Turns out the world's self-proclaimed horse capital can put its money where its mouth is.

The horse industry pumped almost $3 billion into the state's economy last year, according to the Kentucky Equine Survey, the first comprehensive snapshot of Kentucky's horse industry since 1977 and the first-ever detailed economic impact study of the equine sector.

The state has more than 242,000 horses, Joe Police, executive director of the Kentucky Horseshoeing School in Richmond, Ky., and the value of the state’s equine related assets is $23.4 billion, he said.

A somewhat surprising number was the more than 79,000 backyard or trail horses in the state, Police said and that racing horses only accounted for about 15,000 horses.

“The state is a concentrated heart pulse of expense and gross revenues,” Police said. “When a farrier looks at the sheer amount of horses in the state, he or she has to realize there is a tremendous opportunity because there are so many different types of horses here.

“There is a lot of work for farriers in this state if you understand the basics of farriery and are trained the right ways."

To read the executive summary of the Kentucky Equine Survey, click here.

To read the full report, click here.