How can I calm him down safely?

March 22, 2008 1:20 PM

Our Pit Bull refuses to have his nails clipped.

My boyfriend is the nth owner of our lovely 2y/o pit bull, Rocky. In the year or so that he's owned him, his nails haven't been clipped once. I suspect it's putting uncomfortable pressure on his 'toes'. Not only that, but it really hurts if he jumps up excitedly on us.

He is generally well behaved, and not violent at all- he'll offer a paw when asked, but he will NOT let you hold it. As soon as he suspects it's clipping time, he becomes extremely agitated, to the point where neither of us are willing to risk pushing him.
I would not even trust him with a professional groomer- that's how defensive he gets.

Is there anyway we could subdue him a bit in order to get this done? We've tried relentlessly to make him happy and comfortable with his paws being handled (gently even!).

(Please no angry backlash)- but I'd really like to know if there's anyway we can safely drug him to calm him down. Any other suggestions are definitely welcome though.

posted by sunshinesky to Pets & Animals (21 answers total)

Why not bring him to groomer? They have a harness-type contraption designed to hold him safely while they do this.

Drugs are complicated. They don't have only one effect and the effect varies from one subject to another. It might sedate him but also make him more irritable and it would end up being more difficult/dangerous to trim his nails.. I think using drugs would be overkill in this case.
posted by winston at 1:26 PM on March 22, 2008

I don't know about drugging him, but I play fetch with my dog on concrete - all the running and sliding to catch the ball really files them down nicely. I've had him for 9 months and haven't had to trim them once.
posted by blackkar at 1:28 PM on March 22, 2008 [1 favorite]

Your vet can do this for you. And your vet is the best person to suggest what the best alternatives might be if a normal approach to nail clipping just ain't going to fly. Your vet is also least likely to sue you should your dog go postal despite everyone's best efforts.
posted by DarlingBri at 1:45 PM on March 22, 2008

blakkar has a good idea. Expanding on that find the public tennis courts , go when no one is there to play, rainy days play catch/frisbee. The fenced area will keep pup under your control and the grit on the surface will act as a nail file. But be careful of the pads.. too much, too soon and the paws will get damaged. Do this regularly and your pup will get good exercise and grind down those nails.
posted by Agamenticus at 1:54 PM on March 22, 2008

Our beagles HATE having their nails trimmed. One of them cries so much that the neighbors have come over to see if she's ok, while the other one simply bites whoever is closest if she can't get away. We've found that the easiest thing to do is simply take them to the vet every few months. They charge only 10 dollars and the ease of it is definitely worth it. If your dog is anything like ours, he'll be so freaked out by the vet office that he'll be submissive enough to let them poke him wherever they please. [After all, who else could stick a themometer up... well, you know where. ]
Besides saving us all the hassle, our dogs seem to be a lot more at ease with us petting them or getting things out of their paws. They know WE won't be the ones "hurting" them, so they're a little bit calmer.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do!
posted by shesaysgo at 2:18 PM on March 22, 2008

Two possible drug solutions to sedate your dog:
1. Benadryl
2. 'Acepromazine' (vet prescribed)
posted by acro at 2:24 PM on March 22, 2008

Bring him to the vet, they'll muzzle him and do it safely. My 75-lb dog screams like he's being killed while it's being done, but with the muzzle and a proper hold he can't hurt himself of anyone else.
posted by Mr Bunnsy at 2:33 PM on March 22, 2008 [1 favorite]

He's probably been quicked before. My old dog was always OK about her nails until the vet quicked her. Since then it's been easier to have the vet clip her because, while she will let you clip them, she attckes you immediately afterwards with her razor-like freshly-clipped claws.
posted by fshgrl at 2:58 PM on March 22, 2008

I echo blakkar's suggestion. My dog, a mini poodle, would pull at the beginning of every walk out of excitement, and although the pulling isn't great behavior, he was small enough that it wasn't a big problem and the pulling action did a good job keeping his nails filed, over time.

The vet is a great option too, especially if you don't have a groomer who you can trust. The vet is our method now that our dog is older and not as vigorous on his walks.

Drugging I would recommend as a last resort, and you probably feel the same way. The nail cutting is an extremely short period of time relative to the length of the effects of the drug I'm familiar with (valium). Your vet can give you the pros and cons specific to your dog's breed, size and temperament.

It sounds like you have probably already done this - but if I were you, I'd also try relating nail cutting to something positive for the dog. Such as, immediately after getting clipped, he gets a fantastic treat and a lot of love from you. (Maybe even do this during the clipping, after each nail?) IANAE and it might be that this is too traumatic and infrequent an event for it to work, but the best case would be that he begins to understand that although the clipping sucks, he's got a great thing coming up afterwards, and that might make him more eager to cooperate.

Along the same lines, you could try disassociating from nail clipping the things that trigger his anxieties. You have already started this by trying to handle his paws gently outside of the context of nail cutting. How else does he "know" it is nail clipping time?

For example, if the clipper triggers anxiety, I would put it out in the house so it is visible to the dog all the time. I'd pick it up, move it, play with it, put it back down never having made a move towards the dog with it. Eventually it becomes normal for it to be around and for me to pick it up. Then I'd work on bringing it close to the dog, but not touching or clipping. Then, once comfortable with that, I'd work on touching it to his nails, but no clipping. Then, putting his nails in the clippers without actually clipping. Eventually I'd clip his nails, but as long as you don't quick him, it shouldn't hurt.

Again, I'm no expert, but this combined with treats and praise might make a big difference if you are patient and move very slowly. (and, go backwards one stage if he doesn't respond well to one of them, until he's ready.)

Also, if I were you, I would check myself to make sure that I am relaxed and happy during the entire event. Dogs sense and respond to fear, tension, uncertainty, and that can make a bad situation worse.

Long post - sorry :) It's not an easy problem but your dog is lucky to have you. You obviously care a lot about his comfort and wellbeing. Good luck!
posted by inatizzy at 3:22 PM on March 22, 2008

My dog is another of those city dogs who gets his nails filed by concrete, but if I had to calm my dog, I'd try Rescue Remedy before more medical approaches. I also have friends who file their dogs' nails with a dremel tool, which they seem to hate less than clippers.
posted by judith at 3:32 PM on March 22, 2008

My 10lb dog COMPLETELY freaks out with hair cuts. The moment the scissors come within two inches of her body she becomes jumpy, bite-y, and scream-y. It's quite unpleasant, and turns the job into a 3-hour-long ordeal. And don't even think about using electric clippers. I tried some training with the scissors - bringing them within her sight but not using them on her, giving her treats, much like what inatizzy talks about, but as calm as she was though all of that, the moment the scissors toughed her hair she would freak out.

I didn't want to inflict this kind of behavior on a groomer, and was afraid of the cost of an unmanageable dog. I talked to the vet about it, and we got some tranquilizers. I give her some drugs, wait until she can no longer walk in a straight line (about 30-45 minutes), and then I give her a haircut. No screaming, no scratching, no kicking, no biting. The only negative side-effect is all of the farting. Hoo-boy, the farting.

Despite all of the farting, those tranquilizers are our salvation. I only cut her hair four-ish times a year so a small bottle of pills last a while. And watching her walk around in a stupor is pretty hilarious.
posted by rhapsodie at 3:38 PM on March 22, 2008

I think that you're going to be able to fix his apprehension about getting his nails clipped with a little easy (and pretty fun for both of you) training.

Here is a pretty good video showing a trainer fixing a dog's nail trimming aversion (the actual training starts at about 3:00),

And this is a pretty good description of what to do, Nail Trimming Made Easy:

Most dogs are not great at having their feet handled and for many, actually trimming their nails can be out of the question. Handling a dog's feet from the moment you take them home with you will help teach them that having their feet handled is a good thing. Most dogs start their panic attack at the sight of the nail clippers so this is a good place to begin. Put the clippers in plain view with no intention of using them. Present them to the dog, click and treat any sniffing, looking or movement to investigate the clippers. Show the clippers right before you feed your dog- in fact store them by the food bin so you can't forget to show them to him every time you feed. Take the clippers with you when you put your dogs leash on and on your actual walk as well. Here you are simply developing a good association between the clippers and things your dog likes. This is classical conditioning since the dog does not have to perform a behavior, he simply sees the thing he doesn't like (the clippers) and begins to associate it with the thing he likes (food, a walk,etc.).

The next step is to get your dog to let you play with his feet while holding the clippers. Put the clippers on the floor next to the dog, reach for the dog's leg, if he let's you take it, click and treat. Repeat this over and over in very short 1-3 minute sessions until your dog is throwing his paw at you. Progress to playing with his toes, letting go if he pulls away and clicking and treating for allowing you to touch each toenail and pad. Do this in very short training sessions ending on a upbeat note and practicing frequently throughout the week. As the dog starts to like having you touch his feet, start touching his feet with the clippers (but don't cut any nails yet !) Again, the same rules apply, if he pulls away let him but he gets nothing, if he tolerates you touching him, click and treat.

The trainer in the video is going pretty fast, you'll probably want to take your time and take at least a few days or weeks to go from extremely agitated to easy to clip. Many short (a few minutes) sessions usually work as well or better than one long marathon session. Both the examples above are using clicker training, but if you don't want to use a clicker for some reason, the same principles will also work by just giving the treat without the click (but it might take longer).
posted by Sirius at 4:03 PM on March 22, 2008

My dogs react better to having their nails filed with... an actual file. Not a human fingernail file, but the kind you might buy for a few bucks at a hardware store.

I clip as much as I can (or as much as they'll allow), then finish up with the file. This is recommended even if your dog lets you use the clippers with no problem, because the filing gets rid of any sharp edges with which they can hurt you, your stuff, or themselves. Plus, there's not much of a chance to hit the quick if you clip a bit then finish with the file.

Another recommendation I once got from an obedience school owner: Touch your dogs nails all the time. Like multiple times per day, for weeks. Since dogs learn through patterns, this can establish that you can touch their nails without anything horrible happening. Sure, you eventually have to clip them, but having a baseline of "it'll be OK; he's done this hundreds of times" can make a big difference.
posted by jmcmurry at 4:03 PM on March 22, 2008

My Rhodesian Ridgeback hated having her nails clipped -- until we introduced peanut butter. Yes, it's a bribe, get over it -- it gets the job done. One person holds a spoon of peanut butter and holds her attention, the other person deftly clips her nails.
posted by SpecialK at 7:08 PM on March 22, 2008

I'm a professional dog trainer, and even I pay someone else to clip my dogs' nails. They're wary of getting a manicure from me for a reason - I'm clumsy and farsighted, and they know that I'll quick them. This isn't a behavior issue - they're right to be nervous! It would be totally unfair to drug them up so they were defenseless against the incompetent, farsighted boob wielding the nail clippers. It would also be pointless to train them to stop being afraid of nail-clippers. As soon as I trained them to relax, I would quick them again, and we'd be right back where we started. Jmcmurry's advice would be great if I were a competent nail-trimmer, but I'm not, and I never will be.

Most groomers charge $5 or $10 for a nail trim, and you probably won't need it done very often. Experienced groomers trim millions of nails a year, and they're all business. Dogs understand people who are all business, and even squirrely dogs often relax when they're in the hands of a competent groomer. When that's not the case, good groomers have ways of keeping dogs quiet and reasonably still until they can get the job done.

Fortunately, neither of my dogs are ever in need of a nail clipping, but I do dremel them, and they don't mind it at all. Here's a great tutorial: http://homepages.udayton.edu/~merensjp/doberdawn/dobelink/dobelink.html.
posted by freshwater_pr0n at 7:13 PM on March 22, 2008

Just another vote for the fetch-on-concrete combined with hardware-store-file method. The oldest of my three dogs won't let anyone touch his feet since being cut to the quick 12 years ago by a pet store groomer. This is the only way I've been able to keep his nails from getting hideously long and breaking off on occasion.

I like the dremel idea, though - I'll have to try that!
posted by M.C. Lo-Carb! at 7:46 PM on March 22, 2008 [1 favorite]

My Pit Bull's nails haven't been cut in 8 years. It's no big deal. Just walk him on cement. What's the problem?

DO NOT take him to a groomer, imo. Agitation plus stranger is not a good idea.
posted by dobbs at 9:06 PM on March 22, 2008 [1 favorite]

I just saw that you said it hurts when your dog jumps on you... um, don't let him jump on you. He's a Pit Bull. You're asking for trouble. When my dog was 2, he jumped on a stranger to say hello (ie, stood up on his back 2 legs and put his front paws on the stranger). Unfortunately, the stranger was holding an infant and the dog's nail clipped the boy's cheek. The people had animal control at my house within an hour. Thankfully, my dog had a ball in his mouth the whole time and therefore AC said it wasn't an attack--otherwise he'd have been euthanized.

Train your dog not to jump on anyone (yourself included), ever.
posted by dobbs at 9:10 PM on March 22, 2008

The vet can do this so quickly that pets often don't even notice. And they usually won't charge you.
posted by FlyByDay at 11:45 AM on March 23, 2008

My dog hates it, too, and her hating it made me hate it, too (particularly the one time I accidentally cut one too short). Now I take her to the vet and they take her in the back and somehow get her muzzled and cleaned up. It still freaks her out, but at least I don't have to do it.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 2:14 PM on March 23, 2008 [1 favorite]

FWIW, our vet isn't very good at doing nails. We take our lab mix (who is also sensitive about his feet) to Petco; after having been taken every couple months for nearly a year now, he's still resistant, to be sure, but he's getting better. (Maybe it's just that location, but we've never had an incompetent clipper there; they work out among themselves who should do the honors...)
posted by FlyingMonkey at 11:25 AM on April 3, 2008