How much do you pay your Farrier's?

Millzwoolz

Millzwoolz

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Hello,

I recently had my farrier out to refit two front shoes and it came to £30. Which seems reasonable.
How much do you pay?

I just had him back out as horse has an abscess, and it cost me £20 to take the shoe off?!?

Surely this is quite a lot? What do you think?

Many Thanks 🙏
 
Mine aren't shod but I paid the same to have her front shoes taken off as I did for a trim.

I wonder how much a vet charges to come and have a look then decide no treatment is needed.

He still has to come out no matter what he actually does.
 
Yep, I wouldn't quibble with that. If my farrier were already on the yard for someone else, he'd probably do it for less but you have to factor in the time and expense of getting to you (and then back again).

Incidentally, the in-hours call out for my vet of choice is £56. That's just him getting in the car and driving to me. We're just outside their catchment for a free visit (like, by half a mile), but despite moving and registering with the vet round the corner, I still call him out for a hock issue as he has treated it since the beginning and knows the horse. Farrier is pretty cheap by comparison, no?
 
Millzwoolz said:
Hello,

I just had him back out as horse has an abscess, and it cost me £20 to take the shoe off?!?

Surely this is quite a lot? What do you think?
Click to expand...


You are not just paying for him removing the shoe. His charges have to cover fuel, tools plus you're paying for the time of an experienced, fully qualified professional. I think £20 is fair to remove a shoe TBH, especially as I'd imagine he would have had to come out at fairly short notice. If he charges you something like £5, it probably wouldn't even cover his fuel.
 
My farrier charges £80 a set, doing both my horses every 6 weeks. £25 to come out for a lost shoe etc. He normally doesn't charge me extra for road nails. I book my next appointment before he leaves the yard and always pay in full on the day.
 
A good farrier is golden. I have never quibbled about what I have been charged, and never will. If the farrier's work is good and they are reliable then they earn every penny! It's a hard job, a skilled job, it takes training, the working conditions often aren't great, there's a very real risk of injury, they don't get sick pay and some people are downright inconsiderate, expecting them to work with wet muddy feet, catch in horses from the field to shoe them, expecting them to deal with difficult horses and all the rest of it. In the grand scheme of what it costs to look after a horse properly, the farrier is one of the cheaper bits!
 
the 20 quid still has to factor in his time to get to you, the fact that he could have filled the appointment up with some getting a full set, the insurance and tax on his van, the years he spent training etc.

the actual cost of the metal shoe, or removing it is very little, its more the time and skill he spends when there. A good farrier is worth their weight in gold
 
It amazes me how many of us horse owners seem to expect our professionals to work for peanuts! Even worse is when we skimp on our horses' care because we don't value the people who can help us. I know so many people who have the saddle fitted when they buy the horse and then never bother again, even though their horse is blatantly in need of it. Or have a body worker out once and then never follow it up again because they seem to think that it should be a one-visit fix!

Ooh sorry, that turned into a bit of a rant! I do agree that keeping horses is expensive, and it does feel like some things are more expensive just because they're related to horses, but honestly having been kicked hard by a clients horse in the last week, covered in mud (and worse), and arriving home wet through, I think that most of us horse care professionals earn our money and will try to save you money where we can in the long run!
 
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