Nails - how long?

[Giselle]

I was Dremeling the pups today, and I was just wondering how long you all like your dog's nails to be, especially performance pups. I've been hearing that performance owners like to keep the nails as short as possible, but I also hear that some prefer to keep the back nails slightly longer for better traction. I was just wondering what the norm was over here.

Here are Ivy's nails.
Back paw:


Front paw:


Too short? Too long? Right on the money? How do you all like your dogs' nails?

[Catlady711]

While I'm not a dog owner, however if I were to encounter nails like that on a dog at work, I'd concider them to be nice short nails, and if I had a dog I'd like that length myself. I don't know if that opinion helps you out any though.

[Hellow]

I like to keep Reggies just an little longer than that so as to shield her pads from debris in the yard.

[cali]

you have your dogs nails REALLY short compared to what I do. I dont like then really long, but I keep then at about the length where they just barly touch the floor, so that there is some light clicking.

[slleipnir]

Mine are a lot longer...but Zeke hates his nails being clipped and it's really hard to do. Josie's nails are a good lenth and for some reason I never have to cut them? How do you cut them short and they not bleed? or is it something you have to do over time?

[pessimisaurus]

Ive learned a lot from clipping dozens of nails 5 days a week for the past 4 years. lol first of all- all breeds have different types of nails. some breeds' quicks never grow, or they grow slowly anyway, so even if they are long you can cut them way back (rottie and german shepherd for example). however, many breeds' quicks grow with the nail, so if the nail is too long, you may only be able to cut a small amount at a time (pugs and beagles for example). a dog with the latter type of nail needs to have tiny amounts trimmed off every couple days in order to get them short again. also, different dogs' nails grow at different rates. some need them trimmed every 2 weeks, others can literally go every 2 months. also depending on the shape of the foot/toes and the dog's gait, the nails may be longer/shorter depending on how much get worn down by walking. so basically, it all depends on the dog. my personal opinion as an anal nail person is cut them as short as you can without hitting the quick. and when the dog is standing still the nails should not hit the ground. the length you showed is perfect and typical of properly trimmed dobermans- their feet are shaped as such so the nails are a lot closer to the ground than most other breeds, so their nails should be shorter. german shepherds and pit bulls for example tend to have flatter feet so their nails are farther from the ground and tend to be longer.

[Giselle]

Yeah, I've noticed that dobes seem to have shorter nails than usual. That could be because most of the dobes I've seen are in the conformation ring, though. Also, I think Doberdawn's article really must hit home for dobe owners and a lot of them have probably converted to Dremels. After seeing this picture, I went out and bought a Dremel the next day


Slleipnir, Ivy's nails were pretty long when I first got her. Through bi-weekly nail grindings with the Dremel, I've gotten them down to the pictures in my first post (the above is from Doberdawn). I don't like clippers because I worry too much about quicking the dog, so I don't use clippers anymore. It's an "over-time-process" though.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

I don't have any pictures to share, but I like my dogs' nails really short. I don't want to hear them click ever while walking. I like to try and keep them about where Ivy's are, sometimes a bit shorter.

[Suki Wingy]

I'm bad with nails, Niño's are really long. There is a constant "click, click" sound when he walks and I know that's bad.

[CathyBogart]

Jasper's are a lot longer....how would I go about working them down to that length?

[Cinder & Smoke]

Different dogs' nails grow at different rates.
Some need them trimmed every 2 weeks ...

It all depends on the dog.

... when the dog is standing still the nails should not hit the ground.

German Shepherds and Pit Bulls for example tend to have flatter feet -
so their nails are farther from the ground and tend to be longer.

Cinder & Smokey, are almost the same size (50# and 45#), they walk & run an almost
identical step for step ... and grow their nails at noticeably different rates!
Cinder hardly needs a "trim" at 2 weeks; while SmokeMutt - OMG!
Smokey grows a set of CLAWS in less than two week's time ... he sounds like
a tap dancer!

I'll easily trim TWICE as much off Smokey's nails as Cinder needs to shed for
similar "new sneaker" results.
I swear the boy eats "Nail Grow" supplements when I'm not looking!

[Freedom]

I don't like to hear them clicking on the kitchen floor. That is my clue to trim.

[Canis-Lupess]

Our Jess's have always been tough and difficult to wear down and the odd one would need clipping every so often. Now she's old, most of them need clipping every three weeks or so. She's always had big chunky paws and claws to match compared with her mother and her back feet are even bigger and chunkier than her dads used to be.

She's good about having them clipped though which is good but her quicks are a bit too long to get them as short as the ones in the photos posted here.

[IRescue452]

Boy,I'd love having a dog with those tiny nails. I've given up on Autumn's ever getting much shorter, at least I can keep Wallace's short.

[Giselle]

Jasper's are a lot longer....how would I go about working them down to that length?

Dremel:

Twice weekly for a couple months.