How I got started.

This is a picture of me on my Quarter Horse Bobbi, 2 weeks before she was diagnosed with Navicular Disease. Her prognosis was horrible. They said she should be put in bar shoes and eventually have a neurectomy.

My best friend Ada and I were no strangers to this diagnosis because we had heard it 14 years ago for our other little quarter horse mare. Only that time we did what they told us to.

We spent bucket loads of money trying to keep her sound, to no avail. We had to bute her to shoe her, trailer her, or ride. She felt ok but never good. She could only grow enough hoof to put on two sets of shoes a year.

Bringing us back to Bobbi. The Parelli instructor I had at the time suggested Pete Ramey and Jaime Jackson. So the research began, again, only this time I was looking at it from a different angle. I began looking at it from a more natural to the horse standpoint.

I researched several ways to go about helping lame horses and different schools of thought. I chose the AANHCP and began my certification process immediatly. I was fortunate enough to work with some of the best trimmers in the country, (Pete Ramey AHA, Charles Hall CJF ESA instructor, Chad Bembenek AHA, Patrick Eames) and many other very talented instructors. Some are farriers or former farriers. We worked on some very difficult cases and some beautiful maintence trims that had hooves of mustangs!

I graduated the AANHCP with high recomendation and achievement awards from some of my instructors. I later began instructing other students and teaching hoof anatomy for the association. Last year there were some major changes in the association which required its members to sign a paper saying basically that all hooves would be trimmed the same. I couldn't sign it. Every horse and hoof are different and I must stay true to the horse. So I left my AANHCP certification behind,but continue to teach horse owners and mentor others who would like to start trimming.

Back to my horses. Both my navicular horses are barefoot and sound. All the rest are happy campers with their barefeet too!

I have been with horses for over 30 years. I have studied, took college courses, and made many mistakes. I have seen a lot of injustices done to our four legged friends. But now there is hope!

This is my full time job now. I trim around 400 horses. They are my passion and helping them teaches me new things every day.

THE HORSE IS ALWAYS RIGHT!

My best friend Ada helps me out a lot of times taking pictures, recording information about the horses and taking care of our horses when I am gone long hours trimming. Without her this would not be possible for me.

Some of our other friends.....

Ladyhawke

Mustang Shadow

Ali-"Gator"

Bootsie