What’s the one downside to owning Cavalier King Charles Spaniels? The way they want to sit in your lap even in the heat of summer? The licking? The poop? No!

The real problem with owning a dog is their nails. I despise cutting the dog’s nails, and I’ll tell you why.

It’s these clippers. These guillotine clippers. To be fair, I find them easier than the scissor kind, but still. They are doom. Dog’s nails are unlike our nails in that in the center of those claws, they have some blood vessels and nerve endings. This is called the quick. And if you accidentally cut the quick, well, ow! The poor puppy cries, and I cry, and it just won’t stop.

I have learned a few tricks, however, that I would like to share:

How to stop the bleeding

Bingley showing the Quick Blood Stopper

This requires some planning. There is a product called styptic powder sold under the brand Quick Blood Stopper. It is a yellow powder which is quite easily applied using a moistened cotton applicator or Q-tip. The styptic powder also contains some anti-bacterial and pain killing agents and is just a good thing to have around for your Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.

Now, that’s all well and good if you have styptic powder. But if you don’t, try making a paste of cornstarch, flour and water.

The secret of nail cutting

The real secret of nail cutting is, in the words of Pixar’s Mater, “to not to.” If your dog is regularly walking on concrete sidewalks, her nails should naturally file down. However, this is Texas and it has been 107° for the past few weeks and no one’s going to fault you for not taking your Cavalier King Charles Spaniel for 30 minute walks.

Lulu checking out our Dremel

So the other secret is a product called a Dremel. You may already have a dremel in your tool box as it’s spectacular for creating some amazing pinewood derby cars. But if you don’t, the most basic model is about $35 from Amazon and is perfect for Cavaliers. And the best part about it is that you will not cut too far as it cauterizes the nail as it grinds. It requires a small learning curve for you and your Cavalier King Charles Spaniel so to help minimize that, here are some tips:

1. It can burn. Do not leave the dremel grinding for more than a second or your dog will feel the heat. I recommend taking a two or three second pause between grindings.
2. Use the low setting. It can go really fast, but low is all you need for nail trimming.
3. Watch out for hair. As Wendy and I learned the first time we tried it. Her hair got caught in the rotation and it took quite some effort to get her untangled. This is especially difficult on the dewclaws. Which leads me to…
4. Don’t forget the dewclaws. Cavaliers have a fifth claw on their front legs called a dewclaw. Some breeders remove these at birth, but if your puppy still has them, you have to make sure to file the dewclaw. An uncut dewclaw can cause other problems.
5. Go with the curve. The nail curves down, you want the rotation of the Dremel to go with the curve of the nail. It’s much harder to control if you are going the wrong way.
6. Let your dog be your guide. If the first time you use the Dremel your dog has a traumatic experience, then it’s likely to be a source of fear later on.
7. Bath Towel. If you wrap your dog tightly up in a towel, exposing only the paw on which you are working, she will feel more secure and your learning curve will be a much easier experience for the both of you.
8. Set aside some time. Depending on your puppy’s tolerance, the first time may take 20-30 minutes for the two of you to learn to get in the groove. This will become much quicker as the two of you get in the swing.
9. Charge the battery. Ours did not come fully charged and it takes about three hours. UPDATE: I have since discarded the battery version and have bought one that plugs in. Nothing worse than doing three paws and having a battery die. Makes the dog sound interesting though: padamp paclick padamp paclick
10. The quick can move. After you cut your puppy’s nails, the quick will move back further into the nail. This means that in a few days, you can cut his nails again if they are still too long.

We’ve added a couple of pieces of Cavalier King Charles Spaniel artwork to our home

This first, fun image was created by the very talented Heather Galler.  You can find more of her work here.

This second picture is by Susan Waddington of PolyDogz. She simply calls it “Cavaliers”, but the flowing hair on this picture reminds me of something else. I like to refer to this picture as “King Charlie’s Angels”.

Last night we watched the movie Best in Show on Netflix Watch Instantly.  It turns out this movie is exactly like showing AKC Cavalier King Charles Spaniels – in the same way that Mary Poppins is exactly like hiring a chimney sweep, or ABC’s Lost is exactly like flying on an airplane.

It sure was fun to watch.  Anytime this ensemble cast gets together for a movie, the result is a lot of fun.

2.  Crate pad/bedding to fit the crate.  We recommend having at least two so they can be washed frequently.  23×18 is good.  We like this crate pad. I will provide you with a small blanket that smells like home and mom.

3. Stainless steel food and water dishes. We prefer stainless because it can be sanitized in the dishwasher.  We recommend having at least two sets so that they can be washed frequently.  These bowls with rubber no-skid bottoms are great and have held up well for us. If you want to spoil your new Cavalier baby, nothing beats a hand thrown Spaniel Bowl for protecting their ears. These are all we will use for water, and they last forever.

4. Small Collar and leash. We recommend embroidered collars because often when dogs get loose, they lose their ID tags in the process.  An embroidered collar can have your phone number right on it, and if purchased online, costs about the same as a plain collar in a pet store.  Be sure to get a leash without a large buckle that might hit the puppy in the face and cause leash anxiety.

5. Engraved Tag. We highly recommend flat collar tags from boomerangtags.com.  These tags last forever and are deeply engraved on stainless steel instead of lightly engraved on aluminum or plastic like the ones in the pet stores.  Flat tags don’t jingle, don’t fall off, and can’t catch on something causing a strangulation danger.

6. Toys. We give raw carrots for teething and chewing. The specialist who cleans our dogs’ teeth recommends “Bully Sticks” as the only safe chew that actually cleans teeth. The best price we’ve found is at Costco.  We also like elk antlers, rope bones, fleece ropes and various squeaky toys.  Cavaliers seem to love things that squeak.  We are careful to watch our dogs and throw away any toys that start to fall apart. We tend to buy seasonal puppy and dog toys at pet stores on clearance after holidays.

7. Safety gate. If you have stairs, you may consider getting a gate to block them off while the puppy is too young to understand heights.  We’ve heard of far too many tragic stories of small puppies running straight through stair railings. We love metal gates and play yards by North States, because they are very strong and sturdy. You want a gate without any horizontal bars or diamond shapes that little paws could use to climb.

8. Grooming supplies. You’ll want a small pin brush, comb and slicker brush.  Our show dogs get brushed daily to prevent mattes, but your pet can probably be brushed weekly. We like the Isle of Dogs line of shampoos and conditioners.  If you prefer to buy something in a pet store, we recommend choosing a natural product that is dye and fragrance free to hopefully prevent any allergy issues.  We bathe weekly to maintain show coat, but you can probably bathe monthly unless the dog gets dirty, of course.  You’ll also want a tool for clipping nails. We prefer to use scissor style clippers from Millers Forge. Ask your vet to show you where to clip.

9. Waste bags for walks. There are many options, but cheap sandwich bags from the grocery store work well.

10. Food. We are feeding the puppy Acana Puppy & Junior.  It is a high quality, natural grain-free food that is corn, wheat, soy and by-product free and available at smaller, specialty pet stores, such as Pet Supplies Plus and Hollywood Feed.  I will provide you with a small bag of the food.  If you choose to feed something else, please mix the two foods together and switch over slowly.  It is best to always feed a food that is corn, wheat, soy, and by-product free as these ingredients can quickly cause health problems in Cavaliers.

11. Books. We recommend a wonderful book by Jane Killion, author of “Puppy Culture” called “When Pigs Fly”. This book is not just for difficult dogs and continues the clicker training, positive reinforcement training style we have started your puppy out with. We find many of the popular fad training books written by television personalities to contain too harsh an approach for Cavaliers.

There are many great books specifically about Cavaliers.  There are also many awful books full of misinformation. The best but also the most expensive is “Cavalier King Charles Spaniels in Fact and Fancy” by Barbara Garnett-Wilson.  This book is cheapest when purchased directly from the author:  http://www.laughingcavaliers.com/in-fact-and-fancy.htm If you can find a used copy online, we also love “Cavalier King Charles Spaniels Today” by Sheila Smith. This gem is unfortunately out of print.

Our favorite Cavalier King Charles Spaniel magazine is “Royal Spaniels”. Packed full of beautiful high-resolution photographs, this quarterly periodical is a true delight.

12 Exercise Pen. It’s certainly optional, but it really helps to have an exercise pen.  You can use it for the lifetime of the dog, if you ever travel and need to set up a place for him to safely potty off leash.  I have this one and love it: http://amzn.com/B00063KG0K . 30″ tall with a door will be all you’ll ever need, though I wouldn’t leave an adult dog unattended in one.  If you do have an exercise pen, you can keep the puppy in it when he isn’t being actively watched or if you have to leave for hours at a time. In it, he can have room to move around, a bed, food & water, and a puppy pad to potty on.

13. Training Treats. It is not necessary to waste money on unhealthy commercial treats full of preservatives and junk ingredients.  Try bits of sliced or string cheese or diced, cooked chicken breast.  Dried liver is good when you don’t have access to a fridge.  We also use Natural Balance food rolls sliced, frozen, then diced into small pieces. Your dog and his waistline will love you for it.

14. Puppy Training Class Contact your local AKC Cavalier Specialty Club and ask about recommended trainers in your area. Look for local small businesses or independent trainers who have a lot of experience and knowledge. Classes that take place in a pet store are often a waste of money, time and germs. Our trainer recommends the APDT website as the best place to begin your search for a positive reinforcement trainer.

Babies love Cavaliers, and Cavaliers do a great job tolerating babies.

We are thrilled to announce our first whole-color Cavalier King Charles Spaniel litter is here!  On March 28, our sweet Venice had a litter of 5 beautiful boys: 3 ruby and 2 black & tan.  At 10 days old, the puppies and their mama are all doing very well.  Please see our website for more photos. We intend to update it frequently as the puppies mature.

Venezia of Woodville is a gorgeous imported ruby from Woodville Cavaliers France.  Woodville has produced some of the top whole-colors in the world, and we think our Venice is a beautiful example.  The sire of the litter, Junior Champion Loranka’s Star Prince, is from the famous Loranka Cavaliers in the UK, which produces top Cavaliers of all colors.  We are so fortunate to have been able to use him as a sire for this litter, and we have great hopes for whichever puppy we keep.  Venice and Prince have both been health tested and cleared for heart, eyes, and patellas.  Their pedigrees will be posted on our website soon.