First Mani-pedi - How Old Should A Piggy Be?

Status
Not open for further replies.
Gizmo&Darwin

Gizmo&Darwin

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Apr 8, 2017
Messages
55
Reaction score
65
Points
160
Location
California USA
Our baby boar, Darwin, is two months old and although his nails are sharp, they don't look long enough to cut yet. Is there a common age for piggies to get their first mani-pedi? I read another thread about filing sharp nails, but his nails look a bit small for that, even.

We got our older boar, Gizmo, when he was almost full grown, and we have to trim his nails about every 3-4 weeks. My 11 year-old daughter and I team up to do the job but Gizmo's really mellow and my daughter often doesn't need my help at all. She's quick to finish the job too - snip, snip, snip, 'next paw, please.' I watch her closely and so far she hasn't made him bleed even once. Today I took this picture of our pampered piggy getting his mani. 20170416_113827.webpUsually I hold him with his back to my stomach while Allie clips, so his back is supported, but today he just totally relaxed and sat still for the 15 seconds it took her to finish the job.
 
Gizmo&Darwin said:
Our baby boar, Darwin, is two months old and although his nails are sharp, they don't look long enough to cut yet. Is there a common age for piggies to get their first mani-pedi? I read another thread about filing sharp nails, but his nails look a bit small for that, even.

We got our older boar, Gizmo, when he was almost full grown, and we have to trim his nails about every 3-4 weeks. My 11 year-old daughter and I team up to do the job but Gizmo's really mellow and my daughter often doesn't need my help at all. She's quick to finish the job too - snip, snip, snip, 'next paw, please.' I watch her closely and so far she hasn't made him bleed even once. Today I took this picture of our pampered piggy getting his mani. View attachment 61940Usually I hold him with his back to my stomach while Allie clips, so his back is supported, but today he just totally relaxed and sat still for the 15 seconds it took her to finish the job.
Click to expand...
I'm curious to find out how old too.My 2 girls are about 4 months old and have very sharp claws but don't look very long.
 
I got my girls at about 4 months old and my first attempt was at about 5 months old and they weren't particularly long, just sharp!
I just snipped the very ends off to bunt them a bit. Litteraly just a mm or so.
I have no idea how people file piggy claws, I've tried and it's totally impossible; there's not enough resistance to the file in a piggy toe!
 
I was a licensed manicurist 25 years ago and I know that a nail file can cause thermal burns or bleeding if you scrape the skin just right. I think our baby's feet and nails are just a bit too small to worry about trimming yet, but like you said, there's maybe 1 mm of growth we could possibly cut.
 
i just cut a tiny bit of the ends at 2 months,it gets the piggies more accustomed to the proceedure,use small clippers if possible.good luck.:)
 
There's also tiles - for example, when the pigs were outside on the grass, I moved a part of their run onto the tiles (making sure it's not too hot) and I've seen people say it works to blunt the ends a bit. Not sure how much it works as I didn't move it for that, but when the weather's nice it could be an idea. I don't think I could file a pig's nails, makes me feel a bit squeamish for some reason.

Also I've see people recommend giving veg for cage bars, so the piggy is their back legs. While feeding, quickly but carefully snip the front paws nails
 
The weather is very hot where I live, but I could put some tile in one section of their cage. Thanks for the idea!

I live in the "inland empire" area of southern California, which, for non-locals, can roughly be translated to mean the "desert area." It is already too hot where I live to let them outside even in the shade unless it is early morning. I envy all of you in the UK with the cooler temperatures (but I don't miss the snow.) :-)
 
Both of my girls, 3 and 4 months respectively, get their nails cut (little nips with a baby nail cutter) or we file down a mm or two. Their nails are so sharp as babies that they injure each other and themselves without fur to protect the majority of their bodies, so I found it necessary to dull the claws down.

Also, River's front nails started growing "curly" at least a month and a half ago, so it's been necessary to file those back, too. It's weird, they're still sharp baby nails, but they grow like adult nails.
 
Thanks for mentioning injury prevention. Although my piggies have fur and the only scratches I've seen so far have been on my own arms, I'm a little more motivated to trim the tips off of Darwins nails now. His nails could accidentally find an eye or nose.
 
We've always used Guillotine Clippers like these for adult piggies but for babies, whose claws are much softer, we find a pair of small human nail clippers does the treat. Just take off the very very tip of the nail, this will get rid of the sharpness. It's also worth practicing 'dry runs' of nails clipping for later in life. It'll become routine for your piggy which means less wriggles later on!
 
Gizmo&Darwin said:
Thanks for mentioning injury prevention. Although my piggies have fur and the only scratches I've seen so far have been on my own arms, I'm a little more motivated to trim the tips off of Darwins nails now. His nails could accidentally find an eye or nose.
Click to expand...

Skinny pigs have skin that is more delicate than human infant's, I swear. I spent yesterday holding my cousin's drooling infant (who I love, but dang, that was A LOT of drool, I thought the kid would get dehydrated), and even her baby skin was thicker with layers than the piggies' skin. Also, I recommend filing them (rotary files are wonderful), because when I cut nails they end up "blunt" but still sharp/ a bit ragged.
 
I've trimmed lightly from 4 months but also it's sometimes a bit of nail training too getting it done early and also allowing the pig to understand what's going to happen in the future making them feel secure also. A special bite of their favourite food at the end doesn't go amiss too! Food bribery...:raz:
 
I clipped just a teenie weenie bit off the ends of Darwin's nails last night. They are still wicked sharp but I know its wise to get him used to the routine. I hope he ends up as easy to work with as Gizmo
 
Gizmo&Darwin said:
Our baby boar, Darwin, is two months old and although his nails are sharp, they don't look long enough to cut yet. Is there a common age for piggies to get their first mani-pedi? I read another thread about filing sharp nails, but his nails look a bit small for that, even.

We got our older boar, Gizmo, when he was almost full grown, and we have to trim his nails about every 3-4 weeks. My 11 year-old daughter and I team up to do the job but Gizmo's really mellow and my daughter often doesn't need my help at all. She's quick to finish the job too - snip, snip, snip, 'next paw, please.' I watch her closely and so far she hasn't made him bleed even once. Today I took this picture of our pampered piggy getting his mani. View attachment 61940Usually I hold him with his back to my stomach while Allie clips, so his back is supported, but today he just totally relaxed and sat still for the 15 seconds it took her to finish the job.
Click to expand...
I'm not sure, @Wiebke you have been called!
 
ChloeCee98 said:
They've started to grow now tho!x
Click to expand...

Just clip the tip off at first when they nails start growing and then more once the nails grow out. If you have a wiggler or paw puller, it is advisable to leave some margin for error, especially whne you are not very experienced yet. If in doubt, ask a vet nurse; many vets will cut nails for a small fee if you find it hard.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top