How do I clip my dog's nails?

Hold your dog's foot and gently push down with your thumb at the base of each nail. This will cause the nail to extend slightly, making it easier for you to see the nail. Trim each nail at a 45-degree angle away from the dog so that the newly cut nail is flush with the floor when they walk.

There is a blood vessel, called the quick, in each nail. Do not cut the nail so short that it cuts into the quick. It will bleed and could be painful to the dog. If this happens, apply a coagulant (a substance that causes blood to clot) to the nail to stop the bleeding.

How do I find the "quick" in my dog's nails? The pinkish color of the quick is easy to see in dogs with light-colored nails. However, it is almost impossible to see the quick on dark dogs that have dark nails. Try to locate the quick from the underside of each nail before you begin cutting. Cut each nail back just a little at a time until you get close, but not right up to, the quick.

What is a dewclaw, and does it need to clipped like the other nails? A dewclaw is a fifth claw on the inside of the leg (typically only the front legs) just slightly above the other claws. If a dog does have dewclaws, those should be trimmed just like the other nails.

Some truths about nail trimming

Nail trimming can be an emotional event for not only yourself and your dog, but certainly for your groomer, veterinarian or whoever else you rely on to trim your dogs nails. If you have ever drawn blood while trimming your dog's nails, you know very well that each attempt afterward becomes increasingly difficult.

The "kwik" is that area inside the dog's nail where the blood supply to the nail is maintained. As the nail grows longer, the kwik also increases in size, thereby providing blood near the tip of the nail.

One of the reasons accidental nipping of the kwik occurs is because the nails have been allowed to grow too long. What many people don't know is that the size of the kwik can be reduced by gradually and steadily trimming the nails until they are at the optimum length.

Diagrams

Relationship between the "kwik." and the rest of the dog's nail
A properly trimmed nail
Excessively long nail
Note that the kwik grows with the nail. A cut too long will cause bleeding and the nails will still be too long. A shorter trim will avoid the kwik and cause the kwik to begin reducing in size. (Receding kwik)
As the nail gets shorter, so does the blood supply (Receding kwik)