Casey growled at me!

[caseysmom]

I am home sick with a sick eye so I decided to trim casey's nails. I have never had to do this before, I use to be better about walking her on the concrete and it kept the nails short. After my bout with back pain I have slacked off of our walks and the vet got mad at me about her nails.

Anyway I did 3 paws and when I got to the last I could tell she was getting annoyed, now mind you I did not go far because most of her nails are black so I was very cautious thinking I would go further next time....so I know I didn't get the part with feelings. So on the last paw she kind of bit at my nose but just a sort of hey knock it off not mean biting.

I decided to do a couple more nails about 20 minutes later and when I picked up her paw she growled...she has never growled at me so I stopped. I guess I have to walk her again or muzzle her???

[lv4dogs]

I wouldn't really muzzle her until you know thats a last resort. What I would try to do first is to get her used to having her nails cut. Unless of course you really feel in danger then of couse muzzle by all means. But by muzzling her right away it *may* make her aggression worse.
Everyday pretend to cut her nails. Start slow though. You only need a few minutes out of each day, if you can do this for about 3-5 minutes at a time and 2-3 times a day it should really help. At first just handle her feet. Then start to fuss with her feet, then get the clippers & put them close to her feet, then pretend to cut her nails. Eventually work your way up.
When she growls, shows her teeth, anything behavior that you do not want, firmly say NO. Praise her when she behaves properly, even if you have to praise right off away, before she has had a chance to growl. keep praising every 10 seconds or so when she is behaving properly.
Good luck.

[caseysmom]

Thanks for the advice. I think the mistake I made was doing it while she was in her bed. I picked up her paw in the hallway and did two nails and she behaved. I could tell she knew she was naughty because she sat next to me while I was telling her on pettalk...hehe

[bckrazy]

~.~ Casey, you better be nice to your Mommy! A lot of dogs get scared or irritated when people trim their paws... it's not uncommon, but it should definitely be nipped in the bud because it's a necessity of her life. I would try doing one paw a day, and after each nail give her a yummy treat that she rarely gets (cheese, meat, whatever) and praise her and give it a small break ~ then do the same for the next nail, and so on. I would not leave it be if she growls at you for one of the nails... tell her WRONG or NO, and continue with the nail so that she knows she won't get her way when she growls. If you feel safer doing so, have one of your daughters holding her leash while you're doing it so she cannot run away or nip at you again.

Also, keep going with the desensitizing by gently rubbing or checking her feet every day. Every once in a while, act like you're clipping her nails even if she isn't and praise good behavior She could've definitely felt grumpy and/or crowded into a corner when you were clipping them while she was laying on her bed. Make sure she is standing politely and possibly on leash with some one holding it while you cut her nails from now on.

[caseysmom]

Thanks bccrazy....I think the one nail a day is a great idea...and of course the treat....

[Vette]

I dont know what id do if my dog grawld at me when i was trimming his nails.

he never has grawled at me for any reason orther then playing around.
but he scrames when i clip his nails and it scares the sh*t out of me everyime.. i guess its just as bad.. kinda. LOL