Carla Bryant (Dallas, Texas)
My darling little mare, Miss Winter, has had a tough time the last couple years due to a history of injury and having tiny feet. The farrier she had since I bought her as a filly abruptly had to retire, which caused a minor panic, as you might guess. As we struggled to find a new farrier (and this was harder than we realized!), a well-known farrier here in Texas (several hours away) recommended Carla Bryant. She started working on my mare and was doing fine … but, suddenly, after a few months, my mare turned up lame — and we had no idea why.
My vet was out of town, so we took her to a large, well-known equine hospital. The vet there recommended having another vet, who was also a farrier, give her special shoes in order to help with the lameness. We did this for a few months, but she only appeared to get marginally better and I was really worried about her. So, I listened to my heart (and ignored that vet) and asked Carla to meet with our regular vet and give us an assessment of Winter's situation. They both agreed completely on the course of treatment, and all of us agreed that what the other vet was doing wasn't helping. Within a single shoeing, we saw an immediate improvement.
Over the course of many months and shoeings with Carla, Miss Winter has become even better than her old self. I attribute all of this to Carla. Not only is she a good, adept farrier (and a horse rider herself!), but she is also kind. My little mare met every other farrier (other than her original one) with fear and no interest in having them touch her feet. Carla causes no such fear for her; she simply walks in the stall and almost falls asleep at Carla's hand. I don't think I've ever met a farrier who actually shows this much love and kindness, a skill that’s just as important as technical skill, and one that I wish more equine professionals had.
For sure, a horse that has had issues with its feet and farriers can easily learn it's something to fear, but Carla completely removed that fear from my horse. It's a pleasure to watch Carla work, knowing my mare (and my gelding!) are in the best of hands.
I have attached a file of Miss Carla at work — as you watch Miss Winter, near the end you can see she is starting to fall asleep. You don't know how important it has been to my peace of mind knowing I never need worry about my little mare and her feet as long as Carla is here for us.
— Jacqui Hastings (Cedar Hill, Texas)