vicksart wrote:
My horse gets "hot" shoes while the other horses on the ranch just get trims. In short, hot shoeing insures a better fit than when the shoes are merely pounded into shape without heating them. The farrier (shoer) places the heated shoe, which has been pounded into shape while it's glowing red, against the trimmed hoof and can tell from the seared mark whether more hoof trimming and/or shaping of the shoe needs to be done. The process creates quite a bit of smoke. Stinky smoke. Think burning hair smell.
The last shot shows one side of the "shop" that is hauled behind the farrier's truck. Some farriers have the setup mounted on the truck bed, but this fellow likes to use his truck for other things.
In some of the shots you might get an idea of what backbreaking work this is - even when the horses cooperate! It's worth every penny to pay the pros to do the job.
My horse gets "hot" shoes while the othe... (
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Hi Vicki! Wife and I had a small horse ranch for about 25 yrs, stood two stallions and had 4 - 5 mares from time to time, and never liked putting iron shoes on horses. I am also aware of "hot shoeing" them if you decide to shoe them at all. Our Farrier trimmed our horses for being barefoot shod. Most all problems with horses feet are the result of putting horse shoes on their feet for years, due to it prevents the horses hoofs from flexing which aids in pumping blood to their feet. We stood "Foundation Quarter Horses" and also showed them in horse show competition. Although we sold our ranch and got out of horses about 6yrs ago, I always enjoyed the foals that we had and raised until sold.
Enjoy your horses, they are wonderful family members if raised correctly.
Roger
Yep, my first job (1950) to learn how to and in the beginning pay for my own horse to be shod. We did everything with a forge, anvil and hammer. That "shop" with all the power tools is a dream.
Beautiful horses too!
Farriers are a rare breed - I know of maybe a handful in our area. The guy we use learned his trade from a grandfather, who was a blacksmith. You are right about the work being hard on the back - hurts me just to watch!
Loved the photos and comments about hot shoeing. Our horse is 20yo, and we just have his hooves trimmed regularly.
Thanks for posting these. They particularly resonate with me because my brother has been a farrier for at least 40 years. In addition, he and his wife owned and ran Monetta Farrier Supply in South Carolina.
In fact, designed and sold the farrier equipment mounted on the back of trucks. We visited him in South Carolina a few years ago and watched him work. It was quite the eye-opener for this city boy.
He has shod Tennessee walking horses, Belmont Stakes competitors and has a large following in his community. I am so proud of him.
This is so interesting and new to me ....never had a horse. Thanks.
I miss those days. I actually miss that smell! And Oh, how my dogs loved the ferrier! Nice pictures, Vicki.
AzPicLady wrote:
...dogs loved the farrier...
Yes, they would fight over the hoof trimmings.
So interesting Vicki. If I was closer I would come over and muck out the stables just to be around the beautiful and well cared for horses.
Just another fan of horse shots!
Linda
CWS
Loc: El Paso, TX
Hey Vicki, really enjoyed your photos, description and all the pleasant comments made by the members. The few experiences I had riding horses never ended well. All experiences were with "stable" horses we rented by the hour. They definitely had a mind of their own and wanted nothing more than to return to the stable. I had one that ran under a tree with low hanging branches that even he had to duck his head to get under, so you can imagine what happened to me. I swore then that I would never get on another horse unless it had a steering wheel, gas pedal and most definitely brakes. I do admire those that have horses and take good care of them. Thanks again for the photos and information.
Loved the pictures. I grew up right next to a boarding/and riding stable. Worked odd jobs as a kid. Loved your narrative. I have to admit I had no desire to be a farrier. It is back breaking work. I loved to watch them work. I never have seen the hot shoe method, but heard of it. It makes sense. The difference between a custom set of shoes, vs. ones off the rack. If you go through that care expense, I can tell you really love your horse.
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