why clip nails?

I've clipped our puppy's nails a couple of time since we got him two months ago....but what's the point of it apart from the fact it hurts if he scratches me when they're long?

are there health benefits? does it hurt him to walk on them if his nails are long?

Keeping claws short helps prevent them being broken when running/playing.Walking on pavements normally keeps their claws to an acceptable length though without the need for cutting,but depends obviously on how long and far.

Hi Charisma Love I have had dogs in to trim where the nails have been left to grow, they can curl round making it hard for the dog to walk. Also if the nails are left to get long the quick grows down so it is impossible to cut the nails shorter without making them bleed.

The best option is to trim a little and often or better still buy a metal nail file and an emery board from the chemist and file the nails regularly. I do Amy's when she is sitting on my knee watching television

my mum said she heard something on tv where a dog bled to death because someone cut the nails over the quick. now she feels sick when I say I'm going to do them!

My older dog is an example of what not cutting nails can do. We got her at 6 years old and she'd barely left the house since she was a pup, her nails never being cut. They were terribly long and caused her pain to walk, so much so that she is incredibly shy about people touching her feet, screaching if you go to cut her nails. Her quick has grown right down and so now we can only cut a small amount, leaving her nails fairly long still and it is very hard to cut them.

Leaving the nails long (or longer than they should be) can actually alter the shape of the foot too. When a dog with a naturally tight foot has long nails, as the nail touches the floor it will push the toes up and the dog has to counteract this by either slackening the pastern or splaying the toes. Either way you've got a dog with a less effective foot which is more prone to injury.

I've heard so many people say that walking on concrete keeps the nails down and in most cases it does - but not all. When I was campaining one of my bitches I used to do an awful lot of roadwork with her but her nails always had to be cut.

If I were you I'd check the pup's nails weekly, get the nail clippers out and go through the motions of clipping them even if you don't actually need to take anything off. Then when it comes to having to clip them there'll be no problem

Debs

Just a quick note about if you cut the quick (the vein running down the nail) a dog will not bleed to death if the quick is cut, its a myth. Its not nice but its not the end of the world. You can buy powder, its called styptic powder, which stops it.... alternatively flour works just as well...

I have to cut Charlies dew claw cos that doesn't get filed down when hes walking.

Interesting thread.
A few months ago my neighbour took on a Bull terrier bitch that i have known since she was a pup, (she is now 7) Her nails were extremely long and some were curling slightly.(The previous owner seemed to have lost interest in her in the last year or so)
They have worked very hard with her to get them to a good length with plenty of walking and regular clipping.
He pops in weekly to show me how shes doing and to let the dogs have a play, so it has been a point of discussion with us for some time.
Her previous owner in my opinion never walked her enough and i always thought her nails were far too long because of this,she has always had good conformation but i noticed in the last year or so she didn't seem to 'stand' so well ...meaning her hocks looked slightly cow hocked,her conformation didn't look as good as it always had done previously and when walking/running she placed her feet differently.
Now, since my neighbour has had her and worked on them they are now a perfect length we have both noticed that she is 'standing' better and her legs don't look quite so crooked....The difference is quite remarkable.She is altogether a happier dog without a doubt.
I have Two Beagles who will both be Three this year,i have never ever clipped their nails and both their nails are of perfect length,they do equal amounts of pavement/road and grass walking and get plenty of excercise daily.So i do think i possibly different breeds or dogs nails will grow quicker than others but of course excercise definately plays a part.
(sorry if i've gone off topic slightly )

It's true, if you don't clip a dog's nails regularly, they will alter their "walk" to accomodate the growing nail. (if they have dew claws, they can grow so much that they curl around and dig into their flesh)

I simply just clip off the tip on a weekly basis, even though my girl walks every day on a hard surface.

Naturally, my dear one has black nails and I am concerned that I might take off too much - that's why I just snip the tip each week.

Roxy hates having her nails clipped (after I cut the quick once by accident) so now I have to pin her down and cut the tips.

Then she will fall asleep to me filing them afterwards (she loves her nails being filed)