“Be gritty, be prompt, be willing to learn,” are the three characteristics that Julia Lundeen says every new farrier needs to succeed in the industry.

Julia Lundeen was honored as the 2023 Rising Shoeing Star Award winner at the International Hoof-Care Summit in Cincinnati, Ohio. The program recognizes farriers making incredible progress in their first 3 years after farrier school. In partnership with industry suppliers, the program highlights the importance of education and motivates new farriers to succeed. The 2023 program sponsors include Pyranha Animal Health, Victory Racing Plate Co. and American Farriers Journal.

Not only has Lundeen excelled early in her career, she has big goals for the future.

After beginning school to earn an engineering degree, Lundeen made a major shift. She didn’t want to sit behind a desk. She wanted to see her work make a difference. A conversation with her farrier opened her eyes to a new path forward — farriery.

Immediate Challenges

Lundeen identified a major obstacle after graduating from the Minnesota School of Horseshoeing in Ramsey, Minn.

“I knew what I needed to do in my mind,” she recalls, “but my hands didn’t have the skills.”

With this challenge before her, Lundeen connected with amazing mentors, including Mark Thorkildson, whom she credits for helping develop much of her post-grad skills.

“Mark taught me how to use clinchers,” Lundeen says, adding it was one of the most foundational skills in her hoof-care toolbox.

Mentors have played a large role in Lundeen’s education and career. These mentors included teachers at the Minnesota School of Horseshoeing, who nominated Lundeen for the Rising Shoeing Star Award.

Importance of Mentors

Upon graduating, Lundeen started her own business, Gray Duck Forge. She has been building a client base for the past few years and credits many of the connections she has made to mentors in the industry, as well.

Lundeen now has an opportunity to be a mentor and example for others. She says she’s excited that as she substitutes as a teacher at the Minnesota School of Horseshoeing, other women can look up to her, especially when it comes to having the strength to swing a hammer. Lundeen says it makes a big difference for a student to see a woman being successful in the industry.

“It’s easy to look at the big burly guy in the room and think, ‘Of course he’s good at this. Of course, he can swing a hammer,’” she says. “When I first started, my skills needed work too.”

Outside of the classroom, Lundeen is most proud of the little things that make her work important.

“I’ve won a few blue ribbons, but that’s not nearly as cool as helping a horse,” she says. “There are a few horses whose feet I’ve improved and that is what makes this job amazing.”

While Lundeen admits that some might not find the small, daily accomplishments as important as she does, she knows that these little wins add up to a long, fulfilling career.

Of course, not every day is easy. Lundeen points to ethical dilemmas as one of the biggest challenges that she faces early in her career.

“It’s kind of a psychological thing, the ethics of it,” she says. “It’s hard when you know what’s best for the horse, but the cost might be an issue for the customer.”

She’s not afraid to spend 2 hours with a horse to get the job done right, but it often leads to negotiations with a customer that requires a high level of communication and customer service. It’s another fundamental business skill that mentors have played a large part in teaching Lundeen.

Lundeen says it’s challenging to go home at the end of a workday, knowing what a horse needs but may not be able to get.

“Mark helped teach me how to handle customers, work with vets and navigate the business of this job,” Lundeen says.

Above all, showing up on time and being nice to the horses go a long way.

Thorkildson also taught her the fundamentals of running a business, including pricing and dealing with competition among her peers and the farriers who have been in the industry far longer.

Lundeen says learning from other professionals is the best resource for farriers beginning their careers. She knows she wouldn’t be where she is today without her mentors, including Thorkildson, who jokingly takes credit for Lundeen’s career.

When it came to being nominated for — and winning — the Rising Shoeing Star Award, Lundeen says she’s humbled and surprised. She didn’t know Robert Duggan was nominating her, or that so many mentors had written on her behalf.

“I tend to focus on my shortcomings, so I was surprised,” Lundeen says.

The exposure at the International Hoof-Care Summit to so many long-time farriers and professionals who have found incredible success in the field was eye-opening to her. Only a few short years ago, she was doing her first internet searches to determine whether life as a farrier was even possible.

Not only has Lundeen started a lifelong career, but she’s discovered a community that cares about horses the way that she does. She hopes to continue seeing womens’ presence in the industry grow. While there are many women enrolled at the Minnesota School of Horseshoeing, Lundeen says she finds that many lifelong farriers still tend to be men. In a few years, that landscape may look very different.

In the near future, Lundeen is focused on passing her Certified Journeyman Farrier’s exam from the American Farrier’s Association. She has already passed the written portion and is excited that the process is almost complete. Lundeen also aspires to become a certification tester and explore more opportunities to teach new farriers.

“I love to teach,” Lundeen says, “so I’d love to do more of that.”

Lundeen says she’ll take the lessons that many of her mentors have taught her over the years — including the need to be gritty, prompt and willing to learn — into future classrooms and mentor relationships of her own.