The dry pasta trick for clipper-sound fear

A lot of dogs aren't afraid of the nail trim itself. They're afraid of the snap. The University of Illinois vet school's handout suggests clipping a piece of dry spaghetti near your dog's paw to copy that sound, and giving a treat after every snap.

How to run it

1. Start a few feet away. Snap, treat. Repeat 5 times.
2. Over several sessions, move closer until you're snapping pasta right beside the paw.
3. If you use a grinder, run it far away at first and slowly bring it closer while your dog stays relaxed.

When the sound gets a happy "where's my treat?" look, move on to touching the tool to a nail.

Sources: Univ. of Illinois Vet Med: Trimming Away the Terror (PDF)