DURING THE American Farrier’s Association annual convention in Chattanooga, Tenn., in late February, members re-elected Bob Earle of Chino Valley, Ariz., as vice president and Walt Taylor of Albuquerque, N.M., as treasurer.

Dedicating a portion of the American Farrier’s Association convention to horse owners was apparently a good move, as record-breaking numbers attended the event in Chattanooga, Tenn., during late February.

Pointing to a need for increased professionalism and catching its own board of directors by surprise, the Executive Committee of the American Farrier’s Association and a task force it quietly created have proposed standardized education, testing and registration of farriers nationwide.

You can almost feel the horseshoeing industry shaking on its foundations already.

WHILE SERVING FARRIERS for many years from its Burlington, Wis., location, Centaur Forge recently expanded with the opening of a branch in New Braunfels, Texas.

THE NEW executive director of the American Farrier’s Association, Bryan Quinsey, was selected in mid-November by the group’s board of directors to head up the Lexington, Ky., organization.

Informal surveys seem to indicate that most farriers are opposed to licensing the trade.