Jon Sanders

At age 54, I naively made a completely inappropriate choice for my first horse, and I knew as much about horsekeeping as I do about rocket science. A friend referred my farrier, Jon Sanders of Flower Mound, Texas. Jon showed up and to say my horse misbehaved is being kind. In retrospect, his behavior was embarrassing. He did not charge me for his time and was so kind. He stayed for about 30 minutes and taught me some basic skills that likely saved my bacon. He taught me the concept of pressure-release, showed me how to tie a quick-release knot, and told me to short-tie my horse to teach him to stand still. Six years later, Jon is still my farrier, but now I also consider him my friend. Whenever we can arrange it, he makes us his last stop of the day so we can relax, drink beer and tell lies.

— Leah Fry (Mountain Springs, Texas)