My Babies Had Their Dewclaws Removed

Some time ago we had a heated discussion about dewclaws removal. Some people could not accept that done properly it is really only very minor procedure at this age. Absolutely without comparisson to the problem caused by injury or removal at later stage.

This puppy had her's taken off only 4 hours ago, no blood and actually she screamed more when I tried to take a photo of her.

Aww look at that little squishy body and face :wub: :wub:

I can just see the little place where the dew claws were. :thumbsup:

i always wondered what the area would look like once they where removed,must say im suprised at the size of the wound,i expected it to be worse.

i can tell she is protesting over the photo :lol: :wub:

thanks for showing us :thumbsup:

Thanks for posting the picture, I always wondered what the wound looked like after they had been removed :thumbsup:

lovly puppy :wub:

just looks like red dot, and looks fine

maz xx

I WILL DEF HAVE ANY PUPS OF MINE DONE AGAIN BY A CERTAIN BLOKE :- "

AS YOU SAY , TAKES SECONDS MINIMAL IF NO NOISE AND ALL DONE (w00t)

I've never seen a pup after this procedure before. It's good to see a pic of of what it's like. Thanks for posting! :thumbsup:

much much kinder to do it now while they're tiny.

I used to have a jack russell years ago and as an adult he ripped his dew claw and it tore part way up his leg,it was awful and the incision for the operation was really huge and it took some while to heal.

i'm always happy to see dew claws removed when they're little.

I would personally prefer to see dew claws removed as a matter of course as dew claws in older pups and adult dogs can easily get caught up and ripped out causing some nasty injuries. :thumbsup:

I sometimes wonder if my dog's absolute terror of having her claws trimmed stems from when her dew claws were removed (I've no details about how itt was done - assumed a vet did it, but not certain).

She collapsed after having her claws trimmed at the vets a couple of years ago and was in shock (pale gums, very vague etc) for about 5 hours altogether. she hasn't had them done since and has only just stopped running away from me every time I pick up a pair of scissors for any reason - I haven't even attempted to try to cut her nails again!

pollyanna said:

I sometimes wonder if my dog's absolute terror of having her claws trimmed stems from when her dew claws were removed (I've no details about how itt was done - assumed a vet did it, but not certain). She collapsed after having her claws trimmed at the vets a couple of years ago and was in shock (pale gums, very vague etc) for about 5 hours altogether.  she hasn't had them done since and has only just stopped running away from me every time I pick up a pair of scissors for any reason - I haven't even attempted to try to cut her nails again! 

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how awful for you and her, shudder to think what must have happened

i always used to remove them myself with a dab of potassium permanganate crystals afterwards.first couple of litters i had were done by a vet and they were cauterised,the pups squealed when they were cauterised but not when their dew claws were removed.

pollyanna said:

I sometimes wonder if my dog's absolute terror of having her claws trimmed stems from when her dew claws were removed (I've no details about how itt was done - assumed a vet did it, but not certain). She collapsed after having her claws trimmed at the vets a couple of years ago and was in shock (pale gums, very vague etc) for about 5 hours altogether.  she hasn't had them done since and has only just stopped running away from me every time I pick up a pair of scissors for any reason - I haven't even attempted to try to cut her nails again! 

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My dogs also hate to have their nails cut, even the ones who did not have their dewclaws removed, that is nothing unusual. Actually, they run away if i just casually glance at the direction of the draw where the clippers are kept :b . I really do not think that your dog’s phobia could possibly be caused by the dewclaws removal. Usually, they are remover before the pups are 6 days old and at this stage the dewclaws are very underdeveloped and easily snipped off. Also their brains do not have the connections needed to feel pain the same way older pups do. If you think about it, if a baby (of any species) would feel pain the way older individuals do, they would be terribly traumatized during the birth process.

Of-course, it is possible that somebody hacked off your dog’s dewclaws when she was old enough not only to feel the pain but also to remember it. However, in that case the dewclaws would have been lot more developed and I would expect considerable scarring. Another possibility is that somebody cut her nails too short and hurt her.

If you never cut your dog’s nails they will get very long and may deform her feet. Some dogs wear off their nails if they get lot of walking on pavement, but I found that it does not work with Whippets. Maybe you could ask your vet to lightly sedate her? I would put her on her side and hold her in a way she cannot see what is happening to her feet.

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My dogs also hate to have their nails cut, even the ones who did not have their dewclaws removed, that is nothing unusual. Actually, they run away if i just casually glance at the direction of the draw where the clippers are kept :b . I really do not think that your dog’s phobia could possibly be caused by the dewclaws removal. Usually, they are remover before the pups are 6 days old and at this stage the dewclaws are very underdeveloped and easily snipped off. Also their brains do not have the connections needed to feel pain the same way older pups do. If you think about it, if a baby (of any species) would feel pain the way older individuals do, they would be terribly traumatized during the birth process.

Of-course, it is possible that somebody hacked off your dog’s dewclaws when she was old enough not only to feel the pain but also to remember it. However, in that case the dewclaws would have been lot more developed and I would expect considerable scarring. Another possibility is that somebody cut her nails too short and hurt her.

If you never cut your dog’s nails they will get very long and may deform her feet. Some dogs wear off their nails if they get lot of walking on pavement, but I found that it does not work with Whippets. Maybe you could ask your vet to lightly sedate her? I would put her on her side and hold her in a way she cannot see what is happening to her feet.





I think her dew claws were removed very young - they were not there when I first saw her at 9 days old, so it must be just a whippet thing in her.

I started to try to trim them when she was about 10 weeks - just nipped off the very end of a claw but even that terrified her so I left it. They were done properly when she was spayed at just over a year , and then again (as I mentioned) at about 2.5 yrs (she is 4.5 now).

Actually, she chews her back claws so they aren't a problem and her front ones seem to wear away or break off and don't get too long, so I have left it, but if she does start getting very long claws, I'll get the vet, of whom she is now very scared (and I've tried 3 different vets - 2 in my usual practise and one in a different one) to give her some sedation and clip them again.

Thanks for the advise and reassuring me it wasn't her dew-claw removal at the bottom of it - I just have to accept that my otherwise confident whippie is a whimp about claws! :teehee:

Cute little baby toes :wub:

mazncarey said:

just looks like red dot, and looks fine

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how much of a scar shows on the adult dog normally?

I am surprised at how clear the scars are on my whippet. As a big (21 "!) adult he has grown a lot from when the deed was done so I would have thought the scar wouldn't be very visible. Unfortunately I can't remember what my other de-clawed dogs were like, but that might mean they didn't have very noticeable scars. My present dog comes from an experienced breeder of several litters whom I suppose knows how to cut the dewclaws (unless she gets someone in to do it)

:thumbsup: Good on you for posting this Seraphina...

:cheers:

Sheena

Please mod/s can this pic be pinned?

...if required with one of an adult with dew claw injury for the sake of enlightenment?

Here is Stella's scar at 3 months

I think removal is the best idea - I've had a dog with a dew-claw injury and it was horrible and extremely painful for him.

I have to sedate one of mine to trim her toenails and she still fights but I'm going to persist because it's worth it to keep their feet comfortable for them - she's young and she'll learn it's not really that scary in time.

One of my older whippets used to be terrified but we persisted with her and she tolerates it now.. she just keeps her eyes closed and doesn't look!!! :lol:

and close up