How to Cut a Guinea Pig's Toenails
Guinea pigs are members of the rodent family, smaller than rabbits but larger than hamsters. Like most other rodents, guinea pigs have teeth that grow continuously, but the teeth are not the only part of guinea pigs' bodies that are always growing. Guinea pigs' toenails are always growing as well and, if left alone, eventually will curl back and begin to grow into the pigs' feet. Clipping the toenails should be a regular part of a guinea pig owner's grooming routine.
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Things You'll Need
- Towel
- Helper (optional)
- Flashlight (optional)
- Nail clippers
- Styptic powder or pencil
Instructions
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Wrap your guinea pig in a towel, leaving the paws hanging out where you can reach them. Guinea pigs generally do not like to be restrained, and the towel may help you hold your pet still.
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Hand the guinea pig to the person who is serving as your helper. Having such an assistant can be invaluable to someone who is inexperienced at clipping a guinea pig's nails. As you gain more experience, you may prefer to do it without help.
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Examine your pig's toenails, locating the quick. If your guinea pig has light-colored nails, you should be able to spot the quick easily; it is the pink part of the nail where the blood vessel begins. For guinea pigs with dark or black nails, you may need to shine a flashlight onto the nails to better see the different shadings.
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Use nail clippers to clip off the tips of your guinea pig's toenails. You can use nail clippers made for humans or the curved clippers designed for cats. Snip off only the sharp ends of the nails, taking care to avoid the quick on each one.
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Apply a styptic powder or pencil to stop any bleeding if you do happen to cut the quick.
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Unwrap your guinea pig and place it back in its cage.
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Tips & Warnings
Provide a hard surface, such as a stone or brick, in your guinea pig's cage so that it can wear down its nails. This will allow you to clip them less frequently.
If you trim your guinea pig's nails regularly, the quick will recede a bit.
You can find styptic pencils or powder in the shaving section of your drug store.
Be sure to wrap your guinea pig in the towel in such a way that it cannot turn its head to bite you. A guinea pig's teeth are very sharp.
As your guinea pig gets older, clipping its nails may get more difficult. The nails tend to become more irregular and brittle as the pig ages.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit meerschweinchen image by Petra Kohlstädt from Fotolia.com
