A few years ago, my bad back ended my ability to get under horses. I still help other farriers shoe horses, but I don’t get under them anymore. My back was not injured from horses. It was ruined by crawling in and out of trucks to get what I needed — from having an inefficient rig. I hurt myself more by lifting anvils than I ever did picking up a horse’s foot. When you’re short as I am, you have to get it way above belt level to get it back into the truck.

When the American Veterinary Medical Association proposed eliminating the farrier exemption from its Model Veterinary Practice Act, the hoof-care industry’s response was resoundingly unfavorable.

Most farriers complete each day having accomplished what they set out to do — helping horses. Then there are days when things go sideways and the plan goes out the window.

As farriers we spend a lot of time and financial resources educating ourselves about therapeutic work. Our advanced skills are often left in the truck because of financial constraints of treating a lame horse.

It’s been written in this space time and time and time again that the farrier industry is incredibly generous. As the American Farriers Journal staff wraps up production on the 10th edition of Getting Started In Hoof Care, we’re reminded of its generosity once again.

A few weeks back, we emailed a single question survey to a number of veteran farriers. We asked them to look back at their farrier school experiences and identify the one thing they wished they’d learned that would have helped their careers and would help new students get started on the right foot.

It’s been an eventful past few weeks on Capitol Hill with members of Congress taking aim at the practice of soring. Yet, one must wonder whether lawmakers will finally pull the trigger and hit their mark.