Farriers

Finding the right farrier has got to be one of the most frustrating experiences on earth.

• You can't tell how good of a job they're doing until they've done it-- and then you have to pay them.
• It's hard to pick a farrier based on qualifications, because there's no universal standard of qualification for farrierwork. Yes, there are farrier schools, but there's no universal standard for what it takes to graduate from them. Some have two month courses, some have two year courses.
• Many of them have a set of beliefs and techniques they're pretty glued to, which may not work for you.
• If you turn away a mediocre farrier, there's no guarantee you'll be able to find a better one.
• The most reliable farriers tend to be the busiest-- so they won't always take on new clients.
• As a layperson, it's sometimes hard to tell if they're doing a good job (though this guide can help).

Not that the client-farrier relationship is all one way; farriers often get beyond frustrated with clients for good reason (hilarious stuff in that there link, folks).

Rate My Horse PRO is a nice website for checking reviews of farriers and other horse professionals, but in my opinion it doesn't have the breadth it should have. Of all the Wisconsin farriers I have dealt with in the past or know of in the area, only one is listed there. Really, I should just do the free-sign-up-in-exchange-for-rating-five-professionals, but I'm pretty lazy, and I don't like to mess around with credit cards on the internet.

Anyway, I'm having a new farrier come out in a week or so-- wish me luck!