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October 14, 2009

As I watch Smart Dog University’s ongoing video blog series on dogs and toenails (part 1, part 2), I know deep down that dogs of any age can overcome various issues with enough work. But, as I think about Ginko, I wonder if I’ve simply reached the age of acceptance with him. He is nine now, and I just don’t know if worrying about his few remaining sticking points is useful.

Would I rather not have to muzzle him and have toenails be such an ordeal? Sure. Did I make mistakes that got me where we are with his toes? Yep! Is starting over NOW worthwhile? I’m beginning to think not.

I’m well aware that various real-life drama may have reset my priority meter, but I wonder if other serious dog people simply reach a point where working on something in a dog who is really pretty happy 99% of the time is an exercise in something other than dog training.

About the Author Roxanne Hawn

Trained as a traditional journalist and based in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, USA, I'm a full-time freelance writer for magazines, websites, and private clients. My areas of specialty include everything in the lifestyles arena, including health and home, personal finance and other consumer interests, relationships and trends, people and business profiles ... and, of course, all things pet related.

I don't just love dogs. I need them in my life. Seriously.

  1. I would say so — and not just when the dog is older. Acceptance is a big part of love; it’s the whole idea of loving someone for who he or she is.

  2. We found a novel solution to nail-clipping: The Mannersminder! Our dogs are so obsessed with it that you can do anything, including nail clipping or giving intramuscular shots, without them even looking away from it.

    But, they are food-obsessed.

    With dogs who have lived with us since puppihood, we’ve tended to accept that certain things won’t change when they get older and stop trying. But, our dog S came to live with us when he was 9 or 10, and we changed a lot of his habits that really bugged us at first. So, now we know how malleable an older dog can be so I don’t know whether we’ll be so accepting when our current dogs get older.

    BTW, one of S’s major issues was nail-clipping, and using a mannersminder, we solved it.

  3. Oooh, the infamous toenail clipping. My Java is about 18 months so we are still working on it. She just keeps trying to pull away, which makes me afraid I’m going to clip a vein. I just cut the tips and don’t worry about getting them as short as they should be. The hope if that eventually if I do it enough, she’ll quit trying to pull away.

  4. Our momma looks at clipping nails like this: How would you feel if someone came at you with clippers, asked you to take off your shoes and socks and then said they are gonna clip you’s toenails. You wouldn’t be all that fond of the idea, either. So, she takes our attitude in stride and understands that it is a leap of faith that we allow her to keep our toes nice and neat. Sometimes she needs someone to rub our ears to distract us – but the job does get done even if it is just one foot a day.

  5. If Ginko is 9 and pretty happy and doing this work will cause both of you stress and strain, it only makes sense to me to let it go. We all have our weird points.

  6. Interesting points. I do hope that other people sometimes deem things a lost cause or an insurmountable task, because I’ve done it with my dog, too. (Though, she is young, so I have less of an excuse many times.) I think, especially in the case of older age, sometimes you have to just let some things go. No dog is perfect – I firmly believe that!

    In Ginko’s case, anyone who thinks you’re a bad person for accepting his quirks is crazy! You do more for your dogs than 99% of the population.

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