12/05/2021
Farriers are a special breed. A rare breed.
We sign up for a trade that will beat us down, cripple us, push us to our limits, make us suffer through extreme cold and heat, put up with rank horses because we know deep down it's not actually their fault, continually fix the same problem day after day, trim after trim, because no one else takes responsibility...
We forsake our own physical limitations and keep pushing. Our drive is what saves us, sets us apart and also sometimes what breaks us.
I've never met a tougher group of people with deeper hearts for the work they do. We continually learn, adapt and change to be the best and yet we don't ask for much. We just do our job. Sometimes it's thankless. Sometimes it's not worth the money. Sometimes we may want to quit. But we get up the next day and keep going.
I know old cowboys that take bute for their aches and pains, have been kicked, stomped, sent flying, sustained serious injuries and so much more. I myself have sustained injuries and repetitive motion injuries to my elbows and joints in my hands, but I keep going.
Some days are really good, and some days your heart breaks for the horse being put down that we tried so hard to fix.
It's an emotional, extremely physical artform that no one would understand until you put your heart and sole into some nippers, a knife and a rasp.
