As I nonchalantly enter the living room, they both somehow know that something is about to happen. My Labrador Retriever, Norman is, of course, curious and hoping that it is food related, Suzy the hound dog cautiously stays back, waiting to see what is going to happen to Norman.
The dreaded nail trimmers come out from behind my back and instantly, Suzy is gone, Norman is still hoping he can eat them and so begins the monthly nail trimming battles. For the longest time, I have been bringing my dogs with me to work, so the technicians can trim their nails for me, but it gets to the point when I can not stand the “click-click” on the floor anymore and decided I should learn to do it on my own.
Norman was just a puppy when I started cutting his nails at home, so I am fortunate that I can do his by myself, with treats involved! Suzy, on the other hand, is a rescue dog that is afraid of her own shadow, so you can imagine the anxiety of someone touching her feet would cause! Suzy requires an assistant to help with the nail trim, which, unfortunately, for all involved is my husband. God love him, he tries. He outweighs Suzy by quite a bit and is a very strong able-bodied guy, but do you think he could keep Suzy still?
So here we are, Suzy is muzzled, my husband is struggling to hold her, and I am practically standing on my head to see her nails, praying that I don’t cut them too short and give her a reason to be afraid of a nail trim. Norman is waiting outside, as he is a very enthusiastic and involved cheerleader for Suzy. Fast forward to ten minutes. My husband has been very graciously accepting constructive criticism from me; we are both sweating poor Suzy is shaking, but there is sweet silence. No more clicking on my floors!
Later that night, as the house is quiet, I can look back on those few stressful moments and laugh. As frantic as it feels at the time, it is time I get to spend up close and personal with Suzy, who usually keeps to herself. Then I hear it, she is shaking her head; the dread sneaks back in. I can only laugh, tomorrow I am going to have to clean her ears!
Written by BJ, CCR
