How many chances do you give your farrier??

[PoppyPony]

I am fairly new to the technicalities (sp?? blonde moment...) of horse ownership, and having never had to deal with farriers further than holding horses for them and getting them cups of tea, I am slightly worried about mine!

He has let me down every single time I have arranged for him to come and shoe my horse, and has been late every single time he has actually come (I know this is not unusual for this particular breed of people!). I have had to make several appointments for each time, which really bugs me.

Last time I did not get a phone call and he did not turn up at all (I waited several hours). The first time he used the excuse that he couldn't find the yard but then I found out he shoes another horse on the same yard.

It is incredibly difficult to get hold of him (again I know not unusual).

So does 'Mr Reliable' exist? What are yours' like?

 

[the watcher]

Mine is great, comes at short notice, arrives early, happy to go to field and catch neddies, or help turn out after, if he time has been out riding with me (he likes my neddies), discusses what he is doing or any changes he wants to make, will put on any lost shoes on horses that are not his customers while there for mine...and he is very competitively priced (£45 full set)

 

[Halfpass]

My farrier is fab. Came today arrived 1 hour early (called first to check if ok). Will come at short notice and even returns calls!!!

 

[ihatework]

Mine is good, always turns up, very occasionally late but always calls to let you know. Will come out short notice to replace a shoe if needed. Friendly and chatty, does a good job.

I would not stand for what your farrier has done, when I moved to a new area I gave this one farrier 2 chances, the second time I sacked him!

 

[kick_On]

i think it a two way thing. My farrier is fab chap relaible etc... and he takes the pee... out off of me all the time but he sorts my horses out
But i have had a right sh1t but i couldn't fault his workmanship, but had oppurtunity to change and leaped at chance
If your really unhappy about his time keeping but his workmanship and gr8, i would phone him after he's half an hour late and ask for a corrected time. He'll get message sooner or want you to change and the world is not short of good farriers
But talk to him when he shoeing your horse etc....

 

[jemima]

Well round here you are very lucky to get a farrier so you treat them as well as possible and understand that if there's an emergency they will come and do yours as soon as they possibly can.

I'd not want to marry mine but he's very very good with the horses and tries to help out where he can and I'd be very sad to lose him.

 

[Marianne]

I hate my farrier he told us hes fully booked then told us the REAL reason for not turning up - hes moving house.

its getting a joke as shes had her shoes on for like 7-8 weeks now. ANd has a shoe missing, So we have rang another farrier and guess what that one said ring me back and when rang back no answer. Sometimes you want to do the job your self.

 

[RLF]

I would change farriers if i were you sounds a bit unreliable. .
I used to use a farrier that sounds a bit like yours, never turned up on time, never returned calls, he even let me down when my horse needed his shoes removing cause he was going into theatre for an operation the next day I had to call out another farrier at the last minute explaining the urgency who came out luckily, I now use him all the time.

The old one is always advertising for new clients in the paper - Why am i not surprised!!!!

 

[LauraBR]

In all honesty I rate my farriers work that highly (and decent farriers are VERY hard to get on the books of round here) that I couldn't care less how late he was so long as he continues to shoe my horse.

Fantastic farrier, not the cheapest but worth every penny. Relatively easy to get hold of most of the time but again, would put up with a LOT to keep him.

 

[Tinkerbee]

sounds like every farrier ive ever known, though the current one is rather hot so he can stay

 

[Enfys]

Not met my new farrier yet, but he has shod the horse that boards here for 15 years so he can't be all bad.

My farrier in wales was excellent, booked the next appointment while on the yard, ALWAYS phoned to postpone ( maybe twice in 3 years) or change time, came out on short notice, sometimes he was maybe an hour late, but farriers have difficult horses to do, get asked to do extras, get stuck in traffic etc, you always allow for that. Horses always well shod, we lost ONE shoe in all that time and that was my fault for riding into a bog! Couldn't rate him highly enough, he was turning away customers.

I was old enough to be his mother and am also already married so the "marry him" part of it never applied.

 

[jennystreek]

Reading this post makes my blood boil, as it is something that happens all the time!! I sometimes forget that we pay them for a service that isnt cheap, and so you would expect them to be well mannered and courteous!!

IF my horse loses a shoe, i will phone my farrier yet it takes DAYS for him to get back to me, and thats only usually because i leave him about 15 voicemails!!! Its also not unusual for him to be an hour late, and he wont put my horse in the field for me after shoeing (its a 3 minute walk up a track) so i have to hang around all morning waiting - having said that, i suppose its not in his job description to do so, just would be nice for me!

Having said that, he does a brilliant job which is probably why i put up with the lack of customer service! My friend uses one that she says is brilliant, and will call to let her know if he is running 15 mins late!! Think i may change to him next year

 

[CastleMouse]

Well sometimes my farrier won't answer my calls or texts for days, which drives me absolutely mad! Sometimes he can be very late as well, but he is really good with Castle, does a good job, and is quite reasonable.

 

[hussar]

I would do almost anything to keep my farrier although he often keeps me waiting - the record is three hours. But he always apologises, does a great job, is patient with the horses, makes remedial shoes for my old boy and will go out of his way to make sure they're happy and comfortable.

I sacked my previous farrier because he nailbound my horse and didn't respond to increasingly frantic phone messages. My present farrier rescued my horse from that predicament and we've never looked back.

Your farrier sounds as though he's taking the p***

 

[spooks]

my farrier is excellent he will catch the horses shoe them then turn them out again, always calls back and calls when he is going to be late. i havnt even paid him yet for the last lot of shoes he did and he hasnt chased me up for the money as he knows he will get the lot next time! mind you i have got him a lot of new clients of late!

 

[pottamus]

Where I am farriers are few and far between and the ones we have will not travel far because they don't have to! I find it really difficult because you can not just change farriers because everyone knows each other and they don't want to come out to only one horse...even if you do get through shoes every 4 weeks!!!
I have a brilliant farrier who is very skilled and used by a major vet practice here. He is usually pretty on time but has let me down by being over an hour late a few times. There is not a lot I can do really, just take the rough with the smooth because there is no one else really.
My previous farrier was a right royal pain for being late and not turning up. He knew I was self employed and loosing money stood waiting for him but he did not care to be honest...so I was lucky to get my current farrier...who I want to keep!

 

[RachelB]

The only thing I don't like about my farrier is that he isn't very communicative - which is why my horse ended up lame last week from shoes that stayed on too long, because we asked if she was till ok for seven weeks and he mumbled a 'yeah she'll be fine'. Apart from that, he's fantastic - always turns up, lets you know if he'll be late, handles the horses well, always patient and calm (with owner and horse!), and most importantly he shoes very well too. One farrier I know rarely turns up on time (or at all) and is quite rude (his humour isn't everyone's cup of tea), and I couldn't have him. I have one complaint out of many many ticked boxes so I'm sticking with mine!
Yours sounds awful though, I'd change!

 

[SecretSquirrell379]

My farrier is normally late but only 30 mins at most. He is great, you can normally get hold of him, may take a couple of phone calls though. He is always willing to yack on the phone and give advise as well. All I have to do is keep him supplied with tea and choccy biccys when he comes down!!

 

[TGM]

I find that withholding sexual favours is an effective strategy if my farrier lets me down

!














But I am married to him

.

 

[Bert&Maud]

If you've got a farrier that does a good job, keep hold of him! We generally don't choose them for their social skills! There are a lot of not so good ones around who are probably delightful people, but if they don't make a good job of shoeing your horse they're no use to you! Take a deep breath and keep paying up!

 

[clipclop]

I have only ever had one totally reliable, very professional farrier in 25 years of horses.
He then gave our area to his useless Apprentice.
From then on it has been rubbish, to unreliable, to rubbish, to try and cripple my horse, back to professional but unreliable and now I have given up with the whole shoeing mallarchy! Breathe!! Everything is much better at the moment.

 

[bellgave]

I love my farrier, he is great, shoes and feet are always done beautifully, he is normally there when he says he will be, very rare if he isnt. He is great!! Im just worried that once Ive built my new place and moved I wont find any one even close to as good as he is!!!

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

Mine arrives on time or if there's a problem he phones. He'll come back quickly & replace a thrown shoe. I've no problems with him.

A previous farrier was a absolute nightmare though. Unreliable, a liar, never came back to replace a thrown shoe. His language was absolutely foul aswell.

 

[Tia]

I am very lucky with my farrier. He has let me down once and that was because he broke his nose. Apart from that time, he is always punctual, in fact is usually earlier than he says and is fantastic with all the horses; one of the most patient and pleasant people I have to deal with.

 

[Salcey]

Had two rubbish ones before I found the good one I have now. I too used to hang around for ages in the hope they would turn up. It wasn't until I got my unhandled mare and didn't like the abuse he gave her that I found someone new. I'm so glad I did she is now a dream to shoe and her feet are in very good nick too!

 

[AmyMay]

[ QUOTE ]
(I know this is not unusual for this particular breed of people!).

[/ QUOTE ]
I think that that is a terribly unfair comment to make. It's virtually impossible for a farrier to turn up at the exact time they state unless you have the first appointment of the day.

Having said that - your farrier would not be mine. Get yourself someone who actually values your custom and will arrive on the day they say they will.

For the record, mine is absolutely fantastic. He has looked after my horse for 11 years, and I would dream of changing.

 

[Mellymoo1]

I am very lucky with my farrier, he turns up early, does a fab job on my horses feet, is friendly, knowledgeable and helpful, and lets me off paying for road nails and replacing lost shoes.

 

[Baggybreeches]

I had ages of hassle with old farrier who was great when/if he turned up. He let me down once too often and I got a new one who is fab, shoes fantastically is punctual reliable and books in advance. Not the most cheerful bloke but I dont care as long as he does what he says!

 

[Jay89]

hmmmmm! sounds like my farrier!! We stay with ours tho cos no matter how unreliable he is he does a gd job wen he does cum and gettin a decent farrier can b quite hard as they fully booked!!

 

[amandaco2]

mine was awful too really late phoned to say he was coming the day before
changed yards the one i have now has put shoes on a yearling and im not impressed with the way he trims my own horses feet so am looking to change