Bill Schmidt Horseshoeing & Natural Balance Trim

Ways to become your farrier's favorite client: 1. Make our work space enjoyable. While many of us will put up with working on feet in paddocks, grass, dirt, o...r even (ugh!) mud, we prefer a clean, dry space with shade/cover. Dirt and moisture can ruin our tools, heat without shade can be incredibly hard to work in, and grass or deep footing can block our view of the hoof and the horse's actual movement. We love having a spot where we can work without worrying about dirty or wet feet and tools. 2. Make sure your horse stands well to be worked on. Almost all horses can stand long enough for a quick hoof pick, but some really struggle with the idea of holding up their feet for longer periods of time. One frustrated or unruly horse can end our career (or worse!) and many of us don't want to risk it. Even if your horse isn't dangerous, practice with them on being patient as someone works on their feet, because fighting a horse of any size makes our job that much more difficult and our muscles that much more sore. We always love seeing those horses that think it's no big deal to offer their foot and wait patiently for us to be finished! 3. Keep a schedule on a good cycle length. Cancelling on us last minute can throw off our entire route and our day, not to mention risk your horse's feet becoming overly long or imbalanced. A hoof should never "look due," if they look due they're overdue typically! If we suggest a certain cycle length for your horse, make it a point to keep that for the best hoof health for your horse. 4. Keep up to date on invoices. We as professionals can have a lot of overheard in our business, between everything from gas/travel costs, insurance, tools, inventory (hoof boots, shoes, epoxies, glues, etc), and even continuing education. After all is said and done, sometimes a simple trim can average $20 in costs to us as professionals if dividing all our basic expenses (without even applying anything to the hoof) between the amount of horses we see! We do rely on client payments to replace what is needed for our business, and to pay our bills and ourselves. 5. Trust us. First of all- you should only be working with a hoofcare provider you trust. If you don't trust your hoofcare provider, find someone you CAN trust! I want to start by saying that, of course, we want you to feel free to dialogue with us about what you are seeing in terms of hoof health and soundness, and always want to hear your concerns (you are your horse's advocate, after all!). That being said, if you trust us, then trust that we have the best interests at heart for your horses. A lot of us put a lot of time into continual study, and might have experiences of successes or failures which could be similar to your situation. Ideally we can explain why we might be doing something that we are hoping will help, or NOT doing something that could be harmful. We often have a reason for our decisions, just ask! Professionals- what are other things you appreciate from your clients?

And this is why every horse is trimmed differently.

The weather is getting nicer and my schedule is booking up. If you don't get on a regular rotation, you are looking at anywhere from 2 weeks up to 8 weeks before I can fit you in, depending on what area you live in. The regular customers take priority. 314.974.0780

It's that time of year again...

Let me know if you're interested!