The Lockdown Farriery Podcast

Daniel

Hosted by Daniel Bennett AWCF CertEd, an ex British Army Farrier instructor, Farriery Educator and college lecturer , this podcast is aimed primarily at Farriers across the globe as an educational resource.Some episodes include valuable information and knowledge for horse owners and other equine professionals to.

  1. LFP 50 The state of the Industry & the Solution! ForgeSmart.co.uk Tom Smith FWCF GradDIP ELR

    05/26/2025

    LFP 50 The state of the Industry & the Solution! ForgeSmart.co.uk Tom Smith FWCF GradDIP ELR

    Send us a text Recently there has been a lot of discussions and social media debate about the apparent crisis within the farriery profession. This has centred around the economy of farriery as a profession and the lack of training providers and people coming into the profession. Like all farriery rants on social media, we all shared it on our feed so no doubt your customers can see it and feel sorry for you! Id like to add at this point “they don’t care”. I have personally thought for some time in the UK that we are most of the time subsidising their hobby and their want to own a horse compared to the prices with the rest of the developed world. To fix this it will take more than farriers sharing a well written post by another farrier on their social media. We need to get in a room together discover how we got in this situation in the first place, work on strategies to improve our value and to raise the price of farriery and go up together. Up until this point apart from moaning no one has proactively done anything to resolve this situation until now. Tom Smith FWCF, an experienced farrier who has been in the business since 2006, discusses his career journey, the challenges faced by the farrier industry, and the need for change.  He highlights the potential lack of farriers in the future, the struggle with proper pricing, and the undervaluation of their work.  Tom introduces 'Forge Smart,' a 10-month program designed to help farriers improve their business acumen, raise their prices collectively, and enhance the professionalism of the industry.    The discussion covers the importance of community, professional development, and re-evaluating traditional practices to ensure the sustainability and growth of the farrier profession. www.forgesmart.co.uk Thank you to the Podcast Sponsors www.silverbackchaps.com www.theshoeinglab.com

    1h 24m
  2. LFP 48 Social Licence & Farriery Competitions

    02/20/2025

    LFP 48 Social Licence & Farriery Competitions

    Send us a text This discussion is about a recent article in the Forge magazine. It is not about imposing rules but it is about protecting ourselves and all those involved (including the equine) at farriery competitions and forging best practice for future generations. What is Social License to Operate (SLO)  Social license is increasingly important in horse sport and leisure. This is the general public’s interpretation of equine welfare and professionalism. We must be seen to be always putting equine welfare FIRST. When a social license is lost, this is when the general public’s opinion decides that the activity we are doing falls below their expectations of animal welfare and/ or professionalism. This means that the welfare of the horse must be put first, and be seen to be put first, all the time. It is the responsibility of everyone involved with equines to demonstrate this. Sometimes, mistakes will be made. However, if all of those involved in horse sport and leisure can learn from these mistakes and demonstrate that they are always striving to do right by their horses, wider society is more likely to trust that equine welfare is genuinely being put first and it is more likely that equestrianism’s social license will be maintained. We have all seen the potential damage one video can make to a sport. During the build up to the 2024 Olympics, one video of one person connected to a sport, made headline news leading to a large swing in public opinion. This in turn reignited the question - should equestrianism be included as an Olympic sport? Worryingly, one public vote resulted in 49% of the voters being against. This is concerning and is evidence of what damage one viral video can do. The equestrian world needs to maintain and strengthen its social license for it to have a future.  Horseshoeing Competitions  As a competition, we must treat this activity as a sport utilizing the equine, and where live equines are used, their welfare MUST be the primary concern. Most horseshoeing competitions held within the UK are organised in conjunction with a bigger event, such as a county show. These are very public facing events and due to the nature of the spectacle provided, they are a huge crowd pulling part of the event. We are exposed to many members of the public that may have little or no knowledge of what they are watching. Some of these spectators may also be members of organisations or have opinions opposed to the use of horses in sport and may be looking to publicly evidence this. To this end, we as organisers and competitors need to utilise this industry spotlight to educate, communicate, and actively promote best practice and professionalism. The competition environment can be stressful for both equines and competitors due to several different factors, but with proper organisation, contingency planning and common sense, this can be kept to a minimum

    1h 25m

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
14 Ratings

About

Hosted by Daniel Bennett AWCF CertEd, an ex British Army Farrier instructor, Farriery Educator and college lecturer , this podcast is aimed primarily at Farriers across the globe as an educational resource.Some episodes include valuable information and knowledge for horse owners and other equine professionals to.

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