Gerbil toenails

Question
I have a couple gerbils that are a few months old, and I'm thinking their toenails are getting a little long.  I know that vets will charge like $15 to do it for you, but my friend says I should be able to do it myself if I handle the little guys right and use a small pair of regular nail clippers.  Any thoughts on this?  Is it safe?  How do I handle them and keep them from moving too much as I'm doing it?  When I took Widget to the vet in the past, the doctor kinda grabbed him by the hair on his neck and called it "scruffing" him.  Is that ok?  Any thoughts would be appreciated.  Thanks!

Answer
Hello, yes it is quite safe to do that, grab them by the scruff of the neck. They are really going to hate you for doing this to them b/c they can't move when you do that and they think something mean is happening, so he's going to squeal and move and be like let me go, let me go. You could either do that or pin him down by the scruff of the neck. It's kinda like trying to bathe a child that likes being dirty. :) Just make sure you have some styptic powder or flour on hand in case you cut it too short.