guinea pig nails
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Guinea Pig Nails
Just like humans, guinea pigs have nails that continuously grow. In the wild, normal everyday activities would naturally wear down nail length. However, pet guinea pig spend most of their days living in plush cages with soft bedding, which will simply not keep a guinea pig’s nails short enough. While you can add items to your guinea pigs cage like bricks, which will wear down their nails to some degree – there is no way to avoid the fact that you will need to trim an adult (babies and adolescents are less likely to need their nails trimmed, maybe just filed down if sharp) guinea pig’s nails on a regular basis. Always be sure to check the nail length on the back legs first as these tend to grow fastest.
What happens if you don’t trim your guinea pig’s nails?
Your guinea pigs nails will get hard, long, and start to turn inward toward the foot. If left completely alone, the nails will actually pierce the foot of your guinea pig – leading to pain, infection, and potential complications.
How to Cut Your Guinea Pig’s Nails
First of all, know that if you feel nervous about cutting your guinea pig’s nails the first few times – this is completely normal! Pretty much everyone feels this way. The only way to start to feel comfortable is by doing.
Any kind of baby nail scissors or nail clippers will do. Be prepared for your guinea pig to actively resist this grooming task. Sometimes its easiest to divide the task between two people – one person holds the guinea pig wrapped in a towel while the other clips the toe nails. Otherwise this is a task your pet will get used to over time.
Be sure that you make an active effort to avoid cutting the “quick” of the nail. The “quick” is the living part of the nail – easily visible on guinea pigs with clear nails (its pink) but hard to see on black nails. If cut, this will cause pain and bleeding. Try to cut as little as possible on a regular basis if you feel you have trouble determining the right spot. If you do end up accidentally cutting the quick, use a product like “Quick Stop” to stop the bleeding.
