Please help me 🥺 (nail trim)

Rabbits Online Forum

Help Support Rabbits Online Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Cheesepaws

Active Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2023
Messages
37
Reaction score
34
Location
France
How can I keep my bunz nails short without cutting them? They are getting very long and seem possibly uncomfortable for them; they scratch the hutch floor I assume it's because of that
 
In nature, rabbit are diggers--this keeps the nail short as they are just like their teeth, constantly growing. You could possibly let the run around and dig to their hearts content, but this is not possible with a house rabbit. So your choice is to cut, use an emory board or dremel to sand them down. The emory board would take a lot of time and effort and I don't see any of mine staying still or even co-operative for the amount of time and effort it would take. A dremel with a sanding disc/drum would be marginally quicker but the same applies--most would not be co-operative with the amount of time to do all the nails and the noise of the tool would be a bother. I had 17 rescues at the time, so I asked my Vet's tech to teach me how to trim nails as it was very expensive to have 17 done. There used to be several tutorials here on "how to cut nails", but in the final analysis someone will have to trim the about every other month.
 
Like Larry mentioned, digging in dirt will help. If your buns can be safe outdoors from predators and have their vaccinations for myxo and rhdv1&2, having a digging area is one way, though you would need to keep an eye on the nails to make sure they're all wearing down well and evenly.

Otherwise, either you'll need to learn to trim them , or pay someone experienced trimming rabbits nails safely to do it, like your vet office.

Grooming

A rabbit trying to dig on things isn't necessarily because they're trying to wear their nails down. They aren't like cats in this respect. Rabbits dig at things because it's in their nature to dig. They will also dig at things because they want to try and move something, because they are hot or ready to rest and trying to prepare a spot to flop down to cool off or just to rest, or they'll dig at you to get your attention.
 
Like Larry mentioned, digging in dirt will help. If your buns can be safe outdoors from predators and have their vaccinations for myxo and rhdv1&2, having a digging area is one way, though you would need to keep an eye on the nails to make sure they're all wearing down well and evenly.

Otherwise, either you'll need to learn to trim them , or pay someone experienced trimming rabbits nails safely to do it, like your vet office.

Grooming

A rabbit trying to dig on things isn't necessarily because they're trying to wear their nails down. They aren't like cats in this respect. Rabbits dig at things because it's in their nature to dig. They will also dig at things because they want to try and move something, because they are hot or ready to rest and trying to prepare a spot to flop down to cool off or just to rest, or they'll dig at you to get your attention.
Thank you that helps a lot
 
Like Jbun said I love letting my rabbits run around in a pen outside it's fun to watch and they love it! Even if there is some snow on the ground my buns love to eat it but I don't keep them in it too long just so their paws don't get cold and i show my buns so their paws and toenails can get pretty dirty digging so it needs i little extra care to clean them but yes deffinatley a plus not have to trim their nails so often!😄
 
I'm a newbie myself, but I talked to my vet about this exact issue with Briar Rose as she wasn't confident being handled at all and the quicks in her nails were really long. My vet said it was fine to put a slate tile down for her to hop across and wear her nails down gradually (and the quicks would recede as her nails shorten) so I'm placing one by her water dish when it arrives. She just advised that, as with everything that's not safe to eat, try something else if they chew it enough to break any fragments off.
 
I have a question….
sorry if doing this wrong; I’ve always used this platform when posting a reply.
now I need some advice…
how often and how much banana can you give your bun?
i gave Minx a small piece of banana about a week ago while I was standing by the kitchen sink. Now whenever I am in the same place cutting an apple or anything, she runs over and stands high waiting for banana. I know there is sugar in them so how much and how often can I give her some. I offered some of my apple 🍎 but no interest there!
please help!
Yvonne
 
I have a question….
sorry if doing this wrong; I’ve always used this platform when posting a reply.
now I need some advice…
how often and how much banana can you give your bun?
i gave Minx a small piece of banana about a week ago while I was standing by the kitchen sink. Now whenever I am in the same place cutting an apple or anything, she runs over and stands high waiting for banana. I know there is sugar in them so how much and how often can I give her some. I offered some of my apple 🍎 but no interest there!
please help!
Yvonne

Please create your own thread in the appropriate subforum, in this case either 'Nutrition and Behavior ' or 'General Rabbit Discussion ' , as your question is unrelated to this threads topic.

https://www.rabbitsonline.net/threads/how-to-post-on-the-forum.92892/
 

Latest posts

Back
Top