WHILE TALKING TO YOUR buddies at the local farrier supply shop may be one way to see how your shoeing business stacks up, American Farriers Journal offers a much more comprehensive way to see how you compare to shoers from around the United States.

Drawn from a random sample of American Farriers Journal readers from around the country, nowhere else will you be able to find a more in-depth study of the status of the farrier business as a whole. This survey is conducted every 2 years.

Surveyed Shoers

Before diving into the results, you should know who responded to this survey. Surveys were mailed out to 1,996 randomly computer-selected shoers and out of that number, 695 farriers took the time to send the questionnaire back into our office — a highly favorable 34.8 percent response rate.

Out of the 695 responses, 75 percent (522) came from full-time farriers and 25 percent (173) were sent in by part-time shoers. The average respondent is 49 and has been shoeing for 18 years. An average week for a full-time shoer is 42 hours, working on 40 horses and dealing with 15 clients. Part-timers averaged 17 1/2 hours of work with 14 horses and six clients.

Education, Training Qualifications

Proving that attending farrier school is the way to go for most shoers, 71 percent of the total respondents went to shoeing school. The average duration of their schooling was 13 weeks. Farriers from the Far West led the way with 78 percent of…