Hello, welcome back to the Greenfield Puppies Dog Blog. Today I want to bring you up to speed on something that some people overlook when it comes to a dog’s overall health, a dog’s nails. It is very important that you are keeping an eye on the length of your dogs nails, if left unchecked, they can actually turn back on themselves and puncture the soft pad of a dogs paw. This can cause a dog to come up lame, an infection, or even cause joint problems because of uneven distribution of weight, all over a little nail! The good news is, you can do the job yourself, below I have listed some useful information.

Supplies you will need: Canine Nail Clippers, Styptic Powder. (both available at pet supply stores)

• Warm you dog up to the idea: Cutting your dog’s nails can be tricky, it has to be willing to somewhat cooperate with you during the process, so start out by gentle petting/holding the paw, making them feel secure. Once the dog isn’t giving you to much fight to take the paw away, you are ready to go. Keep in mind that the animal will rarely fully surrender the paw to you, so having a partner to help you hold the paw may be a good idea.
• Be careful of the quick: A dog has a actual vein that runs into its nail, called the quick. With a dog that has light nails, its easy to see, but with a dog that has dark nails, it can be tricky. Make sure that you DO NOT cut into the vein. I was told by a Vet that the quick will recede a little at a time, so you could trim the nails once a week until they are short enough for your liking.
• Oops, I hit the quick!: OK, thats why we mentioned the Styptic powder. Calm yourself, Fido will be okay, it looks worse than it is most times. Apply the powder to the end of the dog’s nail and it should stop the bleeding quickly. Make sure the bleeding has stopped, and keep an eye on your dog for a day or two to make sure no signs of infection are becoming evident.

* I recommend that you ask your Vet to show you how to cut your dogs nails for the first time, just as a precaution.

I hope you find this information useful! You can view our Puppies for Sale here, and thanks for stopping by!