Nail cutting techniques :D

[ponylover317]

Alright, i am offically the worst nail clipper ever. Of course, an EXTREAMLY squirmy baby hedgie who never goes into a ball on her own and hates being on her back doesnt help....so any suggestions of the best way to clip nails? Or does anyone have certain techniques? Thanks

[ponylover317]

*bump*

[alsohere]

I am no expert, but I am a parent of my dear Mary Poppins, who is now one year old. When I first received Mary as an expected Christmas gift, I was dropped into a world with a steep learning curve and a precious hedgie life the cost of failure. I posted numerous questions on this forum, and I received wonderful and clear and concise answers. I could never be concise, so bear with me.

First is the frequency of nail cutting. I do not cut Mary's nails very often. Her back nails get trimmed every three weeks and her front nails get trimmed every month.

Second, I check her feet everyday. I look at each of her nails, and I wash her feet if she has "poopy feet," which, of course, is caused by her pooping in her wheel and peeing in her wheel and running in her wheel. I wash the wheel daily, so I do not have poopy feet often.

Third is the method of holding Mary. I hold her everyday. Everyday we go through the feet check, and so she is used to having her legs and feet checked daily --twice a day as I like checking her legs for strings. I check everything that goes into her pen for strings before putting whatever into her pen, but I am human and sometimes I miss something. I also do a pen check about an hour after I put new stuff in her pen. I have an active hedgie, and she checks out new stuff in her pen, and it doesn't matter when I put it in there, as if she's a territorial badger, she will journey out to sniff and see.

Fourth I keep a quick pen and water beside her pen. I like washing her feet before nail trimming, because I want make it a clean process in case I cut too deep.

Fifth I will clip her nails, paying attention to her behavior. Mary and I do the feet check often, so I know when something isn't quite right. All living creatures experience pain and sickness, so if I think my baby isn't feeling up to the trimming. I will wait until later. I am not saying I can tell when my girl has a headache, but I know when she is more grouchy than her normal huffy self.

Sixth, keep calm. If you cut her nail, it is ok. If you cut her toe off then you don't care about your hedgie or don't have the control to perform this task. Her cut nail doesn't profoundly affect her. It doesn't change a good day into a bad day, and she will barely acknowledge its existence. However, the quick bleeds a lot, scaring you, haunting you. Do not proceed with trimming her nails, but use the quick pen and stop the bleeding, feed her a couple of beetles or worms and some apples and peas, pet her, and I'm sorry. At the next feet check I examine the damage, and I proceed with the next nail to trim.

My methodologies are involved, because my hedgie is very precious to me. I love her, so I take the time to know my hedgie. Owning a pet is a large responsibility. Our animals help us in numerous ways, so please take the time to love and know your hedgie, so you two will know each other and be comfortable together.

[alsohere]

I just read the other thread you wrote about a month ago. I believe that thread contains all the information you need to know about nail cutting. My technique listed above is just my technique, which Mary and I are happy with. You should feel free to modify as you see fit. The best advice I can give you is love your hedgie.

[ponylover317]

Originally Posted by alsohere

I just read the other thread you wrote about a month ago. I believe that thread contains all the information you need to know about nail cutting. My technique listed above is just my technique, which Mary and I are happy with. You should feel free to modify as you see fit. The best advice I can give you is love your hedgie.

Thanks!