Rottweilers Ate My Laptop

Rottweilers. Computers. Cameras. World Domination. Not necessarily in that order.

Rottweilers.
Computers. Cameras.
World Domination.
Not necessarily in that order.

Axel embraces the joy of the self-pedicure

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Last month I wrote about our experiences with Shirley Chong’s doggie nail file. Freya still doesn’t see any reason to do her own nails, but Axel is still enjoying it way more than you’d think a dog, especially a boy dog, ever could.

For anyone who came here hoping to get some tips on how to teach a dog to use the nail file, sorry. I haven’t pursued the issue with the uninterested Freya, and Axel almost didn’t need instruction or encouragement. The best suggestion I can give you is to read the original article on Shirley Chong’s site. Basically, you are shaping the behavior by rewarding the dog for pawing or scratching at the board.

Here’s the video proof of Axel’s joy of pedicure:

(NaBloPoMo | August ’09: 23 of 31 | 75% Challenge: 211 of 274)

Late to the party again: doggie nail file

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As you know, I’m often late to the party, like I was with the FURminator. Coincidentally, it’s another dog grooming aid that’s been around for a while, but that I’ve never tried until now: Shirley Chong’s Doggie Nail File.

A while ago, Denise told me that the owner of one of Axel’s half-siblings used a similar device to keep his dog’s nails short. I mentioned Shirley Chong’s article, and then kind of forgot about it.

I am guilty of not keeping my dogs’ nails at a perfect length. Neither one is very good about at-home nail trimming (although Freya will roll over on her back to have her nails trimmed at the vet, go figure). I was near the hardware store today and figured this was worth a try. Easier than wrestling the dogs into submission and hog-tying them for nail trims (you don’t think I really hog-tie my dogs, do you? Although if you’ve ever had a dog that was bad about nail trims, you’re not objecting to the practice either, are you?) and cheaper than taking them to the vet or groomer.

I already had a board that was close to the suggested size: my board was a 1 x 8 (if anyone can tell me why 1 x 8s are not in fact 1″ x 8″ I would love to know, by the way), 30 inches long. I spent the huge sum of $7.59 for a 1.5-foot length of 4″ and a 1.5-foot length of 2″ 3M Safety Walk Tape. I did not cover the entire board so I would have a non-rough area to grab.

As I’ve mentioned before, Axel was raised by a cat, so it was insanely easy to show him that I wanted him to scratch the board. He seemed to know what to do with a “scratching post” when I showed him with my hand, and then took his paw to demonstrate what I wanted him to do. I did not need to use the clicker at all, and I barely needed to give him any food rewards. Freya, however, tried to raise that cat to be a dog, and she really didn’t want to scratch the board, even with food, praise and clicker. We’ll try again, though, as she wasn’t violently objecting or anything, just very uninterested.

I’ll get some pictures or video at a later date, for those of you who are late to the party like me.

If you haven’t visited Shirley Chong’s site before for this great tip or a number of excellent training articles, visit or bookmark it now!

(NaBloPoMo | July ’09: 26 of 31 | 75% Challenge: 183 of 274)