Farrier Matt Johnstone enjoys coming home and putting his feet up after a tough day of shoeing. No phone calls, no paperwork — just a quiet evening. Carla Repke wants other farriers to be able to relax, too. Both offer ideas to horseshoers who want to spend less time behind a desk.

Johnstone operates a one-man farrier business in Chesterfield, Mich., but he has freed himself from the paperwork and other administrative chores. He leaves that to the other business he owns, Chesterfield Farrier Services & Associates. The company handles a full range of office chores for five local farriers, including himself, so they don’t have to.

Repke offers similar but more limited freedom through her Farrier Appointment Service Team, which provides phone and scheduling services to farriers. Though she is located in LaPorte, Colo., near Denver, she can serve farriers and their customers nationwide through an 800 phone number.

“We know farriers work very hard in a demanding profession for long hours. At the end of the day, the last thing they want to do is to spend more time confirming appointments and returning phone calls,” she says.

Time Savings

Farriers using Repke’s service can finish their workday with just one phone call, e-mail or fax to Farrier Appointment Service Team to collect their messages and shoeing schedules.

Repke started the business a few months ago after handling administrative work for widely known farrier Doug Butler for more than 10 years. That position gave her a chance…