Safari Professional Nail Trimmers Are Perfect for Labs

We purchased the Safari Professional Nail Trimmers so our reviewer could test it on her pets. Keep reading for our full product review.

Doggie nail care is important, and the simplest way to keep up with regular trims is by keeping clippers in your at-home grooming kit. Inexpensive clippers, like those from Safari Professional, are designed to help keep your dog’s nails at a comfortable length, ensuring they don’t accidentally snag their dewclaws on a throw blanket or scratch you or your hardwood floors!

The Safari Professional Nail Trimmers get top marks from hundreds of reviewers, but we wanted to see for ourselves if such an affordable product was really worth the hype. We put the clippers to the test in a multi-pet household, and here’s what we found. 

Size: Good mid-size option

We tested three different dog nail trimmers and the Safari Professional trimmers were the Goldilocks of the bunch—not too small, not too big, but just right. Our test subject was an adorable Golden Retriever puppy named Addy, and at almost 6 months old, she’s a little over 40 pounds. 

The Safari trimmers were the perfect size for managing Addy’s nails. Her nails fit perfectly into the scissor opening, and it took minimal effort to clip each one. Since she’ll probably end up around 50 or 60 pounds when she’s full grown, we think these nail clippers will continue to work for her as they’re big enough to “grow into.” 

Overall, we think the size of these clippers is ideal for a fairly wide range of medium- to large-size dogs—anywhere from Border Collies to German Shepherds. You could also use them on smaller dogs and cats, but we like using more compact clippers on small nails.  

Effectiveness: Clean cuts with minimal effort

The key to cutting your pets’ nails at home is to work quickly and efficiently—the sooner you’re done, the less your pets will fuss. To that end, you need nail clippers that are easy to use, and we found that the Safari trimmers fit the bill. 

There are a number of factors we liked about these clippers. For one, there’s a little locking mechanism to hold them shut when not in use, and it’s easy to swing back and forth to lock/unlock the sheers. Further, the blades on these nail trimmers are good and sharp, allowing us to cut through Addy’s nail with minimal effort. We never had to struggle or press too hard to get a precise cut, and this made the whole process go smoothly. Plus, we liked that the handles have a tension spring that opens them back up after each cut, saving you a little effort.

One feature that many people like about the Safari trimmers is the “safety stop”—a small piece of adjustable metal that extends behind the clipper opening. The idea is that it creates a stop for your pet’s nail, preventing you from accidentally cutting into the quick, the term for the blood vessels in an animal’s nail. You can adjust the safety stop and move it from side to side by loosening the nut on the back of the clippers, but make sure you tighten it securely in place or it may slide around while you’re working.

We don’t recommend using the safety stop as a definitive guide for how much to trim back your dog’s nails, though. Depending on how long their nails and quicks are, you could still accidentally knick the blood vessel—especially if your dog has black nails, as this makes it harder to see the quick. Instead, we always like to use a flashlight to light up the nail and see where the quick ends. This way, you can give their blood vessels a healthy buffer zone.

Durability: Made to last

Even though they’re inexpensive, the Safari Professional Nail Trimmers are still quite durable. The blades and safety stop are made from stainless steel, and the handle is made of hard plastic with a non-slip grip. The metal blades seem extremely strong, and we think they’ll stay sharp for a few years. 

Comfort: Easy to manage

The Safari nail trimmers are quite comfortable to hold and use. The rubbery grip provides a good amount of cushion and keep your hand from slipping, and you can hold the clippers in a number of ways, all of which feel comfortable. Plus, the tension spring saves you from having to manually open the blades after each nail.

However, these nail trimmers are fairly small—they’re 5 inches long and the grip portion is only around 3 inches—so if you have large hands, all four of your fingers might not fit onto the grip. 

Price: Surprisingly affordable

If you gave us these clippers and asked us to guess how much they cost, we definitely would have thought they were more than $9. This low retail price is a great value for a pair of high-quality nail clippers.  

Competition: Different sizes for different dogs

Shiny Pet Nail Clippers: If you have a cat, puppy, or small dog—under 30 pounds or so—you may prefer a smaller set of clippers like this $13 pair from from Shiny Pet. The compact clippers have a unique angled blade that lets you see what you’re doing and they cut quickly and precisely. 

Epica Professional Pet Nail Clippers: If you like the style of the Safari clippers but think they’re too small for your dog, the Epica Professional Pet Nail Clippers are almost identical, but come in a larger size. The $10 pair of clippers has the same design and safety stop, but they’re better suited for large and giant breed dogs.