Harlé Knights Student Equine Podiatrist

26/03/2024

I want to thank my clients for being so patient whilst I’ve recovered from my recent surgery. I’m now back on my feet, and ready to start my non-pathological case studies! This means I’m looking for four horses or ponies to help with the next step of my education 🐴

I’m looking for:
- Horses with non-pathological (mostly healthy) hooves
- Located in or around North East Lincolnshire
- Owners willing to commit to regular trims over the next six months, who are also willing to work alongside me and implement recommendations that will help your horse’s feet

All case studies are overseen by a fully qualified Equine Podiatrist, and are fully insured. Case study clients will be charged at a reduced rate, just to cover my costs.

Please get in touch if you think you’ll be able to help!

05/01/2024

Occasionally I am asked if I charge the same for minis as for horses. I remember once being asked if I charge less because I wasn’t able to trim all four feet (because the horse was so scared and tried to take my head off). Once I was even asked if the first trim for a foal would be free as per “tradition”. And I did trim it for free as it happens, but I still put diesel in my car to get there. It climbed all over me because the owner had never lifted a foot before the appointment, and broke my finger in the process. But if your horse is super nervous, and i come out to give him a scratch, pick up the hooves and give you some pointers on how to help him be more comfortable with hoofcare, you’re paying for my time, not by the hoof and it frustrates me that the question would ever come up. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll gladly help people out - but that’s at my discretion. When it’s expected, because the horse is tiny or he was terrified/needed seds/doesn’t have much growth, please don’t assume that the appointment will be cheaper. My education/insurance/tools/fuel/time/risk/car maintenance etc are covered by a flat rate.

19/10/2023

If anyone deserves this award, it’s Matt! Not only has he done a great job looking after my ponies the last 6 years, he’s been super supportive with my own journey into hoof care (and maybe inspired me to do it, but don’t tell him I said that or he’ll get a big head 🫣😂)

Please vote if you can!

And now you all know why I’ve had a few photos taken - made the horse and hound shortlist for farrier of the year 💪🏼 means so much, thank you everyone
Now the real voting begins, get all your friends friends to vote 😂 just follow the link

https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/archives/farrier-of-the-year-2023-835090

22/08/2023

Discover even more ideas for you

13/07/2023

I still have some availability for clients around the North East Lincolnshire area.

I am a student Equine Podiatrist, undertaking a LANTRA level five diploma which is the equivalent to a HND. I have passed my exams stating I am competent to trim, and I have my own business insurance for client’s horses.

Equine Podiatry is a whole-horse approach to hoofcare, so your consultation will include advice on diet and exercise, an analysis of gait before and after the trim, as well as a usability score for each hoof and photographs to help track your horse’s progress.

If you are interested, please get in touch!

12/07/2023

Late last week our profession lost a shining light. Jayne was incredible horsewoman, and an amazing teacher.

She worked so hard to help push the profession to where it is today, and I’ve been completely broken by the news of her passing. She’s such an inspiration to me, and I’m so grateful that my final memories of her were so positive - when she told me I’d passed my practical exam. The thought of continuing my education without her devastates me.

Thank you for everything, Jayne. I’m so glad to have known you, even if it wasn’t for long enough. 💗

Jayne Hunt

The members of the Equine Podiatry Association have been devastated by the sudden passing of our beloved Jayne Hunt in a riding accident on Sunday 9th July.

Jayne has been at the heart of our community since its inception. With her longstanding friend and colleague Richard Vialls, she established the Equine Podiatry training company delivering the Equine Podiatry diploma. In that role she shared her passion, wisdom and warmth with her students. So on Sunday afternoon, in the blink of an eye, our association not only lost our warmest, funniest and most generous member, we also lost our teacher, our mentor and our dear friend. Her favourite answers to our inevitable student questions were ‘it depends’ (to almost any Equine Podiatry question) and ‘it’ll be fine’ (to any set back or problem) and those refrains still echo with us now she’s gone.

We will be forever grateful for her life, and that she had the foresight and bravery to follow her passion for this profession. We’re thankful that she and Richard brought their dream of establishing a professional Equine Podiatry qualification to fruition, when two years ago the Equine Podiatry Training course was accredited by LANTRA as a Level 5 qualification. It is a comfort to us that she achieved this long held ambition before her untimely death.

Living her life as she did, Jayne influenced and changed so many lives for the better: from her clients, we podiatrists, and the horses that bring us all together. We are so thankful for the time we had with her and wish we had had much more, she will be profoundly missed by us all.

04/07/2023

Met this lovely old boy yesterday who needed just a little tidy up after having his shoes off a few weeks ago 💅

02/07/2023

Just a slight tidy up for this little pony 🐴

27/06/2023

What is an Equine Podiatrist?

The EPA puts it best: “Equine Podiatrists are highly trained specialists in shoeless hoofcare who work closely with owners to achieve the healthiest hooves possible for their horse. The approach is somewhat different to traditional farriery, educating owners so that they can understand how different factors influence the health of the hoof, helping to develop hoof-friendly horse management practices and providing close support and guidance as the horse’s hooves change.”

Being an EP is much more than trimming hooves - it’s helping owners to understand their horse’s feet and what they can do to best help their horse 🐴

23/06/2023

I am now insured and taking on clients in the North East Lincs area 🥳

Please get in touch for any more details!

20/06/2023

We have had lots of rain and nice warm sunshine☀️
Keep an eye on your horses and ponies 😀

18/06/2023

Stage 2 exam.. PASSED! 🥳

Which means… I’m now ready to start my mentored case studies!

I’m looking for horses or ponies in the North East Lincs area with non-pathological (i.e. pretty healthy) feet. For my case studies I do need a sixth-month commitment with trims every 6 weeks, and will be charging a small fee just to cover costs.

I’m fully insured and will be supervised by a qualified mentor the whole time ☺️

If you think you can help, please get in touch!

17/06/2023

Last day of Trim 2 before our exam.. Nerves are setting in!

This is the wonderful little Paddington 🦄 He’s a super boy and was very patient for his trim 🥰

16/06/2023

This lovely old boy is Trilby, who was very kind and very patient with me today whilst I trimmed two of his feet 🥰🐴

One day left of trimming practise and then our practical exam.. Fingers crossed! 🤞🏼

15/06/2023

Two days into Trim 2 in Somerset and already feeling so much more confident in my trimming!

08/06/2023

The association is run as a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee. The two key legal documents which control how the association runs are the Memorandum and Articles of Association. In addition, the council maintains a set of association rules which control the day-to-day running of the associ...

02/06/2023

27/04/2023

Laminitis risk from grass is super high at the moment - prevention is always better than cure! It’s not necessarily the long, luscious grass you need to look for - the short, growing grass is just as dangerous- if not more! Stay vigilant 🫡

21/04/2023

One of the big reasons I started this page was to correct misinformation about barefoot trimmers and equine podiatrists, and to showcase the training I am doing to give confidence to my potential future clients.

Unfortunately in undertaking market research for my first assignment I got quite a lot of responses from people who would never use an equine podiatrist due to this misinformation - that there is no regulation, no qualifications, and no insurance.

The course I am undertaking is for a LANTRA level 5 diploma, which is the equivalent of a foundation degree. Once I have completed it, I will be able to become a full member of the Equine Podiatry Association - a self-regulating professional body for qualified Equine Podiatrists in the UK. All members of the EPA must be qualified, and those who work for reward must be insured. EPA members must undertake at least 40 hours of CPD per year to ensure they are continually learning and keeping up with the newest advancements in hoofcare.

The course doesn’t just cover the equine hoof and how we care for it - it covers the anatomy of the whole body, as well as equine behaviour, nutrition, business skills and, the one that may shock people most, farriery, and how to work alongside a farrier. It’s a very comprehensive course with a lot of material, not a simple weekend trip away to trim a few hooves.

I hope this post helps to clear up some of the misinformation, and I am more than happy to answer any questions anyone may have ☺️

17/04/2023

A morning well spent reading Pete Ramey’s book in the sunshine ☀️

Hopefully this lovely weather will start to dry up the fields, our poor ponies have now got ducks for neighbours!

03/04/2023

Then it was off to Lower Weare Horse Retirement Grass & Track Livery for some gait analysis! Again met lots of wonderful horses, and definitely feel a lot more confident to assess movement now! The favourite of the day was Bailey, who of course had to be involved in our group photo 🐴

03/04/2023

Finally home after a busy few days! First up.. Three days at Ferne Animal Sanctuary in Somerset with Ben Hart, learning all about equine behaviour and how we can shape it. Super interesting stuff, and met lots of wonderful horses!

12/03/2023

A lot of people think that those who advocate for horses being barefoot think shoeing is the devil - which is absolutely not the case! Here’s some pictures of the second years on our course learning about farriery and how to work alongside a farrier ☺️

I wouldn’t have started this journey if it wasn’t for my wonderful farrier Brook House Forge taking me under his wing and letting me follow him around for a few days and learn a lot more about hooves 🐴

05/03/2023

Super fun and interesting week away in Wales on the Trim 1 course. Lots of feet to be trimmed! And lots of interesting finds once the feet were trimmed and sawn open 🪚

Now for the long drive home 😴

15/02/2023

Check out what one of my clients sent me! I often get asked ‘would my horse be okay to jump barefoot’ as always every horse is an individual, but yes they can! There are no limits with the hooves they were born with! ❤️🐴

21/12/2022

Happy winter solstice everybody 🥳 Soon be back to sunshine ☀️

16/12/2022

Finishing up the introductions with my two boys, there’s little Dinky, the cob, and Moscow, the thoroughbred. They both came to us barefoot and with lovely strong hooves - Mossy being living proof that thoroughbreds aren’t destined to have weak feet!

15/12/2022

To continue the introductions.. This is Gem, my lovely mare who truly sparked my interest in barefoot.

She came to us with four shoes and feet like dinnerplates, and with time, care, and the support of a wonderful farrier, she now has beautifully strong hooves! She’s still flat footed and there’s a way to go until her feet are perfect, but I’m so happy with how she’s come along.

The pictures of her feet aren’t perfect but unfortunately I don’t have any better ones - the first photo was the day her shoes were pulled, and the second was less than a year later, about two years ago now. She’s coming along wonderfully 🥰