How do I clip a rowdy German Shepherd’s claws?!

[juco]

I have a 14 month old German Shepherd. He’s smart, loyal, loving, but also rowdy, playful, and headstrong. He nips (mainly to play or when he’s LIT) but has only mean bit once or twice when he was much younger. I love him but when he doesn’t want to do something, he’s a massive pain in the butt. He knows plenty of commands, and I train with him daily but he’s such a self-assured butthole that when he decides he doesn’t want to do something he just won’t.

Sometimes when he gets muddy paws, I’ll wipe those off before he comes inside and he mean growls at me. Doesn’t snap but he hates his feet being touched.

When he was little I’d get my wife to hold him and I’d do the trimming. We had a little handheld electric file thing that helped shave them down but it took a long time and he hated it. I also have some clippers but I haven’t used them yet.

I’ve let his nails turn into daggers and even a playful swat (his only siblings are cats and he’s adopted some behaviors lol) can break the skin. They are SHARP.

I’m not too worried about him snapping. He might but he won’t do any real damage to me other than a scratch. I’m kinda worried about clipping too close to the quick because the nails are dark.

So my question is: do you have tips? Other than feeding him and making him used to it via positive reinforcement (have tried for months with holding him and touching his feet, no progress) Anything I can do to practically to help? Especially as one person? I don’t want to take him to a groomer because he’s so rowdy and squirmy I don’t want them to get injured accidentally. And I’m not convinced he wouldn’t snap at someone else if he got fed up. So I need to do it myself. Tips, tricks, advice?

 

[caelesto]

@juco Treat train with a special treat strictly for handling his feet and progress to nails. But training. And totally get if the dog decides it isn’t happening. My boy wont let me get near his nails so I take him to a groomer for that.

 

[thunderchildau]

@caelesto Cheddar cheese for my pupper--it took 6 months or so when we first got her (at 14mo), but now if we cut a few pieces of cheddar cheese, she lays down in the spot we normally clip her nails and just waits for her treats.

 

[caelesto]

@thunderchildau I may give it another go. He got hot dogs when he was sick (a calorie was a calorie) and so those are no longer effective. And when he got sick was when his nails grew the most because making him move or do anything more than needed was out of the question.

 

[stephendisraeli]

@juco Go to a vet, and have them done there. We know how to restrain a dog and have muzzles and calming medication. Unfortunately, all the behaviors you are describing are warning signs for a bite. Don't be so sure your dog won't bite if they are growling and bearing their teeth.

If you want to do it yourself, buy a basket muzzle and train your dog to accept it. Then work on positively reinforcing calm behavior when you handle it's feet. Then work on trimming nails. If the dog doesn't like the Dremel and you aren't comfortable trimming with clippers, I again suggest using a professional. If nothing else, they can prescribe meds to calm the dog, which should help make nail trims easier on the dog.

 

[saurab]

@juco Treat training worked for me, but I would talk to your local groomer and think about taking them there- hear me out

Groomers are actually very professional and good at their job and know how to deal with difficult dogs. People assume groomers just slap a dog up onto a table and just easily cut hair and wash dogs willy nilly. No

They have tools and are trained to make the dog as comfortable as possible. They know the techniques to avoid making mistakes and to do their job thoroughly.

If your dog really isn't making progress and doesn't respond to treat training I would take him to an experienced groomer and find a way to reward your dog another way when training him.

 

[cathya]

@juco Sometimes it’s just really worth the $10-$15 every 4-6 weeks to go to a groomer or the vet.

 

[juco]

@cathya I just feel bad taking him to a groomer because of how squirmy and rowdy he is. I guess I could call ahead and see if they’re comfortable with that

 

[cathya]

@juco It’s kind of a groomers job. Like 50% of our dogs are squirmy/bitey/jumpy. We can handle it. Plus a lot of dogs behave better for grooming when up on a table and when they can’t see their owners.

 

[juco]

@cathya Honestly that’s very reassuring. Thank you so much. I am gonna search for groomers around me.

 

[gdssldier]

@juco The r/dogtraining wiki has an article on grooming training.

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@juco Personally I take my beast to the groomer for nail trims. He won’t let me trim his nails & flinches when I try so I worry I’ll wind up hurting him if I clip too short. For some reason at the groomer he’s a perfect gentleman & doesn’t get all flinchy.

 

[crutchfield23]

@juco I taught my dog to file her nails. She was also touch sensitive like your dog and had black nails so I could not see the quick.

I used a piece of old plywood and glued 100- grit sandpaper to it and taught her to scrape her nails on it. I held it at an angle to round the nails.

No struggles, no bites, no force. Just liver treats! There are videos online that give the step-by-step.

 

[juco]

@crutchfield23 Oh that sounds… interesting. I might try that! How did it not scrape her paw pads though?

 

[crutchfield23]

@juco I shaped the behavior to emphasize claws (so did not treat for hitting with paw pads) and also tipped the board toward her some so her nails hit it first.

 

[crutchfield23]

@juco We used to have a vet locally that had a discount on nails, “Toenail Tuesday” and it was maybe $5 for a cat and $7 for a dog. Totally worth it. I was bummed when they moved away.