...both Barnum and Bailey have double dew claws and when they were first seen by thier vet at 13 weeks she could not help but to think these 'Danes' had a mix of either Saint Bernard or Great Pyrenses in them. Now at 20 weeks, they are looking complete Dane except they both are slightly under height/weight requirement for their age. I' including a pic of Bailey's thumb. The picture does not do justice to size of this bulging part with two nails ...it looks like a blump 'Chic-fil-A' nugget with two nails attached. Barnum's nails and pads are black and not as obvious. They were almost named Ernest and Hemingway after the Key West 'Hemingway' cats. Anyway...anyone ever had/ seen a Great Dane with that?
Yes those are characteristic
Yes those are characteristic of the Great Pyrenees in fact they are part of the breed standard that they have them on both rear feet, but I've seen them in other dogs, too. Some dogs don't even have rear dewclaws, while others have them on all 4 feet and then some have the doubles on one or two feet or even all 4. It's just a quirk that can really happen in any breed. It's genetic so somewhere along the line someone passed it along, but not necessarily a Great Pyrenees.
Oh, and as far as removing them, I usually recommend leaving them along, especially if they are pretty firmly attached. If they are going to be running through brush or some other activity that might catch them, maybe remove them, but otherwise they usually don't cause a problem. Just make sure you trim the nails regularly because they won't get worn down as much as the others.
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((¸¸.·´ ¸.·´ -:¦:- Lauren -:¦:-
-:¦:- ((¸¸.·´ Guinness' Mom
thank you for the info....
...we have never thought about removing them and our vet who personally trimmed their nails last time did not mention anything about removing them. You are very right about double claws needing extra clipping and for now the vet's office does Barnums because his are rather 'live' meaning they bleed even when you clip just a little. She hopes that will change as he gets older. Thank you so much for the explanation!
Dew Claws
I remember seeing on another rescue board that the double dew claw is a trait of Great Pyrenees.
Maybe Lauren or Cassie will chime in on the pros and cons of having it removed.
Susan