I would like to know if there is anywhere one can learn to become a farrier/blacksmith in Louisiana? I like animals and the idea of metal working going hand in hand for the benefit and health of the animal seem quite satisfying.
Thanks Matt
Get a degree in Pshycology, minor in, oh, Social Work of some kind.
I'tll come in handy in dealing with all the nutbar horse people.
Cheers Trevor Jones (wife has horses. 'Nuff said!)
find yourself a computer (at the library) and look up ABANA. and go from there. have fun, mark
If you are willing to travel, there are a couple decent courses for learning to be a farrier.
It's a lot different from being a blacksmith, with a very few of the skills crossing over. Mostly, as a Farrier, you will be dealing with trimming hooves, remove, install or resetting shoes, and occasionally doing hotwork, adjusting shoes, or hot installs, and very rarely, building custom shoes. Then there are the speciality Dunno about your area, but around here the farriers get booked far in advance, and are paid pretty well. They also have a pretty high burn-out rate, between their backs going to hell, and getting tired of dealing with phsyco horse chicks.
If you are really interested in the "Horse" side, you could do worse things than to start learning all you can about horse conformation, gait and the physiology of horse locomotion. You are going to have to know the stuff inside out and backwards to be able to do such things as correcting a horses gait, via trimming and shoeing, as well as other corrective actions for repairing damage done by poorly done shoeing or injury. You pretty much have to know what a vet knows about the horses feet and legs, with additional knowledge being a bonus.
IIRC, the farriers my wife has been using, got their qualifications through a College in Montana. I am sure that there are others around. Check the Colleges in your area, or check around online.
For Blacksmithing, I second the ABANA recommendation. Find a Chapter of the club near you, and make contact. Almost every Smith I have ever met was happy to share what they know.
Some Blacksmiths shoe horses, and some Farriers do some blacksmithing, but there is a BIG difference between the two skills!
Cheers Trevor Jones
There's a Farrier training school in Ramsy MN, a suburb of Minneapolis. It is the Minnesota School of Horseshoeing.
But that's not Louisiana. IIRC, they run a 6 week course several times each year.
I'd contact:
Pete Stanaitis
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Matt wrote:
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