Gabino, You have to translate the instructions better for the shoe. Did you realize that you put it on backwards?!!!!
Year 'round? Who is this 'most'? Its certainly not the average for non-racetrack farriers. How often are those stalwarts working on each horse in their custom? Shoeing or trimming? On a six week rotation, that works out to 10-22 horses /day, five days/week. Do you really expect me/us to believe that working at that pace(or greater), you are consistently turning out high quality work? Out of curiosity, what is the average fee charged for plating a flat racer, especially if you're not providing services to top echelon trainers? Regardless, using your numbers, I am, as I stated, semi-retired.
On your own yeah a tough day but if ya have someone pulling shoes and clinching it would be a normal enough day shoein racehorses for a farrier in Ireland most farriers I know in England would do that number also again with someone pulling shoes and clinching.
Gary, I re-read what Linda said and realized I had [heaven forfend] erred. She said that those numbers(300-650 horses] are per month which, for a five day week works out to 60-130 horses/day, for a 6 day week. 50-108/day, and for every day of the week, 43-93/day. IMO, even if that were possible, it would amount to assembly work with quality non-existent. I'm not so sure that even the greatest 'whack and tack' iron(aluminum?) hanger could manage those numbers. Unless of course s/he was a genetic clone of John Henry or, perhaps his wife, Polly View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64GHrP3bCWk
ooooops, mea culpea working every day, 10-22/day; 24 days, 13-27/day; 20 days, 15-33/day Maybe those folks really are John Henry/Polly incarnate.........
Yes. Fifteen days later,the horse was not lame,but the shoeing is the half of the treatment.The infiltration helps too.
I had a fellow tell me he has over 400 head on his book and somehow he is home by 1 everyday to watch Westerns? I asked him if they were all trims and he said no , a mix of trims and shoes? Yet when he calls me somedays , he only has a couple here and there or he was rained out? I think he needs to work on his math also!
I lived with the man....he did 20 head a day mostly shoes; some trims on the farm, 6 days a week and a few on Sunday. I watched him do 13-15 on the track at 7am then out at 4-5pm at nite and do another 5 on the farm till 8-9 pm at nite; a lot of times he didn't get in till 11 pm at nite. this was in his hey-day.....when behind...his 2 sons join in with a helper.
At a certain point volume will overcome quality. I am constantly hearing from customers that prior farriers skipped many of the basic steps that are an important part of good shoeing. Taking the time to observe the horse in motion, properly prepare the solar surface, properly dressing away flare and other distortions and properly shaping shoes seem to consistantly be abandoned when speed becomes the paramount issue. I'll go as fast as possible while still producing quality biomechanicaly correct work. IMO poor shoeing leads to lameness and I refuse to whack and tack. I believe that "speed shoers" cause lameness and prefer to prevent it by taking the time that it takes.
He was a master plater; John was the exception to the rule!!!............he shod Marceana [sp?] out of Two Punch; who then took 6th place in Preakness.....and Afleet Alex, before his death; then his son shod him for the Kentucky Derby; ect. plus many other grade I stakes horses in his day. But agreed that most speed shoeing is going to cause lameness; because of what you stated. Trainers only give 20 mins per horse. I take 44 mins. and is just considered way to slow. I have only the 1-3 racehorse stables where this is not a problem. I have done fronts in 13 mins flat at the receiving barn; but not now.
