Is it rude?

Hazkirbo

Hazkirbo

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My barefoot lads hooves grew massively in about a month and were absolutely desperate for a trim. Unfortunately my farrier was away for 2 weeks and in that time they’d chipped hideously & I decided that he needed them seeing to. In total I text/called about 10 farriers, only 2 of which got back to me but I was too far out. Another stopped replying when I asked whether she would be able to see him this week as he was struggling.

I would’ve happily paid extra but no one seemed to want the business. He’s still desperate! My farrier only got back 2 days ago & he’s coming out tomorrow! So glad he’s back!!

Anyway, it got me thinking: is it rude to ask a farrier to come see you within a short space of time, especially when they’re not your usual?
 
Learn to rasp out chips yourself. It's not rocket science.

Rude, no. Cheeky, maybe. Make appointments in advance and you won't have that trouble.
 
I do know what you mean. But I think surely if I need something /service , I'm willing to pay etc it's totally up to them (service provider) if they want to /can assist or not. Surely. They don't have to (even reply) if they don't want to (as you have experienced).
 
I agree with GemG. As a business owner I wouldn't be particularly inclined to drop everything to do a tiny job for a client I probably won't see again. If you think of it from the farriers point of view they are probably coming a distance and spending time on money and diesel to do a tiny job. I can see why they wouldn't be pushed and would prioritise their regular clients.
 
I don’t think it’s rude, farriers offer a service and they can either choose to accept your business or not.

But farriers are busy people and aren’t going to go out of their way for a £20 trim when they have regular clients. So I’m not surprised you weren’t successful.

Do people not book their next appointments at the same time their horses are shod?!
 
You can always ask, and they can always say no (or simply not reply, which imo is a bit unprofessional). Some may not like treading on another farrier's toes, but it's only a trim, not a set ...

My farrier wouldn't mind you asking - he'd most likely do it if he was in the area or on his way past, but probably wouldn't go out of his way for a one-off trim.

But doesn't your farrier have someone covering for him in emergencies while he's away? Most would.
 
Were you intending on changing farrier or did you want them to come out as a one off? Most are pretty booked up, and wouldn't have any reason to put themselves out for someone they weren't going to see again.
FWIW if it is a genuine welfare issue they are obligated to but 4 weeks growth on a horse is certainly not one of these.

IHW I always thought that but then know lots of people whose farriers don't want to work/book in like that.
 
I used to use a farrier to trim my horses- I would ask him to book me in for next time (6 weeks) while he was there - yet he wouldn’t turn up at the pre-booked interval.
I moved to a BFT and under her guidance I rasp the feet lightly in between visits about every 1 - 2 weeks. ( Trimmer still booked in at 6 week intervals). So feet don’t get massively out of shape.
 
We had booked our next trim for 6 weeks after, which is usually fine, however his hooves just grew in 4weeks & they needed a trim. Due to not finding a farrier his hooves are in a right state now. I do understand why they wouldn’t come out, but like chinchilla said, it’s affects their welfare. I’m definitely asking my farrier about things I can do in between trims & hoping he’ll teach me to rasp better. I did have a go but I rasped my own hand more than the hoof😂
 
can you not just go do some roadwork?

My own lads would grow very quickly when he was in full work and would be trimmed ever 2/3 weeks but if they hadn't been it wouldn't have affected his welfare and he wouldn't have 'struggled' as you say yours is so are you sure there isn't something else going on?
 
ihatework said:
I don’t honestly think a 6 week trim interval would be considered a welfare issue!
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Exactly. They may look 'in a right state' to the OP because they've chipped, but in that length of time they can't possibly actually BE 'in a right state'.
 
ihatework said:
I don’t honestly think a 6 week trim interval would be considered a welfare issue!
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I'm inclined to agree, and I expect that is the reason why OP found it impossible to get someone out. It probably would have been different if it was a shoe hanging off or such like, but I can't see how a horse's feet could get to 'welfare issue' status 4 weeks post trim.
 
ycbm said:
Learn to rasp out chips yourself. It's not rocket science.

Rude, no. Cheeky, maybe. Make appointments in advance and you won't have that trouble.
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Ouch!? Not everyone has a rasp to hand.

OP I wouldn't have said it was rude but now you know they grow so fast in summer you'll be able to plan ahead better. I know my boys feet rocket in summer and he needs shod/trimmed every 6-7 weeks. Rather than 8.
 
I've done it when my horse has lost a shoe. If my regular farrier can't fit us in, I will message one of the other local farriers. I have found most are happy to help. Though I've had one's bulldog of a wife bark down the phone that they didn't shoe my mare originally.
 
I think it’s a bit cheeky. I’m always amazed that the amount of people that expect tradesmen to just be able to drop everything to help a total stranger. If a farrier isn’t at all busy I’m not sure I’d want them near my horses feet anyway.

I regularly see posts on FB such as “Someone wanted tomorrow to replace a kitchen, must be cheap” or “Wanted someone who can come tomorrow to fit some new lights”. I just think can’t they just be a bit more organised?!

My OH has this a lot with his customers. It drives us both mad that they seem surprised that he even has a life and work already booked.
 
Lintel said:
Ouch!? Not everyone has a rasp to hand.

OP I wouldn't have said it was rude but now you know they grow so fast in summer you'll be able to plan ahead better. I know my boys feet rocket in summer and he needs shod/trimmed every 6-7 weeks. Rather than 8.
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Why 'ouch' ? It's just a suggestion.

Imo everyone with a barefoot horse should have a rasp to hand, for exactly the situation the OP describes. Farriers can fall ill, feet can crack ... Some small chips or cracks should be quickly taken out to prevent the possibility of it pulling more off with it if it tears. Or even just to stop it looking to less informed people as if you neglect your horse :)

Likewise, everyone with a shod horse should have shoe pulling equipment to hand, in case of a twisted or dangerously loose shoe.
 
On my barefoot ones I just up the roadwork slightly if i see the hooves growing too much. it keeps them manageable till farrier comes
 
ycbm said:
Likewise, everyone with a shod horse should have shoe pulling equipment to hand, in case of a twisted or dangerously loose shoe.
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surprising (or not, perhaps!) how few people have this kit.
OH got called out at 9pm the other week to take off a shoe from a horse that had an accident. The vet didn't have any tools and nor did anyone else on the yard. I should have suggested they got mine out of my locker, but it was good PR I suppose!

OP - as others have said I don't think it's rude but I also wouldn't expect anyone to drop everything to fit me in for a single trim, if I wasn't a repeat client.
 
Serious question? Does everyone not have a shoe pulling kit in their tack room....

Those with shoes that is 🤣

Fiona
 
Lintel said:
Ouch!? Not everyone has a rasp to hand.

OP I wouldn't have said it was rude but now you know they grow so fast in summer you'll be able to plan ahead better. I know my boys feet rocket in summer and he needs shod/trimmed every 6-7 weeks. Rather than 8.
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We’ve only been BF since Jan so I didn’t realise how quickly they grow in summer! Think I’m going to get a riders rasp as I really struggle with a regular rasp.
 
ihatework said:
I don’t think it’s rude, farriers offer a service and they can either choose to accept your business or not.
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This :)

I was in a similar situation recently where I missed out a scheduled appointment because at the time, they didn't need doing. Silly mistake! Farrier then went away for ages and they ended up looking awful, and he got a big chip which was stressing me out.

I called a couple of alternatives who couldn't come ASAP as they were fully booked, but I did offer to pay the price of a set of shoes as I know it's not worth their while for a trim.
 
SpringArising said:
This :)

I called a couple of alternatives who couldn't come ASAP as they were fully booked, but I did offer to pay the price of a set of shoes as I know it's not worth their while for a trim.
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There are only so many hours In the day regardless of how much someone is prepared to pay. Most farriers look after their regular clients so that ‘one offs’ aren’t possible, unless they are going go to let a regular client down. I’m quite sure clients who book regularly and pay on time would be most upset to find their farrier rescheduling just because someone offered them more money as a one off.
 
meleeka said:
There are only so many hours In the day regardless of how much someone is prepared to pay. Most farriers look after their regular clients so that ‘one offs’ aren’t possible, unless they are going go to let a regular client down. I’m quite sure clients who book regularly and pay on time would be most upset to find their farrier rescheduling just because someone offered them more money as a one off.
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Well obviously, I wasn't calling farriers up demanding they cancel their regular appointments.
 
I don't think it's rude to ask - provided you do so politely, you're prepared to pay above the going rate (for a one-off at short notice) and you don't get stroppy if they say no / don't respond quickly (or at all, though I don't think that's polite of them).

Even a reliable, talented and busy farrier might have a cancellation or be in the area for another client and feel it's worth it on that occasion. Obviously, you shouldn't expect a farrier to drop other clients, go out of their way or anything else - but I wouldn't expect a farrier to do that for a regular client either.

That said, I would've just trimmed my own. It's not that difficult to handle a rasp, it just takes a bit of practice.
 
Absolutely most farriers or anyone looks after their regulars. But also some are happy (....if they have time/want to/can/are able to/its on their way past/want an extra £x that day) might choose to say 'yes' to a last minute job. Others certainly choose not to.

I say if you need a job doing, no harm in asking nicely. I wouldn't take offence to that sort of ask unless someone expected me to drop everything.. regardless of job/line of work.
 
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Not rude to ask but not unexpected that no-one came out to you.

If my farrier goes away he gives me the contact details of another I can contact if we lose a shoe.
 
My horse lost a shoe and as such had started chipping that foot and he was due anyway but my farrier is so busy he wasn’t able to come so I used one that turned up at the yard - but I asked my own farrier before he touched my horse as I’ve had a bad experience before. He was happy for said other farrier to do the work cause at the end of the day my horse needed done.
 
Hazkirbo said:
We’ve only been BF since Jan so I didn’t realise how quickly they grow in summer! Think I’m going to get a riders rasp as I really struggle with a regular rasp.
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Try a radius rasp if you struggle with a normal one, I do use a proper rasp but have a radius rasp too as its handy for quick tidy up's. I've never used a riders rasp but I've heard they aren't great.
 
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