When you’re looking for the best goat hoof trimmers you’re going to be running across a LOT of cheaper trimmers that look great, but believe me, they are going to be a complete waste of money.
A quality set of trimmers for goat hooves will cost you between $30 to $40 for the pair. Twice as much as the cheaper brands. But the quality shears are the ONLY ones that will actually work and last. The other brands are simply too dull and usually made with cheap low quality plastics that will not last long. It also makes it difficult to cut and trim a hoof correctly.
Think of it this way, you know how hard it is to cut your own fingernails, right? Have you ever tried with a dull pair of clippers? Not pretty!
Now imagine the same exact thing only this nail is a million times bigger and harder. You need a quality, sharp set of trimmers. So save yourself some time, money, and frustration (and perhaps even personal injury) and get a proper pair of trimmers. In this article, we try to educate you and lead you to the best goat hoof trimmers in our opinion. Remember its always good to test out a few different models as one could simply fit your style of trimmer better than others.
On another point, get yourself a pair of trimmers with smooth blades, not the serrated kind. They will work much better and cut easier.
Our Top Picks of The Best Goat Hoof Trimmers
Best Overall: ARS 140DXR Smooth Blade Trimmer
This pair of spring loaded trimmers are perfect for almost all situations when it comes to trimming hooves. They are sharp and will stay that way for years. These are the one pair of trimmers that will not let you down.
Best Value Trimmer: Zenport Q140DX Multipurpose Q Series Hoof Trimmers
Another quality pair of spring loaded trimmers that get the job done. Slightly cheaper than the ARS pair above, these are just as good!
A Close Third: Burgon and Ball Neogen IEAL Eze-Trim
These aren’t quite as good as the two pairs above, but they come in at a close third. They’re slightly cheaper and will still do the job.
ARS 140DXR Smooth Blade Trimmer Review
These are a great pair of shears and my number one pick. I’ve been using these for a few years now and they are still sharp and working perfectly.
These are great for any hooved animal, goats, sheep, lamb, and even mini pig hoof trimmers etc. They have bright red handles which I like as they are easy to find if you happen to drop them in the grass or out in a field.
And best of all, my wife is left handed, and she says these are the easiest pair of trimmers she’s ever used.
They’re also spring loaded which really helps when you’re trying to hold on to a squirming goat with one hand and trying to shear their hoof with the other. I highly recommend not getting a pair that does not have a spring load. It will be far more awkward to use them without a spring.
This is quality steel that can be sharpened again and again. And they hold an edge well. Far better than the cheaper trimmers I’ve used over the years.
The smooth blades are 4 inches in length and the entire tool is 7.5 inches long. It weighs a hefty 6.4 ounces which is sturdy for a pair of hand trimmers.
These can also be used for any kind of gardening, but be warned, if you start trimming branches and such with these, they will get dull a lot quicker and need to be sharpened. I only use mine for goats and sheep, so After 2 years they still haven’t needed to be sharpened.
The one drawback is that it doesn’t come with a wrist strap. There is a hole and I have a piece of twine. Believe me, it helps when you’re dealing with jumpy animals.
There is also another pair of ARS’ that have slightly longer blades that I highly recommend as a number one choice, the ARS HP-140LDX, you can find them here.
Zenport Q140DX Multipurpose Q Series Hoof Trimmers Review
Zenport makes some quality trimmers and I’d place them on par with ARS. This specific model is under $25 so a great value. And they’re made from quality steel that can be sharpened so they should last for years.
If you get these from Amazon, you can choose from ivory or bright orange color for the handles. I prefer the brighter because if you lose the ivory in tall grass somewhere, good luck finding them again!
These weigh a bit less than the ARS pair at 5.6 ounces which might be preferable for some of you.
The blades are smooth with rounded tips as not to cause injury to your goat’s hooves. Marquench hardened, these blades will be plenty sharp right out of the package.
Like all trimmers I’ve listed here, they can be used on goats, sheep, lamb, etc.
Burgon and Ball Neogen IEAL Eze-Trim Review
There are a few things I do like about these trimmers. First off they have high carbon steel blades so they can be sharpened and hold a decent edge. So these do work, and are fine for most animals like sheep and goats.
The blades also have a non-stick coating. Something that is nice, but once you do sharpen the blades, that goes with the sharpening. So a nice option, but it won’t be there forever.
One thing that these Burgon and Ball hoof trimmers do have that I wish my ARS’ did is it comes with a wrist strap already on the shears. I really like having a wrist strap, so that’s a big plus.
Another option is that you can increase or decrease the spring tension on these. I’ve never really needed to do anything like that before, and for me, it’s just another part that can break on what should be a simple set of shears.
And then they have a lock-in order to keep the blades closed. Again, not something I’ve ever wanted or needed, but perhaps this is important to you?
Overall these are a decent set of hoof trimmers. If you have only a few goats these will probably last a long time and do what they’re designed to do well. I’d still pay the extra few dollars more for the ARS trimmers, but if they aren’t an option, these will do almost as well.
Electric Goat Hoof Trimmers
Technology is always changing and sometimes a new product comes along that very well can save you time every single day. More time means more to do the things you enjoy in life. Spending time with family, work on things around the house or what ever your hobby may be. I would like to introduce you to the Hoof Boss. This tool is used for regular maintenance trimming to quickly remove the hoof flap and sole material that is stuck. This eliminates the need for regular hand tools and can be operated using only one hand.
- Reduce the stress on both you and the animal
- Trim faster than ever before with less hassle
- Simply plugin to a 110v electrical outlet and go
- Safe and super easy to operate with minimal experience
- Pain free!
Grab your electronic hoof trimmer on Amazon
Trimming Hoofs on Meat Goats
Hoof trimming is very time-consuming, and time is worth money. That’s why having a pair of the best goat hoof trimmers is so important. The commercial meat goat producers, who have 300 to 1,000 goats running on 600 to 3,000 acres, cannot trim hooves. We know many producers who have that many meat goats.
Some goats need to have their hooves trimmed every two to three months, others never need them trimmed. After we had been breeding full blood Boer goats for about six years and had built our herd from a foundation of seven does to about twenty-five does, we noticed that we had six does that needed to have their hooves trimmed every three months. After we examined the pedigrees of these six does, we found out that one of them was one of our original does, and the other five were daughters and granddaughters of that one doe. Needless to say, we culled those six does.
None of the doe’s in our present herd have ever had their hooves trimmed. Our doe’s run on ten acres of steep Ozark Mountain pasture that has lots of limestone outcropping. Show goats, which are confined to small pens and are fed high-power rations, need to have their hooves trimmed often.
The American Boer Goat Association website has a good video on how to trim hoofs (https://www.abga.org/tattoos.php?pagename=hoof.htm.)