Benefits of using a dremel to trim your dog's nails
Have you ever considered trying to dremel your dog's nails rather than clipping them the old fashioned way? If so, then you're not alone. Many dog owners are beginning to learn the benefits of using a dremel to trim their dog's nails, and making the switch.
Probably the most important benefit of using a dremel is that it can make nail trimming both less painful and less stressful for your dog. Many dogs do not enjoy, or even hate, having their nails cut. This is often times because, unknown to some owners, cutting dog's nails with conventional nail clippers can be uncomfortable or even painful to your pooch. When cutting the nail with clippers, the nail is more likely to split or crack. It can also be easy to make a mistake and cut the quick (the part of the dog's nail that will bleed and be painful if you cut it), especially on dogs with dark colored nails. Even when the nail isn't cracked and the quick isn't cut, the process of cutting a dog's nails with clippers puts pressure on the nail and quick that can be painful or uncomfortable for a dog. Using a dremel avoids having to use clippers that can cause pain, and if done correctly will not split the nail or damage the quick.
Another benefit to using a dremel over clippers is that with a dremel you are able to keep the nails both shorter and smoother. Using a dremel on a dog is comparable to using a nail file to file your own nails. You can use the dremel to file down all the sharp edges on your dogs nails making them much smoother than you could using clippers. Smoother nails not only look neater, but they are less likely to catch on things and injure your dog. They are also less likely to cause scratches and injuries to humans because the sharp edges of the nails that would normally be able to cause scratching can be eliminated.
Carefully using a dremel, it's possible to file your dog's nails very short without damaging the quick. When you get close to your dog's quick, you should be able to see it starting to show through the tip of your dogs nail. This makes it both easy to avoid filing too short, but also possible to get the shortest trim possibly without doing any damage to your dog's sensitive quick. In addition, using a dremel to file up close to and around the quick of the nail over time will cause the quick to start to recede back deeper into the nail. This means that over time, you will be able to file your dog's nails shorter and shorter without having to worry about hitting the quick.
Animals in the wild nails are never cut, they are instead filed down naturally as the animal moves around in it's environment. Domestic animals usually miss out on this due to the fact that they are normally less active than their wild counterparts. Plus living in homes with humans means they are not exposed to the same types of rough and varied surfaces that wild animals are. But most animals nails are designed to wear away naturally in a process that a dremel speeds up and mimics.
Many dogs who are afraid of or do not enjoy getting their nails cut with regular clippers will tolerate their nails being trimmed with a dremel much better. It's surprising to some owners just how cooperative their dog can become once he/she is used to having a dremel used on his/her nails. After an initial period of getting used to the sounds the dremel makes and the feeling it cause on their nails, most dogs will remain very relaxed during the process of getting their nails trimmed. Using a dremel to trim your dog's nails can not only make the experience more enjoyable for both you and your dog, but the results (a nice smooth,short nail) are often better than the results you get when using nail clippers.
