Actually, pulling/biting is one of the worst things you can do to toenails (or any nails, for that matter, but the big toe tends to be the real danger zone), since that can easily lead to ingrown toenails in the first place. Peel them too far down on one side, and the new nail that starts growing in can easily slip under the skin, become ingrown, and create a lovely nasty infection. Let them grow out beyond the edges of skin on the sides, and just trim straight across from there. Take it from someone who had to get multiple ingrowns on both big toes repaired, to the point where the podiatrist finally cut them down to the root and alleviated the problem entirely.
This has been Fun with Toenails, with your host Mongoose.
