Trimming Hooves

I've used a knife before, but I sure won't anymore. Way too dangerous. Hoof trimming shears and a farrier's rasp are much safer and work fine. I also use a leather work glove on my left hand (the one that's holding the goat foot), just to protect myself from the tools.

I use the short rose pruners too. They worked much better than the actual hoof trimmers that I got and they were cheaper to boot. If you choose to get a pair of rose pruners get a good pair the cheap ones break quickly if you are cutting hard hooves. I also use a wood plane like the one in the picture above.

Thank you all for your help!

I use horse hoof nippers to get most of the hoof growth off, then a horse hoof knife to get a finer trim. Then a horse hoof rasp to finish the job. I bought the orange handle hoof shears on the advice of the person I bought most of my goats from and didn't like them. I already do my own horses' hooves and have the tools so I started using them on the goats and much prefer it that way.

p.s. Don't buy from Tractor Supply unless you need it immediately. Order from somewhere like www.jeffers.com or www.valleyvet.com and you'll get better quality for lower prices.

-Sonja

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Wingnut Farms
Nubian Dairy Goats
New Market, Alabama