Grooming

[Valerie]

What is the NDT way to do dog grooming?

Eka's hair grows long over her eyes and I would like to trim it up so we can see her eyes and she can see (though it doesn't seem to bother her). Getting scissors near her eyes is very hard to do. I finally got them trimmed a bit the other day but I think it took me about 20 min for 4-5 cuts cause she was moving her head around so much.

Also for trimming her nails, she won't let me get the trimmers near her feet. I could hold her paws tightly and just let her chew on my hands and do it maybe, but I was hoping there was a better way.

Someone, I think Angelique, said her dog stands on a sawhorse to get his nails trimmed? How do you work up to that? I've seen the vet episodes of Quantum Canine, but not sure how to apply it. And with only one person.

[Up Da Crick]

hey valerie. something i've done since i got my dog @ 8months is groom her legs and hold her paws, spread the webs out and massage that area.
She will be introduced and subjected to children throughout her life, and they could possibly touch any area on her at any random and rapid or hesitating pace. so the idea was to get her familar with the feeling of someone touching her any place on her. (Shes a skittish dog to boot since day one. maybe it's all me creating the skittishness, but she wasn't eager to leave either when i got her) Although the paws arent that likely to be touched by the kids often, i wanted to make sure those too were comfortable with her. now things are fairly smooth, i dont trim her nails, but i suppose in the future something like that may be possible if i take it confidently, and relaxed. assertiveness has it's place. but i've found being assertive and not relaxed can lead to conflict with the dog. IE: walking and being pulled on the leash, it's much easier for me to keep the leash less tense if i jog or run. she's got quite the appetite for exercise.
Timing would be critical as i have read its important in blogs by neil and kevan. definitely don't start grabbing for her hands if shes in an energetic mood. i may be taking the wrong approach or suggestions could be wrong but i want to make sure my girl knows the feeling of my hand on her paw, lightly and firmly. and i think when you have a firm and comforting grasp on the paw, the proper clipping of a nail should be less shocking.

Hope that Helps, (anyone) correct me if i'm wrong.
Cheers

[neilsattin]

think of the sawhorse as a REALLY high/narrow box. You could also try a rock wall, etc. You don't have to really spend too much time working up to it - just try it!

Essentially you are using a dog's primal fear - the fear of falling. Not that you're scaring the dog - the idea is that simply your dog will focus more on retaining physical balance, which leads to emotional balance as you do grooming. You'll want to keep tension on the leash, so it does take practice to do alone. Excellent if you can try with an assistant - so one of you does dog mgt. while the other does grooming.

Try to keep it LOW-KEY though. This is (another) good time to be gradual. Be satisfied with a few snips of the scissors, or one or two nails clipped.

*high narrow box as in the "box work" that I teach on DVD #2 - or Sit/Down/Stay/On the Box from the blog.

[Sang]

I can attest to how well this can work. One of my dogs has always gotten so stressed out about having her nails trimmed. We spent years rewarding her with treats after trimming every nail, trying to make it a "positive" experience for her. She never improved. That is until Kevin clipped her nails.

Just like in Angelique's and Neil's examples, Kevin just took her to a rock, got her up on it, and then Kevin was able to clip all her nails without a problem, and more importantly, without her being stressed. She was so relaxed having her nails trimmed. Mind you, this all took less than 5 minutes, including the actual nail trimming itself. Ever since that moment, she now no longer gets stressed about having her nails trimmed.

Getting up on the rock was a problem she could solve and figure out on her own, which let her feel in control. And as long as she felt in control, then everything in her world is right and in flow.