impossible to clip nails

[lgoulet]

Hi, I have searched on this topic and have not found a satisfactory answer to my problem. Freddie( our 13 year old shepherd husky mix) has since she was a puppy never allowed anyone to clip her nails with a tremendous struggle. she never bites she is just impossible to contain. she has had to have been sedated before to get this done. various vets have tried and have always had to resort to sedation. I do not like doing this ever! But nothing else works. It's so bad our Doberman Rosie, before she passed away would actually trim her own nails. We never had to do it ourselves. Is their some alternative to sedation. She is just to old for this and the nails are a problem.

[GSD]

The way I do it takes a while, but its easy now. I start young obviously and I take the clippers out and when they see it, I give a little treat the first time or two. Then I bring it close to their feet and make them stand still. They know I have a treat, It's small, but I show them and they all love food. No standing still, no treat. Stand still, I mark and treat.

That happens for a couple times, then I make them stand still and grab a paw and hold it. They struggle, nothing happens, the submit and hold still, I give the treat. That happens a couple times, then I make small clips, just the tip of the nail, nothing big and after every clip, they get a small treat.

Within a week of doing the small steps prior to clipping, they are holding still. They struggle more when I clip for a few times, but they learn quick that standing still and getting clipped leads to good things. Now they all stand still and hold up their paws I reach for and don't get anything till all nails are done.

Don't get frustrated, it takes time. With an older dog that hates it as much as yours does, its probably had some bad experiences it needs to get over, at 13 I don't want to say it's too late, but that's a lot of years to undo. Good thing is, dogs can learn at any age.

So, big things you ahve to do, don't get frustrated, and don't make it a "traumatic" experience. Don't lose your temper, don't "force" anything at first. With a normal puppy, I force a few things, just to show them what I expect, but then they don't expect anything so nothing "bad" really sticks. With a 13 year old that obviously views it as a traumatic experience going in, i'd play it safe.

Everything is calm and give it some time. That's all i've got, it works great for me.

[621mum]

GSD - do you have a brand/store rec. for clippers? The ones I have purchased so far have all been eh in quality. The most recent one was nice enough at first but quickly got a burr on the blade and now their nails just catch and fold