Farrier Focus Podcast

In this episode, we talk with Certified Journeyman Farrier and past president of the American Farriers Association, Margie Lee-Gustafson. She and her husband Don are based in Palo Alto, California. We talk about her beginnings as a farrier, lessons and mistakes she made when starting, the value of a multi-farrier practice, her experience as president of the AFA, and numerous experiences from her career. Margie is a fantastic example of service and she shares her perspective about the importance of giving to the industry and impacting the lives of the horses she works with on a daily basis.

In this episode, we talk with Certified Journeyman Farrier and AWCF, Gerard Laverty. He is the instructor of the Farrier Program at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in British Columbia. He has been shoeing horses for more than 40 years in several different countries.

Today, we’re privileged to talk with Dr. Rachael Shuster, an equine veterinarian who practices and is licensed in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.  Having ridden since a young age, Dr. Rachael Shuster knew that she wanted to work with horses and therefore pursued equine studies.  She graduated from Colorado State University, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 1995. Dr. Shuster worked in various multiple-doctor equine ambulatory practices; interests were lameness, wound management, and a passion for podiatry, before starting her own practice, Shuster Equine, LLC in 2006. Realizing that western medicine is limited in certain protocols, and wanting to increase her diagnostic skills and therapeutic options for patients, Dr. Shuster decided to further her education and became certified by the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association (AVCA) in 2002, and the Chi Institute of Chinese Medicine in Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) in 2006 in animal chiropractic and acupuncture, respe

In this episode, we talk with Cristiano Biacca who is a certified farrier and veterinarian from Parma, Italy. He was trained as a farrier at Butler Professional Farrier School. He shares how he got his start as a large animal veterinarian and what made him decide to become a farrier as well. He also shares insights into the farrier profession in Italy, some memorable cases he has worked on, and lessons he has learned over the years learning and teaching about farriery to others.

In this episode, we talk with Certified Journeyman Farrier, Jim Quick of Niwot, Colorado who has been shoeing horses for more than 27 years. Jim shares his start as a farrier, his education at Colorado State University including studying with Dr. Doug Butler in Colorado, his beginnings into competitive shoeing, and lessons he has learned through numerous mentors he has had over the years. He shares insights into what it takes to be the best at this craft in terms of time and practice and his perspective now that he has had the opportunity to judge as well as compete. Jim shares numerous stories and lessons from his career that farriers can learn from especially when it comes to insurance for your shop and business.

In this episode, you'll hear a discussion that Dr. Doug Butler had with a group of farriers and veterinarians on eight specific foot diseases including abscesses, white line disease, keratoma, canker (and the rare coronitis), quittor, pedal osteitis, osteomyelitis, and low ringbone. These correspond to pictures and additional information that can be found in Chapter 39 of The Principles of Horseshoeing 3 on Diseases of the Horse's Foot. He discussed the DACCT method of studying and describing foot diseases: D - stands for definition of the condition A - stands for anatomy of the structures involved in the condition C - stands for clinical signs of the condition C - stands for cause(s) of the condition T - stands for treatment of the condition, including prognosis This episode covers several common and several rare foot diseases and what can be done by farriers and veterinarians to help the horse.

In this episode, we talk with farrier Travis Burns. He is a Certified Journeyman Farrier (CJF), holds the Therapeutic (TE) AND Educator Endorsements (EE) from the AFA, and is a Fellow of the Worshipful Company of Farriers (FWCF). He was recently elected as the president of the American Farriers Association. He is currently the Chief of Farrier Services at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in Blacksburg, Virginia and has been shoeing horses professionally for more than 16 years.  In this wide ranging interview, we talk about how Travis got his start, lessons he learned from his early mentors, differences between the American and British certification exams, his vision for the next two years as AFA president, and several of his memorable experiences. You'll get a lot of insight from his experiences and his thoughts on how farriers can be more unified as a profession.

In this episode, we talk with Walter Varcoe about his work as a farrier and his interest in equine skeletons.  Walter was a professional rider and equine manager for the New York State Department of Corrections as well as their only farrier until his retirement in July 2006. In addition to his normal duties Walter also served as their equine instructor, teaching inmates the proper care of horses as well as teaching many of the inmates the art of farrier work. This not only allowed the animals to receive better care, but taught a valuable skill that those men could use throughout their lives. During his tenure, Walter also ran the commercial composting operation at the Otisville Correctional Facility where the first horse to become a skeleton was processed. A patrol horse on duty had been kicked by another horse and had it’s leg broken. Unfortunately the injury was so devastating that the patrol horse had to be euthanized.  It was from this incident that the first skeleton came to be. With the help of his crew

In this episode, we talk with Allie Hayes of HorseScience.com about how she got started as a farrier, her interest in horse anatomy, and how she began processing horse feet and limbs to help farriers, veterinarians and horse owners see what is really happening inside the foot structures of the horse. She shares some of the lessons she has learned from studying, processing, and teaching anatomy through these invaluable resources. She also details some of the trial and error experiences she has had in learning how to best process these models to showcase anatomy in the best ways. Learn more and get a hoof model for your practice by going to www.HorseScience.com.

In this episode, we talk with Guy Karsh who lives about 25 minutes outside of Jerusalem in Israel. He has been shoeing horses for 25 years. He shares experiences from becoming a farrier, learning from his father and other mentors, the importance of continuing education for farriers, and memorable experiences he has had while shoeing horses in Israel. This is a fascinating discussion about how the farrier business works in another country that you can learn a lot from and apply in your farrier business.

In this episode, Dr. Doug Butler shares insights to a group of farriers and veterinarians how to look and see conformation deformities and what can be done to help horses that have these different conditions. Dr. Butler shares numerous experiences and techniques on observation that will help you better assess the horses you work with on a daily basis.

In this episode, we talk with Certified Journeyman Farrier Andrew DeVisser from Ayr, Ontario, Canada. He has been shoeing horses for 9 years. He attended Butler Professional Horseshoeing School in 2009.  Andrew shares his insights about the value of horseshoeing school, the benefits of the AFA cultural exchange program that he was a part of, how he prepared for his certification exams, and the benefits of competition. He also shares his thoughts on how farriers can build and maintain successful farrier businesses.

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Tracy Turner, an equine veterinarian who was trained as a farrier. He was raised on a small ranch in southwestern Colorado. As a youth he was active in the local 4-H Horse Program. As a young adult he apprenticed with a farrier in 1972 and used those skills to help finance his education. From that time on he has dedicated his life to horses. He received his DVM degree from Colorado State University in 1978, after which he was able to pursue his interest in equine medicine and surgery. He is board certified in Veterinary Surgery (Dipl.ACVS) and Equine Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation (Dipl.ACVSMR). He served on the faculty of the University of Illinois, University of Florida and the University of Minnesota. He joined Anoka Equine Clinic in 2004 and started his own practice in 2016 dedicated strictly to Sports Medicine, Lameness, and Surgery. Dr. Turner consults for the USDA Horse Protection, Federation Equestriene Internationale (FEI) and United States Equestrian Federation.

In this episode, we talk with Certified Journeyman Farrier, Peter Butler about his experiences in becoming a farrier, getting certified, competing, and training horses. Pete shares lessons about teaching students, how students learn differently, the value of understanding the origin of words in mastering anatomy, and experiences with horses over the years. He also shares his experiences of working with and observing horses in Mongolia when he was there fifteen years ago. You'll get a lot out of this interview with a farrier educator who is deeply interested in the process of learning and what it takes to master the skills of farriery.

Jeff Rodriguez passed away after a long battle with lung cancer in November of 2016. A native of Tampa, Florida, he moved his practice to Golden, Colorado and built a profitable and successful farrier business. He spoke many times at Farrier Focus conferences and in this episode, we share a talk he gave about what it takes to build and maintain a successful farrier image and business. With his trademark wit and humor, Jeff shared personal experiences and stories to help farriers build more profitable businesses. We hope you enjoy these observations and comments from a remarkable farrier who was committed to helping farriers be more successful and that this talk will help you carefully evaluate the image you project and the type of business you want to build.

In this episode, Bob Smith of Pacific Coast Horseshoeing School shares  insights into how to successfully market your farrier business. He shares the differences between products and services and that how and why you market your horseshoeing services will make all the difference between the perception that clients have of you and the price you can charge. You'll get a lot out of this talk from a previous Farrier Focus Conference.

In this episode, we talk with certified journeyman farrier Nate Allen. He studied under Dr. Doug Butler at Northwest Missouri State University and Colorado State University. He taught as an instructor at Mesalands Community College in Tucumcari, New Mexico for many years. He currently serves as an administrator at Central Community College in south central Nebraska.  He has been shoeing horses for more than thirty years and shares lessons he has learned throughout his career, his insights into how farriers learn, and the best methods he has found work when teaching anatomy and the skills of farriery. He also shares insights on how he recovered from a serious injury and his thoughts about the future of the farrier business.

In this episode, we talk with farrier Bryan Farcus of Athens, Ohio. Bryan was a director/instructor of a farrier program at Meredith Manor Equestrian Centre in Waverly, WV for 14 years. In addition, Bryan was an adjunct farrier instructor for Hocking College in Nelsonville, OH for 6 years, and breifly served as a guest instructor for an Equine Science program at Salem International University in Salem, WV. Bryan's other accomplishments include both a Master of Arts degree with a specialization in equine education and also a Bachelor of Science degree in the area of business.   You'll gain some great insights from Bryan's experience on how to relate better to horse owners, the importance of farrier/client communication, and some of his most memorable experiences.

In this episode, we talk with Kevin Oliver of Eddington, Maine who went to Cal Poly in winter and spring of 1973. He has been shoeing horses for more than 44 years and shares experiences and helpful hints from his years as a farrier that can benefit you and your business. Kevin shares his thoughts about the importance of continuing education, the value of attending a horseshoeing school, tips about treating laminitic horses, and his thoughts about the most valuable tools in the farrier business. You'll get a lot of insight from this master farrier who has spent a lifetime learning the tricks of the trade.

On this episode, we interview Bryan Quinsey, the Executive Director of the American Association of Professional Farriers (AAPF) and the International Association of Professional Farriers (IAPF). He has been involved with the farrier industry since 2003. Bryan talks about how he got his start, how the AAPF got started, and his thoughts about the future of the farrier business.