Edie MacKenzie

Edie MacKenzie is a published author, traveler, dog lover, and tortoise enthusiast. Passionate about what she does, her books provide peopel a firm grounding in the dog breed and their unique characteristics with a nice touch of humor.

Help! My Dog’s Claws Are Too Long

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Claws, or nails, are dead, horny structures on the ends of each of a dog’s toes. The special skin that makes them has a very rich blood supply, and the claws of some young dogs up to two years old have been recorded as growing as much as six inches per week. In older dogs, the claws may grow at half that rate.

Claws are very useful parts of a dog’s anatomy. They can help him to hold objects, will provide grip when he is moving and can even be used as weapons. Of the many nail disorders that may affect dogs, overlong claws and broken claws are the most common.

A dog’s claws grow all the time, and under normal circumstances they are constantly worn down through wear and tear. Overlong claws are caused by insufficient wear and tear, and dogs who are inactive because of age, illness or the laziness of their owners are most likely to suffer from them. The outer two claws on each paw and the dew claws are those that are most likely to be affected. Damage to the claws is often the result of digging or scrambling, and is more likely to occur if the claws are overlong.

Overlong claws will affect the way a dog walks, and will make his feet more prone to other injuries such as sprains. If left untreated, the claws may eventually grow around in a circle and bury themselves into the toe pads, causing severe pain.

If you think that your dog’s claws may be too long, ask your vet, a veterinary nurse or a professional dog-groomer to look at the claws for you. If they are too long, he or she will clip them. If your dog’s lifestyle means that this problem may recur, ask for a demonstration of how to clip your dog’s claws properly and safely yourself. Many owners are very reluctant to clip their dogs’ claws from the fear that they may make the claws bleed, or that they may hurt their dogs. However, there is no guarantee that a claw will not bleed even if your vet or a dog groomer clips them, as judging the correct length can be very difficult, especially if the claws are jet-black.

If you do cut a claw and it bleeds, you can stop the bleeding with a styptic pencil. Any pain associated with claw clipping is usually due to the use of blunt or inappropriate clippers, which
squeeze rather than cutting cleanly. Few dogs enjoy having their claws clipped, but those used to having their feet examined regularly as part of routine health-checks will normally tolerate the experience. However, some dogs resent the procedure so much that they have to be sedated.

With a broken claw, if the tip is hanging off but the claw is not bleeding and does not look raw, you may be able to clip it free. The toe may be painful, however, so you should muzzle your dog first and ask someone to restrain him properly for you. If the claw is badly damaged, and particularly if it looks raw or is bleeding, bandage the affected paw. This will stop the claw from moving, and will make your dog more comfortable until you can take him to your vet.

Teaching Your Labrador Retriever To Retrieve

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Mutual trust and understanding are required between the hunter and his Labrador Retriever before a satisfactory retrieving companion is developed.

The intelligent Labrador Retriever, brought up as a house pet with the love and understanding of the person who is to take him hunting, requires a minimum of training in order to accomplish the job.  Much of this training can be done in the house and a few minutes a day is enough.

Such things as blind retrieves and hand signals can become a game in the house with the dog learning to trust his nose as one of the important by-products.

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Introduction to feathers can be accomplished by tying feathers on a dummy or using a pigeon or chicken wing with the feathers intact.  Remember that a Labrador should hand you the object retrieved and not drop it on the ground as is allowed with other breeds.  This is also one of the requirements for a working certificate for a show dog.  One important thing should not be overlooked and that is allowing persons to throw just anything for a dog and not requiring the dog to bring it back and give it to them.  Let toys be toys, but certain definite other things should be reserved for training.

If a dog has a tendency to go off with the object you are training with outdoors, it is a good idea to reduce the available working space so that evading you is minimized.  In such circumstances, moving away from the dog may induce following and the training object may be retrieved as the dog passes.  His game of keep-away is thus converted to delivering the object for reward of the praise bestowed upon surrender of the object.

For outside work, training involves getting your Labrador Retriever to go far out, which is not possible in the house.  Introducing him to gunfire must also be done outdoors.  You can find a training aid called a dummy thrower that is very useful, but test it without your dog the first time as the dummy goes a long way.

For Labrador Retriever owners wishing to use a whistle for signals, one of the product that you can get is the Acme Thunderer.  With this type of whistle, one can almost talk as it is possible to make various other sounds.  One blast is commonly used for a dog to sit wherever he is, and three blasts to summon the dog to come towards or all the way back to you.  The single blast is used also to signal for the Labrador Retriever to pay attention when you plan to use hand signals.

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