08/10/2026
So I’ve been shoeing horses for over 30 years now. Never went to “school”, never took any “formal” training, no certificates, no awards. I’ve spent those 30 years though quietly studying the art and putting it into practice. Different mentors, many opportunities.
Last week I had someone haul to me, a new client I’d never met and didn’t know the horse. Her dad (who I’ve also never met) has been a lifetime horse shoer but she says he’s wearing out…. lol, which is why she got a hold of me. We talked about the concerns she had and what she hoped to accomplish through my work, then I got at it. Through the weekend I got some positive feedback from her which made me feel like we were on the right track. Today, I got a screenshot from her, taken from some comments from her dad. Sometimes farriers feel alone, sometimes unappreciated, sometimes we can’t come up with the answers that clients want to hear and we wonder, lose sleep, study some more.
Then a client sends us this and it makes everything feel like it’s worth it again. And so from the bottom of my heart and in all humility, to all my clients (you know who you are) I say thank you. Thank you for trusting me with your equine athletes…👊
PS. I blacked out the school because this isn’t against education or where you go to get it. It’s about serving our people well