# Let's talk nails?



## ashjac18 (May 18, 2012)

I was cutting Allen's nails for the second time and hes luckily awesome about it, except today I cut too close and he bled, I put pressure and it stopped right away. He was afraid for me to do the rest so I stopped

I was wondering how often you guys cut your hedgies nails?
Maybe Im doing it too often.


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## Quinn (Apr 24, 2011)

I cut them when I notice they're getting long. Maybe once to twice a month. I have cut the quick a couple of times and also feel awful about it. But it's an accident and it happens. So don't worry about it too much. I'm not sure you can trim their nails to often if you're trimming them when they need to be. Some nails grow faster then others. I trim the back ones far more frequently then the front.


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

I tend to cut every 2 weeks or so, though some of my hedgies' nails don't seem to grow fast and only need trimmed every month ish.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Same. I do it whenever I notice that they're getting long; we have about five pairs of cuticle trimmers (our nail clippers of choice) laying around the hedgehog room, bathroom, and living room, so there's always one nearby that one of us can grab and do the nails. For most of them it seems to be around every 2-3 weeks. The innermost nail on the back feet usually needs to be trimmed the soonest, it grows out long and straight and seems to grow faster than the others.


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## ashjac18 (May 18, 2012)

Thanks for the info, how do you get your hedgies to stay still enough? aha


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## sparkmanr (Aug 29, 2012)

Staying still, what that? Do Hedgies do that. My Milo doesn't know how to be still when he's not in his hedgie sack and when he's in there his feet are all tucked up under him.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

I just grab a foot and hold onto it. The rest of the hedgehog usually squirms around, but the foot is what matters, haha.


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## Erizo (Jul 25, 2012)

Our girl gets three foot and belly baths a week, and nail inspection is included in that. (A full bath with shampoo and everything every three months.) She didn't like the water or the clipping at first, but it became a part of her routine from the start. She likes her foot and belly baths now, in part because she gets a 'quill massage' with a toothbrush. She loves getting her quills brushed, and that keeps her occupied while her feet soak.

Nails are checked and we'll clip from 0 to 4 nails. She used to squirm like crazy when we tried to handle her feet. Now it is just a part of her routine. Really, it only takes a few seconds to check her nails and take a couple of clips. Because it is part of her regular routine, nail clipping is never a big deal at all. We've gotten a bit of the quick a couple of times, but not enough for her to notice. We keep cornstarch on hand, but have never needed it.

I think a lot of people make it harder than it needs to be by putting it off too long and clipping as little as possible. There are only six or eight nails that grow very quickly (mostly the back feet). (You do have to keep an eye on the front nails a little differently than the back. The back nails tend to grow longer. The front nails tend to curl under, so even if they don't look long, they do need to be clipped.)


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## ashjac18 (May 18, 2012)

thank you <3


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Yeah, the front ones have a "hook" shape like cat claws. They really only need the tips cut.

Like Erizo said - baths and nails become a big/stressful event if they're done less often and you wait longer out of being nervous or not wanting to stress out the hedgie. If they get it done more often, they're desensitized to it, and they don't care as much after a while.


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## jiynx (Oct 24, 2011)

I'd like to refresh this thread  Nail trimming has been really hard for me... us...?

I've been trying to trim Widget's nails since I got him a year ago in March. He is IMPOSSIBLE!! I've tried clipping them while he's having a foot bath, tried holding him in my palm and wait until I can grab his foot. But no avail 

Any tips? Anybody else having this hard of a time with their hedgies nails?


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## SquiggyTheHedgie (Jul 26, 2011)

Ugh, Squiggy is definitely a squirmer, and I have to clip his nails as often as four a week sometimes. He has long quicks and his nails grow ridiculously fast, and he has one particular nail on his left front paw thats faster than the rest and I have to clip often or it will start digging into his paw pads. No matter how many times we do it he still doesn't like it and he will fight me the whole time. I usually just wrap a sock around his belly, hold the ends of the sock in one hand, flip him on his back, and clip away. He's a chubby boy and the sock usually keeps him from balling up all the way and I can actually get his nails. For Squiggy, he has full spa days at least twice a week. He loves getting himself all dirty. Foot baths every time hes out for playtime or bonding, full baths once a week (sometimes twice), and nail clipping like every 3 days. Oh, and his frequent baths don't dry his skin at all, it stays very pink and soft at all times.


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