How To Answer 4 Questions You’ll Likely Get From New Horse Owners

Regardless  of the level of horsemanship that clients possess, they inevitably will ask you hoof-care questions. But the less experience a client has with horses, the more that volume of questions will grow. This is especially true of those who are new to ownership and are learning with a backyard horse.

Don’t make the mistake of viewing inexperienced and incessant questioning from these owners as an annoyance. Instead, it can equate to job security. Certainly, you need to be able to maintain a schedule in your workday without holding court for an hour or 2 to answer questions about horses’ feet. 

The more a novice owner learns about horses, the more that client understands the critical need of quality hoof care. And hopefully from that, the owner will realize only a qualified, informed farrier can supply that help.

In October 2012, we conducted a survey with the readers of American Farriers Journal’s e-newsletter in which we asked farriers what are the most frequent questions that they receive from novice backyard horse owners. The 103 farriers who contributed to this survey have a combined average of 66% of backyard horses on their books. 

Here are the four most popular questions received by farriers from novice backyard horse owners in order of frequency. The farriers contributing their insight to each have a minimum of 50% backyard accounts.  

1. How Often Do You Need To Trim/Shoe My Horse?

Similar questions: How much do you charge? Why does this cost so much?

Nearly 90% of respondents submitted this question to the survey. It can simply be a beginner curious of the regularity of hoof care. But in most cases it is an indirect way to ask, “How much is this going to cost me?” 

It is the polite alternative to “What do you charge?” and “Why does this cost so much?” Direct or indirect, the client wants to figure out how much each visit will set them back.

For Scottie Shook of Claremont, N.C., the question occurs regardless of the economic climate, but has become more frequent due to the tough economy of recent years. 

Keeping his clients on a 6-week schedule, Shook explains the biology of hoof growth and the adverse effects that occur anatomically should it go unchecked. Shook also frames this in the general sense that horse owners have assumed the responsibility for that horse’s overall care, including its feet, since it is a domesticated animal. He also utilizes a self-assembled book of material that he’s collected to explain to the owners the importance of quality hoof care and some of the problems that can arise in the feet. 

“I take my time to explain to them that if they follow through with regularly scheduled hoof care, it is going to eliminate 99% of the problems they’ll have,” he says.

The other way the client learns the value of footcare is a tougher lesson — especially for the horse. The client will ignore the horse’s hoof care until the animal comes up lame due to this thriftiness. So what was once a thrifty plan has now become an expensive lesson to learn, as the farrier and likely a veterinarian are needed to remedy the situation. 

“All I can do is remind them that’s what is going to happen if you get off schedule,” he says. “Usually all it takes is one time for them to learn, but I hate that the horse had to suffer for it.”

Shook’s area is not unlike others in which clients are padding the trimming/shoeing cycle to save a few bucks. Tough economic times have cost many in his area income or their jobs, but they refuse to give up their horses. They try to cut costs wherever possible to keep their horses in spite of the ongoing financial burden. Shook has kept his prices steady to reflect those conditions in his area.

In case the client does stretch a trimming or shoeing by a couple of weeks, Shook will take the extra time to talk about how the horse is moving or identify any problems upon his return. Recently, he was able to pick up the foot and show a developing white line problem to the frugal owner.

2. Should My Horse Wear Shoes/Go Barefoot?

Similar questions: Can we use boots? Can we just use shoes on the fronts?

This type of question came close to being the most frequent one listed in the survey. The questions can go both ways, but it occurs much more often when addressing whether a shod horse should go barefoot.

Typically, there are two causes for asking this question says Thousand Oaks, Calif., farrier Rick Barnard. First, novice clients will often look toward barefoot as a money-saving idea. They are more concerned about saving the money on new shoes or resets than they are about the reason the horse was wearing shoes. 

Secondly, it comes from the novice owners interested in changing from shod to barefoot because they have discussed the subject with a fellow owner or read something online from barefoot advocates.

Barnard is asked this question regularly by his novice clients. His practice is composed of both trimmed and shod, so he is willing to transition a horse to either if it would benefit the horse, or at least not have an adverse effect on the animal. He answers this question by educating the riders of the pros and cons on each option based on their specific needs.

“I look at each horse on an individual basis,” he says. “Does the horse have thick soles? What kind of riding will the owner and horse be doing? Will the horse be out on the rocks or doing more pounding on the street? I’ll go over these scenarios with the owners.”

He also relies on his experience as a trail rider to provide reasoning behind his advice about protecting the foot. “It’s a ‘been there, done that’ thing,” he adds.

If a client is adamant about transitioning a horse to barefoot despite Barnard’s recommendations, the farrier is willing to experiment. He’ll talk about hoof boots and about things they need to watch out for on a ride.

“If the owners want to try barefoot, let’s go for it,” he says. “I’ll explain to the owner that because of where they are riding, the hooves may get chipped a bit. If this happens, I’ll warn them not to panic — it isn’t that bad. If they want to go back to shoes, they can call me and I’ll come and put new shoes on the horse.

“Let the owners decide, tell them what to look out for or what to expect so it doesn’t come as a shock to them.”

3. Does It Hurt When You Nail On The Shoe/Hot Fit?

Similar question: I read an article on the Internet, what do you think about…?

This type of question is your best opportunity to establish yourself as their hoof-care professional. By being the footcare expert for those inexperienced backyard horse owners, the more valuable you become to them. This helps secure your position as their farrier and improves your chances for referrals that will grow your practice.

 

When novice clients ask if nailing or hot fitting is painful for their horses, they’ve given you an opportunity to set your position as their hoof-care expert.

When asking this question, a novice client is revealing that they know very little about anatomy. 

“New owners see a one-dimensional object,” says Salinas, Calif., farrier Mike DeLeonardo, CJF. “They don’t consider the three bones inside, that there are nerves, a vascular system, soft tissue and so much more.”

DeLeonardo says it is critical for you to be the footcare expert for your owners. If you elect not to answer their questions, someone else will — perhaps another farrier. Ignored clients could search out the answers from unreliable sources, like a fellow owner or the Internet. By being proactive in communication, you are managing the relationship and the client’s education.

“You are able to show your knowledge and abilities,” he says. “My best customers are the ones that ask a lot of questions. After you build that confidence in them, then things like what you charge isn’t the most important thing to them.

“If you don’t answer, you’ve given that client a chance to get misinformation.”

Your knowledge of anatomy is the cornerstone that supports any reasoning to your clients. You can best address why you are or aren’t using shoes. 

“There is a place and time for everything,” he says. “It is what we are asking of the horse and what that owner is doing with the horse. 

“If that owner isn’t riding that much, why should the horse be shod? The maintenance trim is the most important thing. As the farrier, I have to be flexible to the needs of the horse and the wants of the client.”

DeLeonardo says another example of utilizing anatomy is hot fitting (which he recommends in every permissible shoeing case). 

“You have to understand why you are doing this, and be able to explain the reasoning to the client, both in terms of getting the best possible fit and bacterial protection.”

He likes to use hoof models to explain anatomy to clients. He finds this particularly useful in discussions of nailing.

“I can show them that the depth is when the problem is generated, rather than the height,” he says. “Too often, the uninformed owner warns you not to nail too high, and that isn’t going to be the issue.”

4. Can You Recommend Good Feed/Supplements/Tack?

Similar question: Where should I buy my feed/hay/supplements/tack?

There are few equine professionals that backyard clients see more frequently than their farriers. Because of the lack of experience among the novice owners, the farrier often becomes the go-to source for equine advice beyond hoof care. 

When asked about products and services, Chickasha, Okla., farrier Christine Abramo, CF, says there is so much that new horse owners don’t know. She has clients who haven’t taken their horse to a vet in years, so they count on her to provide information about equine health, including nutrition.

“You will go to their property and the horse is either obese or underfed,” she says. “The new owners don’t have a clue on how to feed the horse. They either base it off what their granddad did or think they can count on a 5-gallon bucket of cheap, sweet feed and bad hay.”

The obesity problem is the most common issue for Abramo when it comes to questions that can impact soundness, but aren’t directly related. When she has concerns about a horse’s nutrition, she advocates answering the question before it is asked, especially in the case of feed.

“I just don’t show up and put shoes on the horse,” she says. “I look at the horse and talk to the owner about how it is doing.”

When she finds a client’s horse in this state, she would commonly discuss how it could lead the horse to founder, which leads to an explanation of what foundering is. Often she will discuss the topic in terms of metabolic syndrome, because the horse owner is less likely to be defensive if not being directly blamed for the horse’s condition.

“Nobody likes to hear that they are at fault for the horses being too fat or too skinny,” she says.

When she sees for the first time a horse with a bad weight issue, Abramo will begin by asking what feed is being used. She then will help the owner build a strategy to correct the horse’s weight problem. 

Another commonly asked question may involve how the saddle fits or why the horse seems sore after a ride with no apparent reason. When dealing with issues about tack, she will watch how the horse moves, feel the spinal area for obviously sore or swollen areas and then may ask about the saddle. She may recommend other strategies such as a trying a chiropractor or, for other types of problems, a vet consult. 

Sometimes the clients have introduced the problem, so you need to be diplomatic in your communication to help educate them.