Re: RC: NEW: Farrier thread/question

[April Lee <adlee@bigfoot.com>]

At 01:19 PM 3/11/99, you wrote:
>Our farrier was out on Feb. 27. After a couple of occasional rides and
>after being gone out of town on 3/2 thru 3/5 I went out the morning of
>the 6th to brush my boy, saddle up and go for a ride. Notice a front
>shoe missing when I go to pick his hooves. (14 days after his shoeing)
>immediately called the farrier, left a message on his machine. (BTW
>rode with an easyboot) My farrier has yet to return my call, 5 days

Hi, Heidi.  Wow.  I can't imagine that!  My farrier not only returns my
calls within 24 hours (sooner if I just bypass the answering machine or
wife and page him), he calls ME when it's time for Pache's
trimming/shoeing.  He will willing replace or reattach or bend back into
shape any shoes within a couple of weeks without charging.  If he's coming
to the pasture for somebody else, he won't charge anything even after 2
weeks unless he has to rip all the shoes off and re-do everything (hasn't
happened and I don't expect that).  He is always willing to explain things
to me, even when I don't ask him to.  He repeatedly scolded me last time I
had him out for not calling him right away when Pache was in danger of
throwing a shoe.  And he wasn't doing it because he wanted to fleece me for
more money.  He wouldn't have charged me anyway.

My humble opinion/advice is to look for a decent farrier.

>horse has hooves of iron, after an 8 week cycle, usually the farrier
>has to use brute force to get his shoes off and always comments on
>what tough feet he has. 

Why do you shoe him then?  Do you ride on rocks that tear up his feet?  Or
are his soles tender-footed?  I used to ride an Arabian that had solid
black feet and I never had to shoe him.  On the other hand, Apache must be
shod every 6 weeks or so.  Those striped hooves just don't stand up to the
rocky ridges that I ride on.  Another Arabian in the pasture has only front
shoes.
  
>Is it justifiable to be a little ticked off that after a $75 set of

Maybe it's a difference in regions, but I only pay $45 for a set of shoes
all the way around.  I'm starting to feel really blessed to have my
farrier.  I think I'll tell him what a good job he's doing when he comes
out next week to reshoe Apache.

Good luck, I hope you get things straightened out.  I don't think you're
over-reacting to the way your farrier is treating you or your horse.

---April
   Chattanooga, TN


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