Want to know how to trim hooves of goats and sheep? If you have farm animals, then hoof care is something you should learn about. Add this homesteading skill to your knowledge today. Trust me, it’s not as complicated as you think. It will save you a couple of bucks from the vet.

How to Trim Hooves of Goats and Sheep

Every homesteader who has or lives in a farm should know how to care for their farm animals. Basic animal care is important since these are your livestock. Many people don’t know but it takes a lot of work to make sure your animals are well and cared for.

We’ve had our farm for years and I’m very particular with our goats and sheep’s hooves. You may think they don’t need any care but if you don’t trim them, they can lead to certain conditions like foot rot and foot abscess and I’m sure you don’t want that to happen. So if you want to learn how to care for your farm animals, start with hoof care. Know how to trim goat hooves and sheep’s too today.

 

What you’ll need to trim hooves:

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• a goat
• a sheep
• clean and sharp hoof trimmer

 

Love goats? Want to raise your own? Check out our very own Homestead Handbook for Goat Raising!

 

Trimming Goat Hooves

Step 1

Restrain the animal or have someone hold them for you.

 

Step 2

Know how to properly lift the front and back legs of your animal for trimming. You wouldn’t want to injure them, right?

This is how you should lift the front leg.

This is how it should look like when you lift the back leg of the goat.

 

Step 3

You would normally have to trim the side wall of the hooves. Letting them grow will make the hoof uneven causing it to collect more dirt. Take a hoof pick or the end of your hoof cutter to remove any dirt and debris.

 

Step 4

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Using your hoof cutter, trim down the side wall of the hoof and the heel to make it even and flat with the sole of the foot. Do this gently.

 

Step 5

Trim any loose pieces of the hoof and the sole if necessary. You can also trim the toes if needed.

 

Step 6

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For any dirty pockets or the wall of the hoof separating, make sure you trim it out completely to the point that it’s open and clean. Leaving any dirt may cause your goat to have foot rot.

 

Step 7

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Trim carefully and when you see pink, stop. If you trim any further it will cause the goat’s hoof to bleed. Repeat this for the rest of the goat’s other hooves.

 

Which breed is best for your livestock? Look no further! We’re counting sheep…literally. https://t.co/eFigfGkb75 pic.twitter.com/GJPQPwNAo1

— Homesteading (@HomesteadingUSA) June 18, 2016

 

Trimming Sheep Hooves

Step 1

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Make the sheep sit down by turning its head against its body.

 

Step 2

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Lift the sheep and sit it down. This animal in general can sit still making it easy for you to trim its hooves in this position without any assistance.

 

Step 3

Since sheep have similar hooves as goats, you can repeat the steps 3 to 7 in trimming goat hooves above.

 

Want to see how to trim hooves? You can watch this video tutorial from AgVideoShare:

 

Depending on where your farm animals are situated, some may require less frequent trimming than others. If they have access to rocks and rough surfaces, you can trim them less since they would most likely get a natural trim from this. Always keep their hooves clean and trimmed so you’ll always have happy and productive farm animals.

 

 

What do you think of this tutorial on how to trim hooves of goats and sheep? Do you think you’ll give it a try? Let me know below in the comments!

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