On-The-Job Safety

As a farrier, you’re going to be working in a field with certain inherent dangers. You already know that and if you’re finishing up horseshoeing school, odds are you’ve already had first-hand experience with some of them.

But while aches, pains and a certain number of injuries are almost inevitable, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take every precaution. Improving your horse-handling ability and your awareness of horses while you’re working a big part of keeping safe (see Pages 22-25). But it’s also important to use protective equipment and take precautions against long-term health problems that are less obvious than bites and kicks from a horse.

Eye Protection

One of the best and easiest safety precautions you can take is to wear eye protection while working — particularly when at the anvil. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) estimates that approximately 1,000 eye injuries take place in the work place daily.

But the same source estimates that 90% of eye injuries can be prevented by the simple act of wearing appropriate eye protection — safety glasses or welding masks or goggles when appropriate.

Obviously, eyes are particularly at risk when you’re working at the anvil or using power tools such as grinders on shoes. But bits of hoof can become projectiles as you trim a hoof while debris such as dirt, manure and chips of ice can be hazardous in as simple a task as cleaning a hoof.

Safety glasses are usually made of glass, plastic or polycarbonate. Prevent Blindness American offers the following assessment of the materials, all of which meet or exceed standards for eye protection.

Glass Lenses

• Are not easily scratched.
• Can be used around harsh chemicals.
• Can be made in your corrective prescription.
• Can be heavy and uncomfortable.

Plastic Lenses

• Weigh less than glass ones.
• Protect against welding splatter.
• Are not likely to fog.
• Are not as scratch-resistant as glass.
• Polycarbonate Lenses
• Are lightweight.
• Protect against welding splatter.
• Are not likely to fog.
• Are stronger than glass and plastic.
• Are more impact resistant than glass or plastic.
• Are not as scratch resistant as glass.

OSHA has adopted an ANSI Z87.2 standard for safety glasses used in the workplace. High-impact safety glasses that meet this standard will have frames stamped with a Z-87.2. Basic impact safety glasses should come with a warning label. 

Just as important as the type of glasses are that they fit you comfortably and that you keep them clean. The best pair of safety glasses in the world will do you no good sitting in your shoeing box or on your rig dashboard because you can’t see through them well enough to work.

Karl Shewmake, a farrier who is also a medical doctor, keeps his weight centered in line with the back to decrease the load on the spine. He also uses a hoof cradle to share the weight of the hoof whenever possible.

If you already wear prescription glasses, you could have a pair of prescription safety glasses made. You could also wear a pair of safety goggles or glasses designed to fit over your regular glasses.

Protect Your Hearing

Farriers are even less likely to protect their hearing than they are their eyesight. While the eyes can be damaged in an instant, the danger to hearing is invisible and often does not become apparent for years.

Steve Stanley, a farrier from Versailles, Ky., wears sound-suppressing earmuffs when working at the anvil these days, but says he wishes he’d started doing so earlier.

“I really stress that to young guys,” says Stanley. “I wear hearing aids now. I’ve worked with an audiologist and she tells me that the kind of noise typically involved in horseshoeing — metal on metal — is particularly damaging.” 

Nerve damage caused by noise is called nerve deafness. According to the American Academy of Otolaryngology, there is no way to restore life to dead nerve endings. The damage is permanent.

While extremely loud noises can damage your hearing, a farrier’s hearing is more at risk from repeated metal-on-metal noises.

Experts have determined that habitual exposure to noises above 85 decibels can cause a gradual hearing loss. 

You can protect your hearing using earplugs, semi-insert earplugs or sound-suppressing earmuffs. Tests have shown that earmuffs or earplugs can reduce noise by 15 to 30 decibels. Using both can cut noise by an additional 10 to 15 decibels. By contrast, stuffing your ears with cotton will reduce sound levels by just 7 decibels on average. 

Earplugs: These are inserted into the ears and block the ear canal. They come in premolded or moldable models and are available in disposable and reusable models.

Semi-Insert Earplugs: Earplugs that fit into the end of the ear canal and are held in place by a headband. Some models of safety glasses are available with attached semi-insert earplugs.

Earmuffs Or Sound Suppressors: Probably the best option for cutting down noise. These are made of sound-deadening material with soft ear cushions that fit over the ear and are held together by a headband. They are usually heavier than earplugs and may be uncomfortable in hot and humid conditions. 

It’s a good idea to visit an audiologist and have your hearing checked. Even if the test shows you have good hearing, it will provide a “baseline” so future tests can determine if your hearing has deteriorated.

Back And Joint Protection

Back pain, its causes and its effect on individuals remain a relatively mysterious topic. But Karl Shewmake, a farrier as well as a medical doctor, from Stevens Point, Wis., offers several suggestions to help farriers. 

Decrease the load on your spine by keeping your weight centered in line with you back. Imagine dropping a plumb line from the lower part of your back and keeping your weight centered on that line.

• Use a hoof cradle and your knee to hold the hoof, splitting the load.
• Loosen up before working on your first horse of the day.
• Try to make the last horse of the day your easiest horse.
• Don’t tolerate a misbehaving horse. 
• If you experience back pain, decide whether it is causing actual harm or just hurts.
• Take steps to keep acute back problems from becoming chronic.