My guinea pig won't let me trim their nails. What's the best way?

If your local Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach offers grooming services, they likely can trim your guinea pig's nails. You would need to call them directly to request pricing. You can also have your veterinarian trim the nails and show you how so you can do it at home if you choose.

I think the best way to find out whether your local PetSmart can clip your guinea pig's nails is to call them and ask. However you can also go to your vet and have the techs show you how it is done properly.

The nails of your guinea pig are borderline long, . The nails help your guinea pig to have traction on smooth surfaces. This is important, as a guinea pig is a prey animal and needs to get away quickly , if necessary. You can use normal nail clippers to cut Milo's nails. Make sure you inspect the nails thoroughly and do not cut into the quick (where the blood vessel runs). It may be best to have a vet tech at your vet's show you how to do this properly.

You can buy Trimmers at any pet store, but also human toe nail trimmers turned sideways work great too. Make sure you just get the white tips, do not get close to the pink quick. If they have black nails use the white nails as a guide on how far to cut the back ones. You probably don’t need to trim them more than every 2 months or so.

Hello. Thank you for using PetCoach! The first thing I see is that Ella needs her nails trimmed desperately. If you don't know how to do it yourself you will need to get her to a vet so they can do it for you and teach you how. You can also find YouTube videos on how to do this. The second thing is that her foot is very red/irritated and it looks like she has fecal material stuck to it. I suspect she has a skin infection. This should not happen unless she is sitting in a dirty cage, has incorrect bedding and/or a cage with a wire bottom. I suggest you review your husbandry carefully to make sure you are doing everything correctly. The best bedding is Care Fresh. https://www.walmart.com/search/?query=care%20fresh%20pet%20bedding&typeahead=care%20fresh While you are waiting to take her to a vet, I suggest you soak her feet in a dilute betadine solution for 5 minutes twice a day. After soaking, dry the feet very well before putting her back into a clean cage. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Equate-First-Aid-Antiseptic-Topical-Solution-8-Oz/10324543 Hope this helps. Best wishes.

I suggest you consult with a local veterinarian for help. They can examine Lucky to make sure there is no medical reason for his biting. They can also teach you about nutrition, health care and how to trim the nails. This will be your best option.

You can try contacting veterinary offices in your area as often they will do nail trims on guinea pigs. If you cannot locate one that will see guinea pigs in Sterling, there are several in Fairfax that see exotic pets, such as this one: http://www.seavs.com/ You can also attempt to trim the nails yourself if you have someone to help you hold your guinea pig. You can read more about this at: https://www.thespruce.com/grooming-guinea-pigs-1238883