found the Pedicure Please video. Thank you for being part of our amazing community!
We adopted our beagle cross when he was almost 2 years old and tends to react by squirming and escape - we've only ever taken him to a vet for this. Today I tried to clip one nail and it worked because he was distracted by chicken skin but as soon as he realised... Nope. So I got some more to reward him as I showed the clippers and held his paw. He was so do confused by the fact that there is a scarry situation with rewards and started getting excited running around and barking like he was almost amused! I think the only conclusion and solution is training him to be Moree used to having paws touched and clippers near paws isn't scary, until it doesn't seem to scare him at all? With grand rewards
I bought the program viewing for the whole year. I have 5 dogs and it's going to help me immensely with each one of them. Thank you Susan ❤🍪
Excellent video if your dog is past puppyhood. At three months, my pup has an attention span of .01 second and is still only when sleeping. We'll be at stage one for a long time!
How old were you able to move on? I saw a video of a 6 month old pup relaxing with the dremel and thought the same about my 4 month Vizsla, only time she's still is napping in her crate or chewing on a Kong/bone or bullystick.
Love this Susan. Thanks. My dogs tolerate me doing their nails, but I'm anxious to get them to L♡VE it. Question: I used to do my Dobies nail every two weeks, then I could "hear" him ( on the floor),so went to 1ce a week. Now they seem to grow EVEN FASTER, & I need to do it 2ce a week. Do they grow faster as you trim more often? Yikes!
Thank you for this. One of my dogs is tolerant the other accepts. I'm going to work towards love :) I was wondering how often people do a pedicure on their dogs. I grind every 7 to 10 days. To me it seems that their nails grow back really fast.
This is awesome. Fortunately our dogs tolerated mail trimming but I will look it make it more enjoyable and to add the Drexel. Wondering how this could transfer to baths?!? Our dog has a very negative response to bathing.
My dog Danika accepts me using manual clippers and a nail file like I use on myself, I’m still working with her slowly to be able to use the dremel but keeping her nails short is my current priority so we’ve compromised for now
Loved this presentation. Mostly my lot tollerate the trim but to be honest rearly needed, as pounding the pavement keeps them tidy.
just now viewing the video, hope you see this. Don't make the mistake I did, we lived in the city so with the current two I didn't acclimate them to nail trims. It was fine when they were younger but as they aged and walked slower/shorter distances, it was no longer enough. Learned that lesson!
We cut every 1-2 months. Not enough, he has long nails. Could be much worse, but definitely could be better. My dog is a mix between hating it and tolerating it. He is SO tolerant and so good (with no fear for punishment), but he is scared. His nose leaks, he pants, he has whale eyes, turns away, looks away, mild cowering, lip licking, yawning. It's like a 7 out of 10 on the the fear scale. He's so tolerant, but I hate making him so scared. Counter conditioning the nail trims has been on my list, but on the back burner, but this video definitely reminded me!
I admire Susan and her training methods, as well as her willingness to share her expertise with us. I love my dogs and also believe in the positive training method Susan uses. I would like to order the program, however I notice that it would only be available to me for 4 months. I have multiple dogs that I would be using this for and would want to be able to refer to it without a "deadline". Is that a possibility? Thank you for sharing and thank you for your response,
Hi Jeannie, there's an option for 12 months, and we have many people having success with multiple dogs. If you need help, we'd love to assist and can be reached at wag@dogsthat.com
Thank you for this. My dog hates nail trimming and I hate forcing her to get them done. Ive been working on her getting used to seeing the dremmel but turning it on is where its trouble.
I have the same problem, what I’ve been doing that seems to work even though I have a pretty quiet Dremel but she freaks out when I turn it on. So I researched for the quietest & found one that really is quiet, there’s a low humming sound, it is loud with the plastic cap over the sandpaper wheel so I take it off & it helps a lot with the sound. I also found high seems to be quieter than the low setting. It’s a sound my girl hasn’t heard before so I can have a fresh start. So randomly throughout the day like when I’m brushing my teeth using an electric toothbrush I’ll turn on the nail grinder while the sound of toothbrush is going then keep it running while I finish what I’m doing. I will not look at my dog & pretend i don’t hear anything or that nothing different is happening then I’ll just randomly start walking by her while she’s calm to give her the highest value treats I can find for her. I do that for about 10 minutes after I turn the toothbrush off, I find different scenarios throughout the day like that to turn on the nail grinder for 10 or minutes, then once I turn it off the random treats stop unless we are doing other training but I’ll use different treats. The higher value treat I save for her being calm with the noise. About 2 weeks of doing that I am now able to turn it on near her while I’m touching her. I still haven’t trimmed any nails so I walk her on the concrete for now & she knows how to use a scratch pad so that helps while we keep working on me getting the dremel on her nail’s & actually grinding them at some point. She’s the hardest dog I’ve ever had to get comfortable with nail trimming, I just don’t get it but I’m going her pace because I know in the end it will pay off.
I've never had to trim my dogs nails because he wears them down outside. I never hear them clicking on hard floors. But Im going to teach this for when he has downtime and can't be active or when he gets old. I don't want to try to start this when he's old and needs his nails trimmed. We'll be prepared
It's awesome that you're being proactive about this, great thinking! 💟
I have a Husky/Aussie, 6 yrs old, We've had her 18 months, and the nail trimming is one thing I absolutely feel beaten over. She is clearly the first category. The vet has had to put her under, which messes her up for a day and a bit. We've tried to work with her, but I'm guessing there was a past experience. Oh, and she's not really treat-driven and hates peanut butter! Makes it harder to train for desired responses, unless she's in a mood.
What do you recommend if at any point we cut the quick during a clipping session, and the dog yelps? I've done this, and though my pup's pretty good about grooming, I haven't known what to do in this case. I've feared that it would set her back or ruin the progress made by many desensitization and counter-conditioning sessions. Thank you.
My miniature poodle has started to hate everything grooming related lately. Don’t know what the trigger was, but if you are a poodle, it’s not very cool to hate good health maintenance. So we Building it up from 0 again. Thanks for the inspiration.
Hi, Katy here actually, Justin is my husband. 😅 I am currently in homeschool the dog and I’ve been working on improving the CER for my dogs for the dremel. My two rescues both came with pretty severe fear of nail clipping. I just bought Dremel PawControl Dog Nail Grinder 7760 to upgrade from my Casfuy model, I find the head a bit large for getting the sides of the nail which I’ve read can help with quick retraction. Would you recommend I get a model with a smaller head or is it enough to just trim the end?
How do I do this if I need to have them stand on higher surface as I have difficulty with my body on the floor or twisting
can you share what lick pads you use? I've never seen those, but my girl LOVES all natural peanut butter!
Hi @JerseyDutch, we have the link to the lick pads on our website, along with more of Susan's favorite things: dogsthat.com/favs/#tve-jump-178b1525100
The "life" inside of the nails of dog Lupin (former street dog) are really long, so I can't clip them really. His nails are making sounds on a tiled floor, so they are too long (sometimes he chews his paw-joints). So I started to file them down only 1mm or so every other week, so to "teach" the life inside the nail to become shorter (can't tell if its working already). Is this the right approach? Do you have any other tips/help for this kind of situation? Thank you for the helpful video, esp. for game on training which I will be using for his stretching exercise which need to be done laying down with the head down as well. :-)
I cut and grind my dogs nails every 1-2 weeks, and he accepts it. Not necessarily love, but he does fall asleep sometimes. However, he just tolerates getting his toe fur trimmed (it tickles, so it isn’t his favorite)
I tried this and it works like magic ✨️ Cant believe that my dog who dint even let us touch his paw now lays on his side happily to get his nail trimmed... i also trued same technique with his paw trimmer and that worked tooooo.. Can you also help me know how can i bath my 10month old gsd in tub when he hates having bath.. its soooo difficult to get him inside tub when he is resisting 😅
Hi @Pooja Pednekar, that is so great, big celebrations for you helping your boy! You can use the same foundations for bathing, but create a positive CER for water first. We have a video to help - kzhead.info/sun/osmxg6pljWV7f58/bejne.html
Ollie hates it. I usually take him to get them done at the groomer because the vet tech doesn't use a grinder, they just clip them and then they are super sharp and slice my legs. I have tried, but the nails get hot. I do want to learn to do it correctly and quickly so it's over and we can do it often and get his nails really healthy for him.
Hi Susan, I purchased the Pedicure Please program for my dog. We just made the scratch board. I'm having trouble getting her to scratch on it. When I hide the treats under the cloth, she pulls the cloth off with her mouth and runs away to eat the cloth. Also, can they scratch too much on the board (if I can actually teach her to do that). Her nails are fairly long and the quick has grown out pretty close to the tips.
Hi Terry, thanks for tuning in, and it's awesome you are helping your dog with Pedicure Please! when the cloth is on the ground, really observe for any paw movement and click that. If you are at the stage with the board, try adjusting the placement of the board, the type of cloth etc, to encourage paw movement. Once you start using it, just keep an eye on the nails, and we'd want the sessions shorter rather than longer. Terry, you are very welcome to send us a note to wag@dogsthat.com and our team will help with getting started on the board.
Can list the Dremel that you recommend ?
Hi Dana, you can find Susan's favourite equipment here: dogsthat.com/favs/#tve-jump-17b7f042a43
Can you use this same method with a brush? I can brush my dog with my own hair brush and she is fine with it. But she hates when I brush her with the slicker brush, I always am gentle.
Hi @alishagarcia5150, yes, same for a brush for sure. You can use Pedicure Please in Recallers for grooming with many other members who have overcome similar 💚
I just started a job giving baths and trimming nails at a boardingand day care facility. I'm going to start making not-likely-allergenic treats (oats, banana & peanut butter) of course with owners permission or treats they suppy to start training the dogs I will be working with regularly. Do you have any recommendations for while we work things out.
Congratulations on your new job, Nicolette! It's such a good idea to work on Pedicure Please with your clients, their owners will be pleased. While you go through the steps, you could use a Scratch Board, it's in the video at 22:00. Happy training!
I have a dremel to do the nail clipping. I have tried 5 different types of sanding cylinders, stones etc. Nothing makes a dent on my dog's nails and she's only a pup. Please can you tell me what grinding discs, cylinders, stones you use. I'm being scratched to pieces by a litlle pup with needles for nails. 🤪
Hi @DonandJan Nethercott, there's a diamond bit that might help, we have a list of the gear at this link on our website: dogsthat.com/favs/#tve-jump-17b7f042a43
Susan, my 8-month Lab/GSD pup -- the nails on her back paws are very short, and the nails on her front paws are very long. Any ideas how this can be ?
Hi MB, there could be many reasons including structure, or uneven weight distribution when walking that could have several factors. If you think it's unusual or that the wear on either front or back is not what you would expect to see, then it would be a good question to ask your dog's health care providers.
@@DogsThat This front paws long nails, back paws short nails, seems to have started when pup started jumping down from the top of big boulders, jumping off stone walls, etc. Maybe it's a growth plates issue :/ Yes, I'll see what the vet says. Thank you :)
All of my dogs are like this, it's because they dig in with their back feet when they run/play. I've only ever needed to trip back feet once a year or so.
what Dremel do you use?
Hi! The link to Susan's favourite ones is in the description box under the video, but here it is again for you: dogsthat.com/favs/#tve-jump-17b7f042a43
So is the one that is quiet and you like a lot called the CASFUY can somebody let me know I need one desperately I think it’s at $29 which was great if that’s the one you’re talking about thank you Susan
Hi @watchmoivies123, yes, that's the one! You can see it listed on the page with Susan's favourite gear for nail trimming: dogsthat.com/favs/#tve-jump-17b7f042a43
@@DogsThat oh thanks. Just ordered it
Which dremel is the quiet one?
www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PFCLHKR/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Dana, I got this one a while back. I think it's the one Susan shows in the video. It is so much more quiet than the actual "Dremel". My youngest has been much more accepting of this one which has helped.
Hi Dana, it's the Casfuy Dog Nail Grinder, you can find it here with all of Susan's favourites: dogsthat.com/favs/#tve-jump-17b7f042a43
My puppy was content to have her nails trimmed UNTIL, when she was 7 months old, I accidentally cut one too short, causing a lot of pain and bleeding. Now, at 8 months old, she hides deep in a far corner under the bed when she sees that nail trimmer. In fact, she hides when she senses I am THINKING about the length of her nails. (She can read my mind.) Any suggestions as to what to do?
Sorry this happened MB, and most certainly please know that you are not alone. Starting with CER is a great first step. Hang in there, you can do this!
More proof it works. My guy had little if any handling when I adopted him. It took over a year, but look where we are. I didn't use a scratchboard.I signed up for Recallers. He can also do so much more now. kzhead.info/sun/mr6KcseMmYN9pas/bejne.html