# Nails got too long



## camfan (Oct 30, 2006)

I typically clip Ollie's nails myself, and I'm not sure how this happened, but his nails are very long now and the quick is right up to the tips. I don't know what to do or, honestly, how they got this way. For the past few weeks every time I'd go to clip his nails the quick was right up to the tip, so I would only clip a few nails here and there. But the things are getting longer and longer and so is the quick! Am I making any sense?? Anyway, my husband said to clip off a tiny bit every day and the quick will start to receede, but I honestly don't see how I can cut them at ALL with the quick right up to the tip. What do I do?


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## luvmyfurbaby (Feb 11, 2007)

This happened to my Bull Terrier Snoopy...the groomer dremeles <sp> them down each time she comes. She says doing this makes them go back a bit....they are now a decent size.


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## MalteseJane (Nov 21, 2004)

Your husband is right.


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## vjw (Dec 20, 2006)

We had a segment in puppy class about toenails and our instructor said the quick would gradually recede if the toenails are kept trimmed. She said she liked using a nail grinder to trim the nails, and someone in class mentioned that the cordless ones are quieter. (She said she liked the smoothness of the nail with a grinder) However, with a grinder, the dog has to be trained to get used to the noise and the sensation. There's a good tutorial on how to dremmel nails at doberdawn.com:


doberdawn.com




PLEASE NOTE THE SAFETY TIPS, ESPECIALLY THE PART ABOUT GETTING LONG HAIR OUT OF THE WAY BEFORE YOU USE THE DREMMEL.



Joy


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## MySugarBaby (Jun 28, 2006)

Your husband is right. Just cut a tiny bit, you may have to even cut the quick a little if they are grown out too much. Have the quikstop handy just in case. Cutting a little bit each time will cause the quick to recede which will result in the nail being able to be kept shorter without worrying about cutting the quick.
I would not use a dremel, they can be very dangerous and you really have to know what you are doing and your dog has to be use to it, alot of groomers won't even use them.


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

> Your husband is right. Just cut a tiny bit, you may have to even cut the quick a little if they are grown out too much. Have the quikstop handy just in case. Cutting a little bit each time will cause the quick to recede which will result in the nail being able to be kept shorter without worrying about cutting the quick.
> I would not use a dremel, they can be very dangerous and you really have to know what you are doing and your dog has to be use to it, alot of groomers won't even use them.[/B]


<span style="font-family:Comic Sans Ms">Yup! Just one more thing. Make sure you have really sharp nail trimmers because that will make it hurt less if cutting the quick. Ditto on the Dremel. Most groomers in my area won't use them either because it is so dangerous with long hair. You can use an emery board too. Before I started grooming Zoe myself and trimming her nails every 2 weeks, they just got too long for my liking by having the groomer do it every 6 weeks, so instead of cutting the quick, I used an emery board on them every few nights. I would file right down to the quick. That also helped the quick to recede but it takes a lot longer to do it that way.</span>


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## camfan (Oct 30, 2006)

THanks, everyone. I just posted this is another post about Ollie's nails...

"Yes, I usually do cut Ollie's nails myself. However, they are extra long this time around...and I think I figured out why and that is because in the last several weeks they have gotten much, much darker, some are almost black. His pigment used to be pink all over but it has gotten VERY dark. Even my sister commented yesterday "Ollie has a black belly!" And his skin IS almost black it's so dark. Anyway, the darkeness of the nails has entirely thrown me off and I think I was thinking that the quick is closer to the edge than it actually is. Anyway, I don't think I want to take any chances this time and I'll leave it to the groomer. "

Now that they are so dark I'm not sure how confident I am in trimming them myself!!


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## bbry (Feb 17, 2007)

Does anyone know what causes the skin to get dark like that? Button's skin is really pink.


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## Deanna (Jan 14, 2005)

This happened with Wilson once... I really struggle with trimming his nails, and usually take him to the groomer's to have it done. Last year she broke her hand and was out of commission for a few months- I took him a time or two to another groomer just to have his nails and paw pads trimmed. Well that groomer wasn't cutting them short enough so the quick grew so long. His regular groomer used the drimmel on them to get them back to the right length- and this apparently doesn't hurt or cause bleeding like with a clipper. 

I now religiously cut a tiny bit off his nails every week- it's a huge struggle but it's for the best.

You might just get the groomer to use the drimmel and start from scratch. I think sometimes that's easiest!

Good luck!











> Does anyone know what causes the skin to get dark like that? Button's skin is really pink.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I have heard that Malts with really dark pigment have great "points" and are less likely to get the winter nose. Meaning, that their black nose, lips, around the eyes, etc will stay nice and black and that they are more likely to have silky hair that is exceptionally white. But I am not sure how true that is-- hopefully someone else can speak to that?

I also know that Wilson is very pink in the winter when we aren't in the sun much, and during the summer his skin gets a lot more dark spots.


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