I made an appointment for the local mobile dog groomer, lovely Charlotte to come and cut Charlie's nails as I am a complete wimp and won't do it Charlie has had his nails clipped by her twice before so he knows her . I would have cancelled only Charlotte had gone to a lot of bother to fit us in so didn't feel I could even though Charlie is not feeling that well. Door bells rings Charlie is all over her like a rash, I put collar and lead on Charlotte took his lead but Charlie dug his feet in good and proper backing up and nearly out of his collar, lots of encouragement to get in the van, a few treats absolutely no way his he getting in, in the end I had to get in the van so that he would move closer and Charlotte had to lift him in, not what I wanted but she was due at her next appointment. 5 minutes later they return he nearly bust a blood vessel to get to me, Charlotte said he was absolutely fine just leant against her whilst she clipped no problems : She made a big fuss of him when she was going. I feel awful as he has been in many vans during his rescue centre days and now I feel next time he needs his nails clipping the same thing will happen. Please don't tell me I have to do van training or I will self combust with everything else I am training Maybe I have to learn how to clip them myself but they are black so I would worry about cutting the quick xxxx
Re: I feel so guilty Ah Helen what a difficult thing Hopefully it was just that he was under the weather and he'll be fine next time. If not the clippers I have have a little guard that stops me cutting lots of nail. I always leave it in place and cut more frequently as my OH cut his quick once. We put his paw in a small bag of flour to help coagulate the blood (Google has a lot to answer for!) and it was working but then he caught it while he was penned in the kitchen and it was like a murder in a bakery! Blood and flour all over the floor! However he was none the worse really and I've been cautious ever since and not had any problems ;D
Re: I feel so guilty No, Helen, I don't think you need to do van training AT ALL. If you are worried by it, my practical suggestion would be to schedule his next appointment when David is there to hand him over... If you are feeling guilty and anxious, Charlie will pick up on it and you have NOTHING TO FEEL GUILTY FOR. Sometimes we all have to do things we are less keen on - and that applies to dogs too! As your groomer said, he was fine when he was with her. He will be fine next time too. You have done so much for Charlie, and he is fabulously lucky to have you. That's the bit he will remember.... Theakston has black nails... I file his with a foot emery board thingy - you know what I mean! Used to get dead skin off feet. Tougher than an emery board - and we are both fine with that You could try that if you are really not happy with the groomer again. Clare
Re: I feel so guilty Why does he have to go in the van to have his nails clipped? Why can't the girl bringer her nail clippers into the house and do it there?
Re: I feel so guilty [quote author=heidrun link=topic=4066.msg47540#msg47540 date=1389820798] Why does he have to go in the van to have his nails clipped? Why can't the girl bringer her nail clippers into the house and do it there? [/quote] Good point, they're not exactly difficult to carry
Re: I feel so guilty I had Harley's nails clipped at the vets this week. I am on vets4pets plan which I pay £10 a month and this covers : Nail clipping when needed Consultation fees for all appointments Yearly health check inc teeth etc Bloods yearly And a few other things I can't remember. Because I have already been to the vets twice with Harley when she was poorly, I have already saved over £50 and only started paying it in October! Might be worth looking into having it done at the vets if he is comfortable going there. It could help take the stress away??
Re: I feel so guilty [quote author=heidrun link=topic=4066.msg47540#msg47540 date=1389820798] Why does he have to go in the van to have his nails clipped? Why can't the girl bringer her nail clippers into the house and do it there? [/quote] Good grief I didn't think of that, Heidrun thank you for pointing out the glaringly obvious :, what would we all do without you
Re: I feel so guilty Clare, the groomer is so lovely, it's Charlie worrying over the dreaded van Thanks for your lovely words and advise I appreciate it. x Barbara what kind of clippers do you have please?
Re: I feel so guilty I've never had a dog's nails clipped in my life! Is it because he is walked on grass mostly, do you think? My dogs have always seemed to self-regulate their nails. Only exception was with a very, very old dog who needed his dew claw clipped on occasions. Maybe next time the nice grooming lady could do Charlie indoors Helen, as Heidrun has pointed out. It sounds like it's not fear of having his nails clipped; it's fear of going in the van. Poor lad.
Re: I feel so guilty Lady is mainly walked on grass too. Her nails do grow though and they only wear down naturally when we holiday in Cornwall where there is lots of rocky walking. She's actually only needed the very occassional trim when they do start to get too long.
Re: I feel so guilty Never had Sams nails clipped either , for the reason David said , lots of rocky walks helps to keep them short . Helen , I would ask for them to be cut in your home next time ,it shouldnt be a problem and far less stressy for Charlie boy xx
Re: I feel so guilty I was going to say the same thing. My dogs have never needed their nails clipped. I'm surprised Charlie does with all the exercise and things you do with him Helen. Scott's nails look longer than scouts because they grow at a slightly different angle so they don't get worn down as much. When I asked the vet about it they said they were fine and wearing down naturally. Murphy got to 15 without having his nails clipped. I know what you mean about not wanting to do them yourself I wouldn't either .
Re: I feel so guilty [quote author=Karen link=topic=4066.msg47634#msg47634 date=1389866653] It sounds like it's not fear of having his nails clipped; it's fear of going in the van. Poor lad. [/quote] Definitely the van Karen The problem is we are rural and have very few pavements which we of course do use to get to our walks, so not enough concrete to keep filing nails short. Maybe I was fussing and they didn't need doing, although one back nail had broken off and one at the front had split a little ???. He is 3 and this is the third time they've been done. I will post a photo next time and you can all advise me if that's ok. Thank you x
