How to teach your dog to do their own nails

Is your pooch shaking in fear of nail clippers or a Dremmel? No need to worry! You can employ your trusty nail scratcher to teach your dog to do their own nails! Keep reading to find out more!

Step 1: Make the nail scratcher!

All you’re going to do is buy a cutting board, sandpaper, and some tape. Put the sandpaper on the cutting board and tape it on. Easy peasy!

Step 2: Click and Reward your pup for interacting with the cutting board

This is a training technique called shaping. Whether your pup looks at the cutting board, lifts a paw, or does ANYTHING, you’re going to click & reward. We’re going to slowly (but surely) get our pups to be really excited about the cutting board.

Even better — if your pup already knows the “shake hands” or “paw” cue, you’re going to prompt your pup to do that NEAR the cutting board. If your pup’s nails end up hitting the actual cutting board, you’re going to give them a JACKPOT — extra treats and praise.

Step 3: Add in the cue ‘scratches’

Once your pup is regularly scratching at the board, you’re going to add in the cue ‘scratches.’

It’s super important we wait to add in the verbal cue until your pup is regularly performing the scratching behavior.

During the ‘acquisition’ stage of learning, which is when a pup is still figuring out what to do, verbal cues can often be counterproductive. This can occur because the pup is so preoccupied with understanding what they should be doing that they block out the verbal cue. Consequently, this may result in the word becoming ‘background’ noise, making it more difficult for the pup to learn the verbal cue.

Step 4: Reinforce HARDER scratches

When your pup adds more pressure to the scratcher, mark & reinforce with extra praise and treats. You’ll keep going until your dog is regularly scratching the scratch board with confidence!

If you’re more of a ‘visual’ learner, be sure to check out the video below where I demo each step!

TROUBLE SHOOTING

When it comes to getting your dog’s nails trimmed, it’s important to bring them to the nail scratcher instead of the other way around. Introducing any new or unfamiliar object to your furry friend can be stressful and cause more fear, which we want to avoid. Remember that taking small steps at a time will lead you to your goal quicker than trying to rush every single step.