Bernie Born isn’t much of a horseman—he’s taking lessons to learn to ride—but he’s an expert at taking care of their feet. Mr. Born is a farrier, which means he spends his days trimming and shoeing horses’ hoofs.
“The funny thing is, I’m a bit nervous atop a horse, but I feel right at home working under them every day,” he says.
Born’s current occupation is a far cry from his original career as a financial analyst—and pays far less. But his new job offers some decided benefits.
“I learned in the financial world that you need to keep people informed of what you’re doing and you need to be on time,” Born says. “If you’re not going to make a deadline, you really owe people a heads up as soon as possible.”
He worked in financial consulting until the middle of 2011 and “decided it was getting me nowhere.”
Born shoes in the Flagstaff, Ariz., area after spending time at the Tucson School of Horseshoeing.
He says there are only 5 or 6 full-time farriers in his area and he shoes mostly trail or pleasure horses. His business background has helped him thrive in an area where most farriers fail.
“I’m able to succeed in an area where most of my colleague falter,” he says. “I’ve had so many clients tell me that their old farrier would never tell them what he or she was doing or why they were doing it.
“I like having a client be able to see I see why you did ‘X’ and I can see where you want to take my horse. I like to get a sense of closure all the time.”
