Sunday, October 4, 2009

Trimming Feet

I took the sheep out of the pen today so David could take the dogs in there to run around (since we don't let Elmer off the leash). I checked their hooves and saw that they could use a little trimming.

Here's quick little tutorial in case you ever wanted to know how to trim sheep (and goat) hooves.


Start with a good, sharp pair of hoof trimmers.





Here you can see the sides of the hoof have grown taller than the sole. The heel is also a little over grown. It's important to keep hooves trimmed so they don't trap dirt and bacteria, which can cause hoof rot or scald.



Here is a picture of the same hoof after I trimmed the overgrown sides and heel. You want to be careful not to trim too much, because you will hit the quick and the hoof will bleed and become sore. I've also rounded the toes a bit. You want a nice flat surface, with no areas that can trap dirt/soil/manure.


You want to make sure the animal has a nice walking surface. You don't want the toes too long or the sides over grown.


The Maryland Small Ruminant Page has a good website with more detailed information and pictures of over grown hooves.



Oh, and Clarabell must be pregnant because she didn't come into heat again on what would have been her second heat cycle. Go Calvin!

5 comments:

Linda said...

Congratulations to Clarabell & Calvin. When is the due date?

Kelly said...

I just love baby goats and lambs, and turkeys,and guineas,oh...I just love babies. We are going to goat school next weekend to learn all about goats. They will have cadaver goat hooves for us to learn to trim. That way Bella, Edward and Sophie won't be lame when we do it. Thanks for the lesson. It does make sense.
Kelly

katiegirl said...

Linda- According to the date she was bred (September 12th), she should have babies on ~ February 4th.

Kelly-That goat class sounds great!! And don't worry, trimming hooves is very easy! I have seen some goat people use wood planers to trim the hooves. I don't recommend that at all...too easy to go too deep.

Becky said...

Yay for Calvin and Clarabell!

Great job on the hooves! :)

Deb Johnson, Quiltbeeme said...

What a nicely turned hoof!! I can't wait for baby time!! Lambs are the cutest of farm babies! Love, Momma

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...