Dog nail grooming requires the use of clippers, grinders and files, which are normally used for nail trimming. There are many sizes and models available for clippers, it is all about choosing the model that best suits your dog's needs. Medium-sized clippers usually work on small and medium-sized breeds. Grinders offer an alternative to clippers and lots of groomers used them for more delicate dog nail grooming tasks.

Grinders smooth off edges while clippers cut. Both tools can be used in parallel or in support of each other because dog nail grooming is complex and sometimes risky. Certain clippers have a guard attached that prevents cutting too much nail, yet, because of this guard, you may not see the nail when cutting and you could injury the toe veins. Such accidents are frequent in home grooming because of the wrong use of tools.

There are very professional items for pet grooming that allow for the stemming of the bleeding by the cauterization of the vein that gets touched with the clippers. The dog's comfort is essential for the matter, or you risk to make the animal nervous and agitated, thus reducing the chances of trimming the nails properly.

Why is dog nail grooming so important? Well, long nails can be very painful for animals, particularly when they live indoors and have few opportunities to smooth the nails against the ground. Improperly trimmed nails also carry the risk of ingrown nails, which are both painful and uncomfortable. Listen to your dog walking on hard floors, and if they click, then, dog nail grooming is a must right away.

When the dog has too brittle nails to cut by normal dog nail grooming methods, filing or grinding is the alternative that avoids the formation of splinters. Consider your dog's tolerance and disposition when trimming nails. You don't have to cut them all, right away; you can allow for breaks and slow work so that the animal is not forced to keep the toes firm for more than 30 seconds at once. There have been cases when pets have bitten their masters during this kind of grooming episodes.

With many pets it takes a lot of time to get used to nail trimming. Tolerance can be helped with careful handling, but this doesn't always work. You can use the reward system to help the animal adapt: cut one nail then reward the pet with a tiny treat. Wait for a while, then move on to the next nail.