Before we got Mauja, I had researched the Great Pyrenees for months. Even though I had never met one, I was confident that it was the right breed for my family and that I could successfully care for one. I spent hours learning about the things that make Great Pyrenees unique, including the double dew claws.
At Mauja’s first vet visit, the vet brought up her dew claws and how strange it was that they were attached by a bone. I tried to explain the Great Pyrenees breed standard and why the double dews were useful, but she was not convinced. Every visit until her spay, I received a lecture on why I needed to remove her dews. Eventually, we decided to take her to a different vet for her spay because I was terrified the vet would remove her double dews without my permission.
Thus began my mission to help educate about the necessity of the double dew claws on the Great Pyrenees.
Have you ever seen them before? I love the looks on people’s faces as the notice the double dews on Mauja and Atka. There’s always the double take followed by the, “are they supposed to be there?” question.
As you can see above, there’s a pad with two toenails slightly higher on the foot. That’s a pyr’s double dews.
It is commonly believed that dewclaws need to be removed, preferably as soon as possible. While this is true for some breeds, it does not apply to the Great Pyrenees. Many breeds have floppy dew claws that can easily snag and rip. If you dog isn’t a working dog, vets typically remove them at a young age.
The double dew claws on the Great Pyrenees are very strong due to being attached by a bone; they act as a sort of thumb for the dog and are surprisingly useful.
I love watching Mauja and Atka run around and make use of their extra toes. The dews help grip the ground for turning, climbing, descending, and jumping. I’ve never seen Atka jump, but Mauja uses her dews when she jumps!
Removing the double dews is highly discouraged due to being extremely painful and is ultimately detrimental the dog. Due to being attached by a bone, it is very uncommon for them to snag when taken care of properly. This means ensuring regular trimming to prevent the nail from growing too long and back into the pad, which would be very painful for the dog.
My experience with Mauja taught me that it’s great to ask your vet for advice but always do your own research. Talk to people involved with the breed, such as reputable breeders, people who show dogs, and rescue workers to help learn the most accurate information.
Have you ever seen a dog with double dew claws?
I never thought much about dew claws until I got my corgis. My first corgi had his, and snagged one so badly it broke off, got infected, etc. it was awful! When I got Wilson, I made sure his had been removed. Cardigan breeders tend to have them removed at only a couple days old before there is much development. It is much less painful that way. On a breed with longer (normal?) legs, I don’t think there is much need to remove them.
Wow, that would have to be so painful! My parents have Berners, which have the single floppy dew claws. Their dews were removed when they were fixed for that same reason. The floppy ones seem to snag so easily!
My Briard has them.
My Golden-Pyr mix did not inherit her mom’s double dews. Her knack for making tumbleweeds though, she got in full force.
Haha! They all seem to get that 😉
Oddly enough, my Shih-Tzu has dews on all four.
Harry was a stray.
When we took him home I couldn’t put him down. I wanted to cuddle him morning till night. I found his rear dew claws growing back into himself.
I cut them back. Pulled them out of his pads.
As I have been reading this article an your stories, I was happy Harry is not the only dog that uses his rear dew claws for climbing.
We all know, Harry is not a “jumper”. Harry is a climbing animal. A fantastic “foot warmer” as he is!
My point is this. I have, as well, a polydactyl cat. One factly has a bone she can utilise. The other is a skin flap with an extremely long sharp nail.
I am constantly petrified she will rip that thumb off as she has no control over that digit.
At 11 years old, she is quite aware of herself.
She has a viable opposing thumb.:)
Wow that was interesting! I had no clue that they have two of this claws. As I met the first pyrenees dog of my life I was puzzled about the size … and even Easy was silent and impressed for some minutes :o)
They can be quite large 😉
My Tucker, who is some kind of terrier mix has double dew claws. He doesn’t look like there’s any Pyr in him, though. When I asked the vet about it, her advice was to leave them unless they cause trouble. That’s one of the reasons I like my vet. Why cause pain needlessly, right?
Wags (and purrs) from Life with Dogs and Cats
My thoughts exactly! Very interesting that he has double dews! Typically, you see them in flock guardian breeds and their mixes. How cool!
sunshine my lab mix with a smaller dog is double dew claw. she is kneehigh and about 42lbs. she likes swimming, retrieving and hiking. I trim her extra nails regularly.
We have a lab pit mix and the vet removed the double dew claw (she had only one) due to it being floppy and unattached. Our pittie is a digger and in a chain link. We feared injury. We had it removed while she was under for being spayed.
I have a JRT and English Bull Terrier mix with double dew claws…he’s keeping them!
Thanks for the lesson in dewclaws that have a purpose. One of my dogs snagged a dewclaw and we had to have it removed, surgery, an e-collar, and a vet bill.
Yikes… That would not be fun to deal with : /
Always do your own research for SURE!
Vets practice medicine, but they don’t learn about every single breed in the world, so there is a lot they don’t know.
I have to admit, I have never seen doubles like that before! Very interesting!
ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
I had never heard of them until I became interested in Pyrs. Definitely makes them unique!
Wow that’s interesting I never knew some breeds had double dews…good thing you changed vets..they certainly sound ignorant!
We’ve had a lot of issues with vets. Hopefully we find a good one soon!
We just got a great pyre and she has double dews thank you for the info
Very interesting.
I had no idea that was the breed standard. I’m glad you decided to go with a different vet, even though they’re well educated it certainly doesn’t mean they can’t be stubborn know-it-alls….
If there’s no benefit to removing them I’m just surprised a vet would recommend it. Seems an awful lot like declawing cats. Glad to see that trend is on a decline.
For Pyrs, it is definitely a lot like declawing cats! It’s so sad to see that they’ve been removed. The single, floppy dews can be problematic so they are often removed very early.
I had no idea that Pyrs have double dew claws! So interesting…learn something new every day 😉
I’m glad I could inform so many people! I had no idea until I started researching Pyrs. It makes them unique 😉
We have a golden retriever mix.we saw her mom so know that is part of her. She is all black with a little white. She has very long legs. She has double dew claws on her back paws, She is scheduled to be spayed and have those removed at the end of month. She will be 4 months old on the 21st. It was said by a shelter worker she could be part great pyreneese or new foundland. I am really struggling with having them removed. Any advice
I’ll be honest, the first time I saw double dews I thought something was wrong, but while holding the dog for an exam I realized what they were.
Most people do! They’re not a common sight, that’s for sure!
love double dewclaws, a couple of Norman’s pups had double dewclaws in the rears, guess it’s steaming from the newfie in the chesapeakes.
Newfs do not have the double dew claw.
They are water dogs and have webbed feet.
Newfs have some Pyr in them so the story goes. Yes they have webs as well from the Portuguese water spaniel. My Pyrs [4] used theirs to climb fences ledges and rocks. The Maremma had them too but smaller.
The sire (reg) of my Pyr has triple dews
Now that is interesting! I’ve only seen one set of triple dews on a pyr. The owners called it a ‘mutant toe’ because it essentially grew off of one of the attached dew claws. They had to get it removed because it was causing a lot of issues. Do you know if the sire passed on the triple dews to any of the pups? How unique!
I actually knew that about Pyrs. I have met a few over the years.
Our dogs have dew claws removed as very young pups. Freighter’s grew back. Or rather it was some cartilage and a bit of skin. Our vet has an orthopedic vet on staff so between him and our regular vet we decided to have it removed since Freighter is a hunting dog. Orthopedic vet has had to fix a few ripped dew claws over the years. Turned out that Freighter’s was a very minor surgery, more of a snip and he was in the show ring two weeks later.
I never knew they were attached by bone! We have always had them removed from our dogs because we have had a couple rip them out.
Not all of them are attached by the bone, only some breeds, like mine – the Beauceron.
You’re right – not all breeds with double dews are attached by the bone, but they are in the Great Pyrenees as well.
I didnt know they were attached by bone. I have a Pyr and I love them! I think they are cool! I would never have them removed unless there was a problem!
I rescued a lab/Shepard mix. The vet said he may have Pyrenees in him because he has double dew claws in both back legs. One is actually attached while the other just hangs there. They do t want to remove it unless the have to maybe just the ones not attached. They are up really far about 3 inches from the ground.
My favorite dog I ever owned was a Pyrs & everyone used to get freaked out about her Dews! I can’t wait to get another one of these breed dogs, my Sparta passed away a while ago & I’ve never been able to love another dog the same way!
So much I didn’t know!
I guess you learn something new everyday! I don’t have pets (hubby’s allergic) but I’ve only had small dogs growing up. Very interesting.
What an informative article. Sounds like you have the best dog!
This is information that every vet needs to read and know. Love the photos of your dogs.
I wondered about the extra claws on some dogs. That’s so cool that they’re like thumbs
This is the first time I have really ever heard of dewclaws. I have to agree with you that you should do your research in addition to obtaining advice from vets. I know of cases where vets are very knowledgeable of dogs in general however when it comes to an actual breed they are unsure and often make assumptions.
I have absolutely no idea there was a such a thing! That is great advice to check and see how your vets feel about double dews in case something happens that you didn’t want to happen! 😀
So interesting- I’ve never known much about dewclaws. Your dogs are absolutely beautiful! Thanks for sharing…
I never knew any of this. I will be checking out my families 3 dogs for these. And I’m glad you found another vet. If you can’t feel confident in them respecting your decisions then you have to find a new one.
Wow! I can’t believe your first vet wasn’t familiar with double dewclaws! Good for you that you changed vets!!
What do you do when 1 of the double dew claws (top) grows into the pad?? What is your opinion on this? We have our pyr groomed regularly & nails clipped, so I don’t know how this 1 got into this kind of shape & I can tell that it is very painful to her?? Any suggestions??
We have a male and female chiweeine. They just had a litter of 5 4 have dewclaws like the daddy one of which has a double on one foot. I find this very interesting.
Whoa! I had no idea any dog had double dew claws. In the breed standard link, it says the front is a single dewclaw and the double dew claws are on the rear paws, is that true?
Yes! They only have the double dews on their hind legs 🙂
I actually have a pure-bred white german shepherd puppy with a double dew.
If you think pyrs have interesting dew claws, you should check out the Norwegian Lundehund, talk about interesting feet. Strange, but practical, dogs.
Briards also have double dews as breed standard. My Briard, Lucky, uses his double dews when he runs circles, neat to see!
I know I probably will repeat some stuff. I have a Border Collie/ Pyrenees mix with double dewclaws. Which to most people that isn’t much. Dewclaws are often removed when the pup is fixed etc. If you adopted the puppy (mine was almost a rescue, but not there yet…glad I got him) they probably had those removed. The dewclaws with the bones just seem normal. My 3 yr old still has both sets without any issues. He isn’t a working dog. He does live inside. I was told by the vet, until it becomes a problem. I trusted him. That wasn’t the only vet and that was a vet I would have trusted to treat me. My mom is a dog groomer, she hates the floppy ones (which he has), but that is what majority of dogs have and humans remove them.
Hi Kelsie! I just took in my first Pyr foster yesterday, inspired by the great temperament of my wonderful Pyr mix Mr. Watson. Watson doesn’t have the double dews and although I knew that was part of the breed I’d forgotten all about it until Verona jumped out of the car. Wow!! They’re really impressive — and weird, and a little creepy, and SUPER cool, and you do have the initial instinct that disaster is going to strike at any moment. I’m so glad you wrote this article and described your experience. Knowing they’re attached by bone is really reassuring, and remembering that they’re an actual tool for these dogs, not a vestigial nail, is important. Thanks so much!
My female Marlie I got about a month ago she’s 12 weeks now. The dad was a Great Pyrenees black lab mix and the mom was a Boston terrier jack RUSSEL mix maybe a little chihuahua in her too. She has double dewclaws on both her back paws and just one on both her front paws. She looks like a Black and Tan Jack RUSSEL. Tried to put up a photo but wouldn’t work. Very pretty puppy at about 7lbs.
We are going through this issue right jow. Our dog is 13 weeks old and our vet told us it was an inbred trait that he shouldnt have so of course we said yes. But now doing our research i dont think we shoukd go through with it. HELP?!?!?!
Glad to find your post. I recently lost my Great Pyr/Akbash and he did not have double dews. We just purchased two females and when I was trimming their nails and I got to the back paws . . .there were double dews! Quite weird/creepy at first. I knew the Great Pyr used the dew claws for climbing and they were not to be removed. One of the pups nails had curled almost into the pad so I will have to keep a close watch. So glad you made this post.
we just got a puppy its a pit mix don’t know the mix part but she has a double dewclaw on one back foot an a single dewclaw on the other back foot. she is almost 8 weeks old and they don’t seem to bother her at all
Great article. I am writing a post on dew claws and came upon yours while researching. One of my dogs has all 4 dew claws and the other two do not. I agree about them being very useful for the dog.
We just got a pup that was thrown out on side of highway with a couch! Great pyrenee mix with not sure thinking heeler..I was going to have his dble dews removed they seem floppy to me…I didnt realize they are supposed to be useful to them..hmm maybe ill be rethinking this removal..wanna show you a pic and see what you think..do you have a facebook page? Im under Kat Siler may e can message me
Our Estrela Mountain dog had rear double dew claws. We received many curious inquiries about “Starlight”, as many had never seen the breed before. Wonderful dog.
Hello. Thank you for the article on dew claws. My Pyr has double dew claws. The vet says they are not attached by bone and I should remove them. Popular opinion is not to but they flop and seem to serve no purpose. Not sure what to do?
I have a rescue chihuahua mix . Don’t know what she’s mixed with. Her fur is reddish and stiff. She ha double dewclaws on her hind paws. I didn’t know what they were so I decided to have them removed. After reading these posts, I’m not going to. She is not a loving dog at all and if I did that to her she would really want to stay away from us. I wish I knew what she is mixed with.q
Our vet in Asheville NC drew our attention to our new (at the time) rescue dog’s double dew claws right after we adopted her. This was about seven years ago. The vet advised against getting them removed and said she thought Patty was part Great Pyrenees. Having done a lot of detective work since then, I’m convinced that she is part Golden and part Great Pyrenees, escaped from a notorious and now thankfully defunct puppy mill in a nearby county that “specialized” in Golden/Pyr puppies. She was found, abused, malnourished, and heavily pregnant, travelling on her own away from that location by my now dearest friend- a fabulous and dedicated dog rescue worker. Sadly, of her three live born puppies (one more was still born) only one survived the first week of life. His name is Waldo. He was born completely blind probably also due to Patty’s starvation and mistreatment. Luckily, blind Waldo found a loving, patient, understanding home with the rescue worker who found Patty ( on St. Paddy’s Day 2010, hence her name.) We now arrange frequent family reunions and both dogs seem entirely aware of the nature of their bond, despite it being well over a year before I could track down her puppy and unexpectedly also meet Patty’s human rescuer/rehabilitator.
On the subject of dew claw removal- I would suggest that no one ever do it for purely cosmetic reasons with any breed- only in the case of infection, tearing, or a serious medical condition. Our Patty has three attached, one unattached (back left) and has been happy and active throughout our life together, never snagging despite hundreds of miles of mountain trails – both hiking and running, as well as lots of camping and other various outdoor activities with her forever family.
Some of her characteristics that I mainly attribute to her Great Pyrenees side are-
1)She has often made us aware of small damaged animals in need of our help by stubborn refusal to come combined with guarding behavior- a very young squirrel with a severe head injury (hit by a car?) that our vet couldn’t save, and a day old robin fallen from a nest and abandon that we were able to feed up by hand and release after some flight practice in our back garden both come to mind. Rare is a dog who is so clever and perceptive that she knows just when to break the rules to help others. She is otherwise a perfectly well-behaved dog who is great with people, dogs, cats, other pets and is unfailingly gentle with even tiny helpless wild creatures that other dogs might consider as prey.
2)She has snowshoe shaped feet and excessively long (like six inches) toe hair (without the constant clipping that we do to prevent matting) grows her own crazy Dr. Seuss fuzzy slippers- should we let her toe hair grow? Grow her toe hair? Oh heck no! Not in rain and not in snow, never let that toe hair grow.
3) She is very serious-minded (unlike the rest of us) and seems to much prefer the feeling of work rather than play. So much so, that we disguise play as work in order to get her more enthusiastic about it. She loves to wear her weighted camping pack ( mostly full of dog treats and her bottled water) everywhere that we go, even to the bark park for example. She sits and stares at the closet it is kept in until someone remembers to put in on for her. She lives to carry her own packages out of a pet supply store. Our kids hitched up her harness to pull a red wagon delivering little Christmas bakes and crafts to our neighbors last year. I think it may have been Patty’s most favorite day ever! (Plus we did not make her wear her reindeer antlers, possibly because they were still in the attic somewhere.)
4) She is a total Nanny dog when we take family on walks and outings- will herd our kids, nudge the straggler in the back forward, cut off anyone intent on wandering off, even my husband and I if we get distracted by something bright and shiny. Her herding instinct is really impressive to watch in action.
5)She is very quiet most of the time. She makes a gravelly wooooo! sound when she is particularly happy to see someone home from school or work or otherwise excited. The only time she ever barks is when she hears a weird sound on the property at night- which is pretty much exactly what we want her to do. Unfortunately, having investigated on many of these occasions I know she barks without fail at raccoons on the bird feeder. We hope she might bark at any possible human thieves invading our property too, by mistaking their sounds for more raccoons on the birdfeeder.
All in all, Patty is the best dog I have ever owned or known. Let me tell you that is saying something, because I’ve owned some great ones. We have no idea how old she is but hope she remains healthy and active and part of our family for as she wants to be.
I recently adopted a dog, a mix breed with double dew claws. I like to believe he is blue heeler and borzoi mix, a pretty boy. When we adopted him they said his dews were indeed a bit weird. They feel a bit floppy but I don’t want to remove it if it will cause him pain. So we will definitely keep them well trimmed! Thanks for the information!
Though I wish he would use his dew claws more with running around as he tends to slip into a lot of stuff.
I have a great pyr/german shepard mix 1 and a half years old. she features her father the shepard but has droopy ears. her dew claws point out her mother wihich i think is valuable to her character. too old to have them removed I watch them closely.Her nose scent is amazing and I would not trade her for the world. She has been raised with nothing but love and care. Thank all of you for all the valuable info.
I have an almost two year old Great Pyr Akita mix. His double dew claws are actually detached, but hes never caught them on anything and they’re his favourite “toes” haha. My old vet always harped on me telling me to remove them as well but hes a smart boy, hes careful and knows they’re there and has never snagged them
Your Great Prynees breed standard link states that dewclaws have no recognizable function in today’s world. My Prynees has torn one of her dewclaws and the other one doesn’t show any signs of problems but she has licked it raw. I’m seriously considering having them both removed because they both seem to be giving her problems.