Groomers Choice Styptic Powder - For Dog, Cat & Bird - 28g

The Groomers Choice Styptic Powder is the jar every grooming kit should have within arm's reach. Clip a nail a millimetre too short and the quick bleeds, and it bleeds far longer and more dramatically than you would expect. A pinch of this pressed onto the nail stops it in about ten seconds.

Key Features

• Stops minor bleeding: Clipped nails, small nicks and scratches
• About ten seconds: Under firm, steady pressure
• Dogs, cats and birds: One jar covers the household
• Powder form: Can be applied precisely to a nail, which a gel or pencil cannot
• Ferric subsulfate: The active ingredient, with bentonite and alum
• Size: A 28g jar that fits in a grooming kit or first-aid box

How To Use It

• Hold the bleeding nail gently between thumb and finger.
• Apply a small amount of powder directly onto the bleeding point -- or press the nail into a pinch of powder in the lid, which is easier on a wriggling animal.
• Press firmly for about ten seconds. Pressure is doing half the work; dabbing it on and letting go is why it sometimes seems not to work.
• Repeat if it starts again. Keep the animal quiet for a few minutes afterwards -- a dog that runs straight off on a hard floor can knock the clot off.

Avoiding The Problem

• Cut little and often. Trimming every week or two keeps the quick receding; leave it months and the quick grows out with the nail, so there is less you can safely remove.
• On a black nail you cannot see the quick, so take very thin slices and stop as soon as the cut surface shows a grey or pink dot.
• Keep the jar open and within reach before you start clipping, not in a drawer.
• A blunt clipper crushes rather than cuts and is far more likely to cause this. Replace them rather than pressing harder.

Who Makes It

Groomers Choice is a professional grooming range built for salon use -- every shampoo and conditioner comes in a 500ml bottle and a 4kg salon container, so the formula does not change when you scale up. The shampoo range is soap-free and paraben-free, and most of it is built on an aromatherapy base.

Good To Know

• It stings. Ferric subsulfate on an exposed quick is uncomfortable for a second or two, which is worth knowing so you are not surprised by the reaction.
• For minor nicks only. Not for deep wounds, not in body cavities, and not on anything that looks like it needs stitches.
• Birds are different. A bird's total blood volume is tiny and a broken blood feather or a cut nail can become serious quickly. Apply pressure, use the powder, and if the bleeding does not stop promptly treat it as an emergency and ring an avian vet.
• If bleeding does not stop in a few minutes, or restarts repeatedly, see your vet.
• For external use only. Not edible.
• Keep out of reach of children, and store it sealed somewhere cool and dry.