Sunday, August 2, 2009

What does it mean if my dog is chewing on his nails?

I've never seen a dog do this before. We dont cut them because he runs around and files them on his own, also because he hates it when we try. Hes chewing on them himself though, and chipping them in half.
Answers:
I would trim your dog's nails with clippers from the pet store. If you do not want to do them yourself a lot of pet stores with groomers will do it for you for a nominal fee. If your dog has white nails it's not too difficult to do. You only clip the ends and not where you can see pink. The pink part is the vein and will bleed if you cut it. Just take your time and do not take off too much at one time. Since your dog does not like it I would suggest clipping two per day, be firm and stick to your guns. Always end on a happy note, saying good girl or good boy. If you do this often enough, your puppy will know who is boss and will comply. Personally, I use a battery operated dog nail file by Oster. It works excellent.
He must be nervous.
my mothers dog does this too, she cuts her own nails , some dogs just are do it yourselfers.
something is buggin him.check for fleas or ticks between the toes.if this yields nothing, check his ears.sometimes an infection causes intense itching elsewhere.
it sounds like something is irritating him, like a skin irritation, or it could be anxiety.like if he's left alone often. I would reccomend you contact your veterinarian to make sure.
His nails need to be cut. They are either sore, or bothering him. Don't try cutting them yourself the first time. Take him to your local vet or pet store and let them show you how to do it properly. If you snip the quick, your dog will never let you do it again. If they are breaking he could also have a vitamin or mineral deficiency.
hahaha he is a do it yourselfer take him to the groomer get him a nail trim and see if he does it then
It could be chewing them because he is bored.

Take him to the vet to get him to clip them properly with proper clippers.

Also try to give your dog toys to keep him occupied, especially when you see him doing that try to interrupt him by giving him his favourite toy.
my moms dog used to do this when it was time for us to clip her nails. It could be that his nails are getting too long and are bothering him. If he gives you trouble when you clip them you can always take him in to a groomer just to have his nails done. I work at a grooming salon and we have lots of customers that just bring their dogs in for nail clippings and we do it while they wait. We only charge $5 for this service at our shop.
My dog does the same thing. His nails are kept trimmed, he has plenty of toys, and is in perfect health. I attribute it to boredom.
we had a dog that would knaw on his paws %26 it wasn't so much his nails. Even though his nails would chip %26 it seemed like that was what he was doing. He had severe allergies %26 apparently there is a connection to their chewing or knawing on their paws if if the allergen is not on/in their feet.

You might check to see if his paws are dry or have black stuff between the toes. This would be a sure sign that he has a yeast infection or something causing his paws to itch.

The dew claw can be sensitive too. The "thumb" nail can get injured super easy %26 maybe it is tender.

Maybe he just chews his nails like some people do? A nervous habit?

Good Luck :)

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