When someone brings a pet to us for a pedicure, we bust out the clippers and the Quick-Stop. I HATE using the clippers. Not that it matters all that much to me personally, since I don’t actually do the trimming, but I hate them on behalf of the technicians who have to do the deed.
Clippers compress before cutting, and it hurts. They nick quicks, and as anyone who’s accidentally torn a nail past their own nail bed can attest, that really hurts. We encourage every owner who has a pet under anesthesia to let us do a pedicure at that time, since it’s really the best way to keep those nails trimmed.
I bought a PediPaws and brought it to work last year, but it really didn’t work for anything over 20 pounds. It just lacked the torque to handle a big tough nail, and of course those are the pets who need grinding the most. My bosses have tossed around the idea of bringing a Dremel into work, but for one reason or another it hasn’t happened yet.
I recently saw that the Dremel company itself has come out with a nail trimming tool, and a few other companies have followed suit. They appear bigger and more powerful than the PediPaws, but less so than a regular Dremel, and I’m not entirely sure it works well enough to justify the price.
Since I haven’t gotten to use grinders at work I really have no personal feedback as to how well those are tolerated compared to traditional clipping, which is why I’m tossing it out to you all. Anyone use grinders? What do you think?
We’ve used a Dremel for years on our dogs (Doberman’s, Boxer) and it’s GREAT! IMO, you have to ease into it … the noise, and I guess the vibration, unsettles them somewhat in the beginning, but after they adjust, nail trimming is a breeze.
To help them adjust to the Dremel, we let them sniff it when it’s off, and also let it run so they can get used to the noise, which is really like a ‘hum’. Once you have their paw in your hand, you can zip right though and be done in no time, whereas with a clipper we were always having to adjust/readjust, and it took forever, with us and the dog loosing patience by the end.
You rarely get to the quick of the nail, even on a dog with black nails. You can even smooth the rough edges of the nails too, which makes it nicer.
I use a dremel nockoff for trimming my greyhounds’ nails and I love it. Forget paying for the actual Dremel brand name, I got my rotary tool at Costco for $19, and that included a lot more than the grinding barrels.
My hounds have become accustomed to it, and know to simply lay on their sides and accept the grooming. Individual dogs may have different reactions to the noise/sensation so my suggestion is to go slow, use lots of treats, and make it a completely positive experience for them.
I use the large diameter 120 grit sandpaper barrel, and do no more than 3 seconds at a time per nail. Otherwise it gets hot and hurts. Still, doing a 3-count on each nail on the front takes 30 seconds, which is plenty of time for the first nail to have cooled off. Then I go back and repeat, doing 3 seconds per nail, until all of the nails are the length I want. Then I move on to the back paws.
After I’ve taken off the length, I round the edges and neaten up the bottom. They have nice, smooth, short nails that don’t scratch the floors!
I could probably do a picture walkthrough if you wanted 🙂
Hubby had a dremel that he never used, and the boys (3 Bostons) HATED to have their nails clipped, so I started using the dremel. The boys still are not crazy about me handling their feet, but at least there’s no blood or yelping. Plus as the previous poster said, it makes them so nice and smooth – no scratchy edges!
I need to try her method of shorter spurts of dremel-ing – maybe that would help.
Thanks – always love the blog.
My groomer and vet techs use a Dremel for exactly the reasons you mention. They love it.
I use a cordless Dremel on my dogs nails & although they don’t really love it, they tolerate it much much better than clippers. Both of them have black nails and medium length fur. With the Dremel I can slowly work at the nail & see when I’m getting close to the quick so I avoid hurting them while getting the nail as short as possible. To keep from getting their fur caught in the Dremel, I use an old piece of material with a small hole in it to isolate the nail from the fur (I stick the nail that I’m working on through the hole & it keeps the fur out of reach of the rotating drum). It works like a charm and I don’t get scratched by rough nail edges later.
My 8 pounder can’t even handle the sound of the grooming clipper or hair dryer. Noise coming from a machine that is about to “attack” his nails…..pretty sure he’d FREAK! But it would be nice to figure out how to use it on my “fractious” cat who wears Talons as I am not able to do any pedicure with him without real, prescribed, sedation! I think my pets have issues….but I love ’em so much, it makes me very tolerant! 🙂
I second that knockoff dremel from Costco…tho I’ve had ours for many years. It uses the same attachements as the real dremel. PetTIcure is another brand that has more UMPH. I think Pedipaws is the knockoff version of it. If you go to the PetTIcure website you can order the plastic attachment that most of the “pet” oriented devices are offering to protect their pads and fur while trimming.
I have 2 100+ lb German Shepherd Dogs with those black toenails that make guillotine nail trimmers almost impossible to use. We went to Lowes/Home Depot (I really don’t remember) and bought a cordless dremmel with all these attachments (that we never used) and a case for under $50. It is SO much nicer to use it…..the downside is that it does take longer and the pups can get bored. The upside is no more so sharp they draw blood toenails, no more blood, and they don’t scratch the hardwood floors.
http://homepages.udayton.edu/~merensjp/doberdawn/dremel/dremel.html is where I learned how to do it.
When we dropped the kids off at PetsHotel over Memorial Day weekend, I asked that Beethoven’s nails be trimmed during their stay. They gave me the option of clipping or grinding. In a hurry, I just said clipping, but after the fact , I kind of wished I had said grinding. (was never given the option before!) When the kids go back in July, I think I am going to tell them to try the grinding. It’s only $2 more than the clipping, and since Beethoven HATES getting his nails clipped, (they get horribly long, because he won’t even let me go near him, as I clipped and made him bleed as a pup) so I hope he will react a little better to the grinding.
I am lucky I have cats and most of the time a nail trim is not an issue. They dont LOVE it but its not a huge struggle.
I bought the Dremel, the minute I started it up the dogs bolted and refused to let it be used on their claws. Apparently the frequency of the motor hurt their ears. I use guillotine type clippers on their claws. The Dremel is now used to do minor repairs and crafting..
As a groomer I would love to have the ability to use the grinder. But the reality is that a) we just don’t have time when compared to being able to clip zoom zoom zoom & b) we don’t have time to train all our dogs to accept it. I’d love to start using it on every new puppy that comes in until most dogs are off the clipper and on the grinder. Then again, with new puppies there is hardly ever a struggle to have the nails done (so long as Mom & Dad haven’t tried at home) because they haven’t learned to associate it with fear and anxiety. Distract the nose, clipclipclip and before they know it, we’re done. Before I became a groomer, I always had my mom clip my black dogs’ black nails. I could do the other dog no problem – I could see the quick. Now I know how to judge the place to clip on any nail. And if you are nervous or anxious about it, trust me – your dog knows.
Dremel all the way Dr V! You’ll see here that a very large dog who is food motivated (several t-r-e-a-t-s are used at least per paw) would rather chillax and let her pack leader use the dremel, then go to the groomer. http://cleosday.grouchypuppy.com/2009/06/how-can-you-improve-upon-perfection.html
Dremel all the way! We give Cleo treats as we do her paws. We also do front pair then a short break before doing the back pair. She is way more calm here than getting her to the groomers. And the cost for the dremel is paid for after a few uses.
I use a clipper on my Boston Terrier and he is very tolerant of it but I always feel guilty because of the compression you mentioned – it just looks painful. Misti’s idea of the Dremel with the old piece of fabric to protect the paw sounds great. Might have to invest in a Dremel – great for redoing furniture and for pawdicures.
I used to take my ratty in for regular nail clippings at my local pet store–it’s privately owned and they charged me an arbitrary 3.50–good deal! I could never imagine fitting clippers around those teensy little nails and had recurring nightmares (literally nightmares; I’d wake up in sweats) about clipping off one of his little toes by mistake. I have enormous respect for the rodent lover who cheerfully clipped him right there in the store for me every few weeks. I’d way rather clip a dog’s toenail but those grinders are miraculous things even so. My mom uses one on her pit bull. 😀 They sure do make an awful smell though. My cats won’t go anywhere near one though.
We used to use the dremel for almost all of our large bird nail trims, but we’ve had a few mishaps with it (trimming a bird’s nails is a little different than trimming dog or cat nails) – a few times the bird has struggled and their foot gets nicked by the dremel bit and we end up having to sedate them and patch up the injury. Obviously having to take an owner into a room and tell them we nicked their beloved parrot and now have to perform a minor surgical procedure to stop bleeding is never easy or fun. We’ve gone back to doing most of the work with the regular clippers, qwick stop, and regular nail files to round off the edges. It sucks, but it’s the safest way to do it for us. Most people don’t bring their birds in often enough, so we routinely quick them doing nail trims. If we don’t, owners complain we left the nails too long, and most people won’t consent to sedation just for a nail trim. Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place…
My vet discourages using the dremel. One of her clients went too far and took the dogs’ nail down to the bone before realizing what was happening. So … careful please!
My dog is quite docile to clippers. I do a little each week instead of cutting deep once a month or longer. If she feels anxious or unsettled, I do the front paws one day and the back paws the next day.
And of course, she has a nice rubber bath mat to stand on!
That’s shocking- I mean, I can’t imagine not noticing that!!
I just had my Boston Terrier/French Bulldog mix puppy’s nails grinded (Dremeled) today at PetSmart. I had purchased a clipper, but was too afraid to use it bc I didn’t want to hurt him. I then bought a cheap non brand Dremel at Kmart. It was actually a Dremel/clipper combo thing for about $20. He didn’t seem to like the sound and I had alot of trouble doing it myself, so I figured its just easier and less stressful for both of us to go to PetSmart.
I agree that his nails don’t have sharp edges, and I think that they can get much closer to the quick with the grinder. That means I don’t have to have it done so often, which is also a good thing. He, of course, has no problem standing on the table for a perfect stranger to work on his feet. I even once saw him lick the groomer’s face when she was doing his back feet. So I think he is happier having a professional do it, instead of me fumbling around.
– Lauren
We have a dremel at the clinic I work for, but 99% of nail trims are still done using clippers. The reality is, the dremel just takes MUCH longer. Not only does that tie up at least two staff members for a longer task, but it means those extra nervous or fidgety dogs now have to suffer through a 3x longer experience. Some dogs will simply not let you sit there and hold there paw for as long as it takes to grind down long nails. The only time the dremel gets pulled out at the clinic is for elderly pet owners (so the sharp edges of the newly cut nail can be rounded off) or by special request – usually people with children or hardwood floors. There are a couple of dogs with long quicks who automatically get the dremel, as well.
If you don’t do that many nail trims a day, or have the staff for making it a longer task, then the dremel works great (I don’t think ours is actually Dremel brand – I think it was from costco.) It just takes more patience, for the tech, and the dog!
Just my two cents!
i’ve got a regular dremel with a pistol-like grip that is use on my terv. once you get the dog used to it, it’s a pice of cake. and it’s nice because you can kind of shape and round the nail at the same time – which is nice for showing.
I’ve used both and even with my dog fighting and being an ass which he is for nail trims, I prefer using the Dremel. It is all I use at work now and I rarely quick dogs now, when I used clippers I always quick them. Plus I would say most dogs don’t freak out as bad about the Dremel as the clippers. My other comment… I hate Quick-Stop it doesn’t work at all. Please give me a silver nitrate stick!
This is a very pertinent topic. Summer’s quicks have gotten ridiculously long, and I try to cut her nails frequently, but she’s so darn easy to quick with those black nails. I think Brian has a dremel tool somewhere, and was contemplating busting it out to give it a try…
We also use the regular dremel at work. It is great for also rounding bird beaks (!)
For regular clippers, I like the Miller’s Forge ones that have a ‘scissor’ action instead of the guillotine style. They seem to work SO much better and can tackle the really thick nails of the XL dogs.
Get the dremel, I don’t think you’ll regret it. There is a great video (google ‘Tucker’s Toe Nail Trim’) that clients can use to get an idea of how to condition the dog to be less aggressive toward pedicures!
I Use the Dremmel and clippers . Recently bought and used clippers with the “Quick finder” in them . Seems to work so far . It supposedly detects where the quick is and flashes red (ng), yellow ( caution ) , green (ok) when you clip. Two of my pups have black nails so its difficult to see the quick but one has white nails and his are a breeze.I get squeemish when I clip nails and have previously quicked a nail or two but with styptic powder in hand had the situation is under control. The pups still hate getting their nails clipped but with some treats and toys it goes better.
with chase, i do his nails up on the grooming table. started with the hubby feeding him the whole time i was grinding, then got to the point where i couls treat after every nail and now i just give him a treat after each paw. it’s not his favorite, but if there are treats involved, he’ll cooperate. of course, he’s a sweetie and i’ve also trained him to jump into the tub on hos own for his bath.
I have a mini schnauzer who will bite at clippers, but doesn’t mind the dremel. Our border collie is the opposite – scared of the dremel, but tolerates the clippers. I need to condition him to the dremel, since I like the non-scratchy nails, especially on the hardwood floors. My dremel is a battery operated one, and I have used the corded one, which I think works better. I’ve seen the attachment for pets, and would like to know if anyone has used it.
We use a cordless Dremel constantly at work. If you have the right attachment (The round sanding disk works great) it’s just as quick as clippers and it allows us a much closer trim. There are still dogs that go nuts with the dremel but for the most part dogs don’t mind. And we use them on all of our puppy plans to start them off early being used to the noise/vibration.
I just returned from Costco to purchase the knockoff dremel rotary tool which was mentioned in the comments above. They stated they were only $19.00. Costco has no such item and said the ones they previously had in the store or online were $49.00 or more. Where can I find this awesome tool that others have stated they purchased at Costco. How long ago was it purchased? I need one. My pet has been having his nails done by a groomer with a regular dremal and they would only tip them and they were so long and his paws were so sore that he could barely walk. I just had to have the vet cut them way back so he would not be crippled. Groomer left them way too long and used such force with dremal my dog could barely walk. I want to be able to do it myself and use the proper tool for the right amount of time not to hurt him.