For more than 30 years, American Farriers Journal has used our November issue to provide insight into running an efficient and profitable business. In this issue, you’ll find several articles that deliver keen business advice, alert you to shoeing rules of various breeds and disciplines and give you a guide to products and services. In the back, you’ll find note pages, so you can add your own business information that you can source throughout the coming year. And this year, our Farrier Business Practices Survey once again is an integral part of this guide.

This biennial survey is a comprehensive look at the United States farrier industry. We’ve tracked trimming and shoeing prices, business trends and other elements of farrier practices throughout the country. Besides the informative approach, we hope that you’ll compare your practice with those in your region and elsewhere. As the majority of the industry is full-time farriers, this initial look at survey results gives a well-rounded examination of this group. You can read the survey here.

In 2021, full- and part-time farriers reported income growth compared with survey results collected in 2019. But even with this signal of an overall healthy industry, there are some points of concern.

Safety and Protection

In the survey, we asked farriers how often they work on a horse without another person present. About 30% say they work without anyone else in the barn holding or in close proximity to the horse. Looking deeper into these results, we see that this…