What's filing down my dogs nails?

Sorry for asking, but why on earth would you cut your dog's nails when you have already stated that they hadn't grown and weren't touching the ground?
It is almost impossible for a trained person to ascertain where a black claw "quick" starts, let alone an amateur, and when it is cut into, it causes the dog immense pain and bleeds like buggery.

Poor dog! Ouch!

Dog's, when they walk, trot or run on hard surfaces.....tarmac, concrete etc., naturally give themselves a nail trim, purely through abrasion.

My advice would be to leave your dog's claws well alone in future, unless you are absolutely sure that they have grown so long that they may cause a problem. Even then I would advise getting a pro to do them.

I cut them because it's recommended that you cut your dogs nails at least once a month. However, mine hasn't had his nails cut in several months. Also, I've been wrong about my dogs growth before. I could swear that he hasn't changed at all since the day I first got him. However, now that I look at his older pictures, I know that he has indeed gotten a lot taller and his fur has even changed colors. Because I'm constantly with my dog, I don't notice any changes. Thus, I could not trust my judgement.

Needless to say, I will not be cutting his nails until they reach the floor from now on.

However, I wouldn't say I'm an amateur. I clipped his nails frequently back when he was not a digger. His nails needed to be trimmed once a week because they always grew back so quickly. I never cut into his quick before now. Even then, I had the septic powder readily available. Also, the bleeding didn't start until a minute later and he didn't react to it; he was sleeping. This is because I literally only shaved the tip of his nail off, as per the guidelines of the ASPCA. In fact, it only caused bleeding because his nails had already been shaved off up until his quick.

Also, he does not walk on concrete. The only surfaces he has contact with on a day to day basis are the soft dirt and our hard wood floors. I'd understand if he walked on concrete since it's textured, but that's not it. Could the smooth hard wood floors be producing the same effect?

If y ou walk your dog and you live in a city, the concrete of the sidewalks files them down. This is something we never worry about. I walk the dogs at least once a day, and there is never an issue with their claws growing too long.

Thank you for your response. However, we've been on a farm for the past few months (visiting our grandma) and there's only dirt outside. So, he has not had contact with concrete.

It doesn't necessarily need to be a rock hard surface. If he's out most of the time and active, there'll be some degree of abrasive trimming going on.

Oh, I see. He has been very active; he spends most of his time running around the fields and digging holes.