About Penny DiLoreto Expertise As a certified veterinary assistant and a dog breeder, with over 16 years of hands on experience, I am qualified to answer questions in the following categories; General pet health issues, dog grooming, puppy socialization, dog breeding, and basic dog training
Experience In accordance with the Veterinary Assistant program requirmements, I completed 200 hours of intern work under the supervision of a licensed Doctor of Veterinarian Medicine, and volunteered the Escondido Humane Society
Organizations AKC, ACA, and ABA
Publications I have several articles related to; dog grooming, dog behavior issues, and medical topics, printed on various computer websites and free article content sites. If you would like to preview my articles, links to those sites, and articles, are posted on my website located at www.puppies-dot-com.com
Education/Credentials I have a Certificate of Competency from the San Diego Country Regional Occupational Veterinary Assistant Program, and attained Occupational Competencies in the following categories: Animal Handling and Restraint, Vaccines and Injections, Health and safety, Veterinary Laws/Ethics/Industry Data, Biohazard Waste Disposal Laws, Medicating and Grooming Procedures, Medical Math, Breed Identification, and Parasitological studies.
Awards and Honors I received an Outstanding Student Award for my accomplishments in these studies from the ROP program.
Past/Present Clients A partial listing of my past and current clients can be viewed on my website www.puppies-dot-com.com by clicking on the Testimonial Page.
Expert: Penny DiLoreto Date: 3/20/2008 Subject: Trimming my Schelties nails
Question No matter haw we try we just can't get our sheltie to let us cut his nails. he will act up to the point where we are concerned he will hurt himself trying to get away. Is there a sleeping pill for dogs that we can administer so he would sleep through the process?
Answer Hi John, I understand how frustrating it is to have a dog that will not allow you to groom him properly, and the thought of sedation, in order to trim his nails, might sound like a good idea, but I highly recommend against it.
There are products on the market, like Diazepam, designed for the treatment of behavior problems such as; separation anxiety, fear of loud noises or thunderstorms, territorial or social aggression between animals, urine marking or spraying, and hair loss due to excessive licking or grooming. However, most of these medications are designed for long time use, require a prescription, and can have serious side effects.
With animals that are fearful of toe nail trims, I have discovered that instead of trying to trim all the nails in one session, to spread nail trimming over multiple sessions such as; one nail per 15 minutes, per 30 minutes, per hour, which ever works with your schedule and how well your pet responds.
I always recommend that two people work together for toe nail trims. One person holding the pet while speaking reassuring words, and the other person performing the actual nail trimming.
After each mini nail trim, be sure to give your dog lots of praise followed by his favorite treat. Between nail trims, make it a daily habit of lifting the dogs legs and touching his feet while praising him for allowing you to do so.
I hope I have been of some help with your grooming question. I also have a video posted on Youtube, that I have created titled, "Doggie Pedicure" that might be helpful. The address is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYxK9DnAl_o
