Our boy Riley has issues. One of them: absolutely no to any nail cutting. He will instinctively try to bite anyone who goes near his nails. In the past, we’ve dealt with this by giving him a little sedative before a visit to the Vet hospital. He would get pleasantly groggy and the deed would be done. But the last few times he’s had the sedative, he’s had an increasingly bad reaction to it. The last reaction was so strong that he was out of it for over 24 hours. Obviously we will not use it any longer.
But the nails are a problem. Especially for a boy who is finding it harder and harder to get around, especially on the hardwood floors in the kitchen, because of the progressive disease that has hit his spine. (Yes, we have throw rugs, but they can’t cover every inch of space.) What to do?
Stealth nail cutting. Last night, I sneaked the nail cutters into the den (on my dinner tray.) When he was finally fast asleep, I knelt beside him and clipped whatever nails I could get to. This will have to be a slow process over the course of several evenings – especially since I got a little over-zealous and clipped one nail a bit too much, causing it to bleed. Luckily I have some of that stuff that Vets use to stop the bleeding.
I know better. I used to work for a Vet. Lesson learned a second time. He’s okay, the sweet boy. More nail cutting is scheduled for tonight.
(I originally wrote ‘snuck.’ But then I wondered if that was the correct past tense of sneak. Turns out it isn’t. So ‘sneaked’ it is.)
Finished another scarf – this one is wool in a deep red shade. Is it just me or is red hard to photograph? The beautiful scarf that Mer wove was a challenge – I never seemed to capture the right shade. Too much fussing in photo editing invariably made the red too brassy. Both scarves are deep, yummy shades of red.
More yarn is on the way. Some of you have requested special orders or missed out on one of the color combinations. I’ll do my best to get them in the shop as quickly as my fingers and hook will let me. I’m also crocheting some more in the silk and bamboo combination – they are perfect for spring and summer and feel so silky to the touch.
I’m off to run some errands on this Monday morning. Have a great day.
Claudia, I’m excited about your etsy shop and the beautiful items in it. I think you all are going to do so well. I will be so happy to see Brenda put in a few of those pretty towels with rick rack that she put a picture of on her blog. I loved the colors of those too. Bless you all for inspiring us and helping each other.
I hate doing their nails. So glad that your shop is doing well. I don’t know what else you could do since he had such a bad reaction. Poor guy. If I put any rugs down our little dog thinks it’s a potty pad. Dogs are alot of work but so worth it.
Looks like you have your work cut out for you, Claudia. Good luck with the nail cutting and the crocheting! Hope you have a nice and productive day!
Claudia our Penny is around Rileys age and she is long haired so every summer we have to clip her hair short. She is part terrier and gets nippy so we get travel sickness pills from our vet. They make her groggy enough that she does not move the whole time we clip her. It last around 3 hours and then she is fine. You should check it out with your vet they will give Riley the proper dosage for his weight and age. As they get older I worry about sedatives with their aging systems.
Good Luck,
Sue
Our Heidi was the same way, sweet kind dog then if you tried that she was snapping. Glad your attack worked!
Clipping nails is a much hated atcivity here at Ladybug Cottage. You would think we were trying to kill them.
Suzan
Ladybug Cottage
Oh, I love that red scarf! And kudos to you on your nail clipping technique! Deb.
You can also try some stealth massaging of his paws. Some dogs and cats will eventually accept trimming because they learned to like having their paw pads massaged.
We had a soft muzzle that we put on our Schnauzer when we had to cut her nails.We got her used to wearing it without doing anything…then gradually worked up to cutting her nails. She would lie on the couch and I would just cut one at a time. It would be over, before she knew it and the muzzle came off. Then we did it the next time and cut another. Walking on the sidewalk acts like sandpaper on a dogs nails and might help keep them shorter.
Beautiful scarf Claudia! That’s too bad Riley hates getting his nails cut and the sedative affects him so hard. Thank goodness he sleeps so sound that you’re able to sneak up on him like that! Good luck for tonight ;)
Yes, I fight the nail cutting too. And I clipped one too short the other day. Didn’t know whether to cry or keep going. I am so very pleased for the success of the opening of your shop. I’m determined to get some work on mine done today. Love ya, Brenda
Stealth attack!..that’s the way it has to go.
I have trouble with red in photos, too. Wonder why that is?
Good luck…with the scarves and the nails.
lovin’ that red..so pretty!
I can’t believe he was that deep in sleep to not know you were clipping his nails. I don’t think there is any dog out there that likes it unless it is a show dog who is used to it. We do our dogs at home but will let the vet do it during their visits. Right now I have to think about tooth cleaning appts for ours. Toy dogs have issues with teeth and it can affect their health. I love to look at yarn in the stores and I really like to work with the bamboo yarn…love the way it feels!~Hugs, Patti
Kane is hard to do, also. Gary distracts him with a little piece of ‘treat’ in his hand and I snip the end of his nails. I only do a few at a time. That works well for him.It takes me at least 3 evenings to get them all done. Such is life.
Good luck on the nails! My big dog is really good about the nails and 2 of the 3 small dogs, but Frank, my fawn male, is a real brat about the nails! Good luck on the nails! :)
I think that red is a great shade. I also loved the green you posted not long ago. Poor old Riley. It’s sad about animal’s aging…not fun for some of us old humans either. xo, Susie(She Junks)
Nail clipping, with 7 dogs now I seem to spend way too much time clip clip clipping!
By the way large areas of red tend to look oversaturated on digital sensors. They are very difficult to process well. make sure your white balance is set and try under exposing a little. Also use good strong daylight and have the camera parallel to the subject
So great with a clever mom-hehe-
and Claudia, I love your sharfs ,also this beautiful red one.
I can see you got yourself a LINKY aswell, I hope you will go following mine,also.
Hugs,Dorthe
Dear Riley and Claudia, it is a sneaky thing indeed that must be done. I have to clean my cats ears and it is traumatic for us both and one cannot sneak up on a cat. I cannot get a true image of my red, or salmon colored flowers so I know what you mean. olive
We always used to give Maxie a little sedative before going to the vet period (the same one I take before going to the dentist) :)
Hardwoods are hard for older puppies to walk on. We had to get those little doggie booties for a Cocker Spaniel we had a few years ago. They helped but we could never get Maxie to wear his so we were always throwing little rugs everywhere so he could walk.
Good tip on the nail cutting. I have 2 dogs and I hate cutting their nails. But the vet charges too much, so I have to do it myself. GORGEOUS red color on the scarf!
Our little dog needs nails trimmed to but she is such a pig she will work on a bone while I do it quickly. I am amazed you can get more than one nail done while he is sleeping.
You are one sneaky gal .. amazing he was unaware!
Beautiful scarf and love the color! As for the poor doggie, you would laugh if you saw our floors. We have runners EVERYwhere because my GSD wipes out on the vinyl or hardwood floors without them. He has so much hair on his feet, even though we trim it. I’m surprised you were able to trim his nails without him waking up. Good luck with this project. My husband trims nails while I feed tiny treats to the dogs. So far, so good. Good idea that you’re doing this little bit by little bit. What a great dog!
oh that is Cha Cha Cha red. Very nice. Older animals are hard to care for some time. Patience will pay off even if you do one toe a night.
As I read Your post I kept hearing the theme to Mission Impossible in my head! Good luck tonight.
Blessings, Joanne
Chili hates nail trimming, too. I haven’t found a way to trim his nails without drama.
I’m in love with those obsession scarves now! So glad the Etsy shop is open, hope you have lots of success.
Claudia,
I love the scarves. Great post. Give your little boy Riley a hug from me.
Mrs. D
I had a sweet little dog who had the same problem. The vet was having to muzzle her to get her nails clipped, but I found a groomer who she loved and for some reason she allowed her to clip them. Don’t know what her secret was. Happy to see that your shop is doing so well.
Laura
You’re a good mommy, Claudia. I was always nervous cutting my dog’s nails, too.
I was thrilled for you to use the word sneaked. Snuck is one of my pet peeves. It is amazing how many people never use sneaked.