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When to cut claws

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crus

Hi all,

I cut piggies nails yesterday. They were very long, almost curling under. i've cut the sharp bits so that the quick receeds but i'm not sure how long i should wait for this to happen? i really want to cut them again asap as they are very long and i can't help but think how uncomfortable it must be for them. i feel so bad that i left them so long in the first place :... i admit i've been dreading doing it again as last time i cut one of bellas too short and it wouldn't stop bleeding!
Thanks xx
 
If you cut the tips, the quick will recede a bit but I'd leave it a few days.. are they black claws or white ones? Obviously if they're white, you can hold them up to the light to see where the pink blood supply bit it. If they're black, I'd be over cautious and do as you have done - a bit at a time!

You can buy a styptic (?) powder from the pet shop, just in case you do nick a claw a bit too short - it stops the bleeding in no time

Sophie
x
 
Thanks for that, i did order a styptic thingy off ebay but it just arrived this morning! Bella and Sammy's are white but Trixi's front paws are quite dark. i'll keep an eye on them and be a better mummy in future! mallethead xx
 
If just one paw is dark clawed then do the white ones first and take a similar amount off the black one - should be a good indicator!

They seem to be growing quickly - Spring time!

Sophie
x
 
I wonder why so many people say they are frightened to trim gps claws? If you do accidentally cut them too short and they bleed nothing terrible is going to happen to the pig. The owner will suffer more whilst the pig carries on perfectly as normal. Gp bleeding time and clotting time is relatively short, the pig will not bleed to death, leave well alone. It seems as though human beings feel compelled to always "do something"
 
Tiger has a mixture of black and white claws so I do as stated above I do his white ones then cut the same amount off the black (possibly leave slightly longer though just incase as am a whimp). It seems to work. They do need cutting again seems to be about once a month maybe I don't cut short enough!
 
alcesterpigs said:
I wonder why so many people say they are frightened to trim gps claws? If you do accidentally cut them too short and they bleed nothing terrible is going to happen to the pig. The owner will suffer more whilst the pig carries on perfectly as normal. Gp bleeding time and clotting time is relatively short, the pig will not bleed to death, leave well alone. It seems as though human beings feel compelled to always "do something"
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Bella bled for a good 45 mins so I'd rather not go through that again, plus I keep my own nails quite long and I know how painful it is when one is accidently ripped off! I can only assume gp's feel some kind of pain so I don't wanna put them through that if it can be avoided x
 
I think little and often has always worked for me, I too don't like the idea of making my piggies bleed. Once the better weather comes and they can go out regularly on the patio, this usually helps keeping them trim. x
 
Yep I do little and often here too. I hold Peter trims! jasper is so good at being still but Mr Twinks oh he hates it! Haha! Also if you have a pig with black nails (all mine are!) then you can shine a torch underneath to see where the quick is so you don't cut too far. Works for us!

Towel wrapping can help too depends on your pig, I need a harness on a crane to secure Twinkle! :(|)
 
Eliza has white nails but she is a wriggler where as Connie has black nails but stays still. We always just trim the ends just to be sure as again like already posted, I wouldn't want them to be in pain by their nails being cut to short. I am a nail biter :red so know how painful it can be when a nail is too short and wouldn't wish that on my piggies.
 
Clipping the quick does cause a little pain. Bleeding can be stopped in quite a few ways - a small firm pinch of the toe, styptic powder, haemostatic spray, and cornflour to name but a few.

I trim 112 nails (ok, eight pigs...the nail count sounded impressive :)) ) every 2-3 weeks on my own, I almost always manage to slightly catch one quick. It is a novelty not to! I have a variety of black and clear nails, I always trim the clear nails first so that I know roughly how much I can afford to take off the dark ones.

It took me three years to learn to trim nails on my own. I had the help of my mum before then - I held the pig, she clipped the nails - but when the twins were born in '06 I went solo on everything with the pigs. Takes some learning but really, the more you practice the better you get. Once you learn the skill, the knack, that works for you and your pigs, you will find your confidence just fine.
 
I hate cutting the nails. I try and just trim off a little bit every month. Some of mine have got curled nails and they are a nightmare to hold still, so I just do the best I can.
 
I'm not very keen on cutting their nails but I do it. Blossom always sounds like I'm murdering her. Daisy is as good as gold but she has black nails so it really is a quick trim for her.
 
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