Q. What was the most beneficial tip you came across this year? This can be anything throughout farriery: the trim, horse handling, tools, business, overall efficiency and so on. 

A: When working with poor, weak-footed horses, rasp the clinches off prior to shoe removal. This will stop any resistance when removing the shoe and prevent damage to the hoof wall.

— Marc Jerram, Brewood, England

A: Most talented farriers can show up and do a great job once, but can you come back to the same horse and strive for and perform that same quality every time?

— David Hesseltine, Sherman, Texas

A: Always wear eye and hearing protection. There’s no excuse not to.

— Dan Bradley, Lucedale, Miss.

A: In 2013, Mike Wildenstein, a clinician for Farrier Product Distribution, talked about the anti-bacterial benefits of leather pads. This hit me right between the eyes.

When I started shoeing harness horses many years ago, leather was practically the only thing we used. Guys would buy large strips in bundles and cut their own pads as needed. I remember one guy actually had a cowhide in his shop!

Everyone had big cutters that were hand cranked (Duval is one example) and we literally cranked out leather pads. Harness racing as an industry has gotten away from that in our efforts to improve, evolve, become more efficient, etc.

Many people in the performance horse industry are looking for an advantage. Manufacturers are very happy to feed that need with new products.

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