He needs his nails clipped and every time I take him he gets angry thrashed around and starts panting so badly I worry he's going to have a heart attack. How or what can I do to make his nail clippings easier?
Maxi
It is unnecessary to clip dogs claws as long as you lead walk them daily on pathways as that naturally keeps the nail short, it also builds the muscles in their feet, so their toes are correctly tight...(soft ground walking just enables the toes to spread)
Daily foot massage so the dog starts to learn that touching its feet produces good feelings, not just forced nail clipping
Allergies? That means your dogs immune system is not functioning correctly to enable it to fight off minor things that it could be allergic to so build its immune system so it works at optimum level..the easiest way I know is NEEM bark powder daily on their food ( good quality food only) and NEEM oil as a weekly 'finish' after grooming, the oil can also be rubbed on the pads/between the toes...neem also protects them from all and any parasites, so no need to flea or worm the dog ever which is another problem as the chemicals used are poisons and also wreck the immune system.
Jojo
My dog also has allergies in summer and gets dermatitis in between his toes, and I have to put cream on his paws twice daily, which he hates.
Even though I handle his paws daily he ALWAYS has to be awkward and make a big fuss about it and usually lays on his back and waves his paws all over the place in an attempt to thwart my efforts to put the cream on them. Its very frustrating. He acts similar when I want to trim his nails but does eventually give in and lay still.
He is quite a defiant and willful natured boy, so I have to try and keep my cool with him. Its not that he gets `upset`, he just gets annoyed as he hates being examined in any way. But I am just as determined as he is, so I win every time.(so far).
I do think some dogs have very sensitive paws and if I thought my dog was really upset at having his nails cut I would consult my vet and ask for some sedatives or for the vet to actually sedate the dog and trim its nails.
The more the dog is allowed to feel so upset at its nails being trimmed and paws touched, the worse its going to get and by being sedated this will take away the stress and calm the dog down.
If the dog is that sensitive about its paws being touched than using a dremel grinder on the nails is not going to help allay its fears. In fact it will take longer than clipping and maybe stress the dog out even more, but its something you could try and see if it does work.
There is not the big risk of cutting into the `quick` with a nail grinder.
Also walk your dog on concrete quite often as this will help to wear down the nails and keep them short.
Anonymous
Rather than using a clipper see if you can find someone that uses a grinder, my eldest lab tries to escape every time the nail clippers are used, he even expressed his anal glands on the vet he struggled so hard, they eventually had to sedate him to finish because with 5 people trying to hold him, muzzled and all he got free.
I had him at one of the pet fairs and they offered to do his nails for free, some 16 year old held his head and loved on him while the adult picked his paw up and started in. No fuss, no thrashing, no struggle, he stood statue still and let all 4 paws be done... it was just like someone stood petting him only, tail wagging, happy unstressed dog.
All I can think of weather side clippers or guillotine style they pinched the quick shooting pain through and through and all he could do is get into fight or flight mode. Heavy panting, glassy eyed, shaking and trembling all over, he fainted then vomited after they clipped him once and we put it off as long as we could without getting too long of nails.
All I can think of is the grinder style doesn’t put pressure on the nail, it may tickle and he might pull away a couple times but the panting and stress should improve greatly.
Since my first guy that hated his nails being done and stressed so badly, I train my dogs now for nail cutting (grinding). I have them do both at a sit and a stand and will pick up each paw one at a time, massage each toe slightly gripping firmly-pinching gently so they get used to the pressure and each toe being handled. Once they are used to the paws being manipulated bent this way and that way they are fine with getting their feet done.
Keep working with your dog every couple days to get his paws desensitized to being handled, then try a groomer that grinds vs cuts, you may see a big difference in how he acts. There is a possibility he stresses with a stranger handling him also, you can try bribing him with a couple mini dog biscuits to encourage him (the groomer gives it to him not you) this could also be part of the problem.
Kelley
Clip his nails while he is asleep