05/24/2022
People call me all the time saying that they can’t find a farrier or they only show up once and they never come back. Usually there is a reason for this.
In person consultations are not free. Gas is not free and time is valuable. If you just want an assessment, there is a fee.
Just because your horse stands well for you to brush him and feed him treats does not necessarily mean he’s well behaved. If you have not trained him to have his feet handled it’s not the farriers job to do it. If he’s going to pull my back out and put me out of work and behind schedule for two weeks then I’m not going to wrestle with him, I’m going to dope him. Dope is $20 extra.
If you are not going to keep your horse on a schedule and are going to only call a farrier once they go lame or after they’ve gotten so long you are worried your neighbors are going to turn you in, it will cost extra if I can find a place in my schedule to work you in. I will not drop everything and shuffle regularly scheduled customers just because someone neglected their horses and now “need a farrier right now today “.
If I get your foundered horse on its feet again and then you proceed to neglect to have him regularly maintained or put him right back on grass to re-founder, I’m not going to waste my time.
Lots of people seem to think that farriers should be available at the spur of the moment, that our prices are negotiable. This is not true. It’s a highly skilled job. If you want to treat your farrier like a lawn boy, maybe you should see if your lawn boy wants to trim your horse.
