Farrier Classes
| Single-visit price | $50 |
|---|
$50 each
$150 for four class segment
101. Farrier 101 for Owners and Riders
The perfect class for owners and riders of all levels to better understand their horses feet and how farriers can affect the wellbeing of their horses longterm.Target Audience: Owners and Riders of any Level age 13+
Horsemanship Skills Learned: Properly Picking Feet, Pulling Shoes, Rasping Flares, Basic Lower Limb Anatomy, Biomechanics, Common Hoof Problems, Dissection
Farrier Concept Topics: Equine Anatomy, Farrier Ergonomics, Hoof Dissection Analysis, Hoof Hydration, Abscesses and Lamenesses.
- 02.07.2025 - Lower Limb and Hoof Anatomy
- 02.14.2025 - Biomechanics
- 02.21.2025 - Common Hoof Problems
- 02.28.2025 - Cadaver Hoof Dissection
- We encourage participants to attend the Schuyler Equine Conference on 02.08.2025
201. Entry Level Farriery
The perfect class for those ready to start trimming feet and become farriers as well as owners and riders who want to better be able to support their horses between farrier visits.Pre-Requisite: enrollment in Painted Bar Stables Farrier 101 within the last two years.
Target Audience: People with a foundation of hoof knowledge and experience with farrier concepts ready to learn how to work with farriery skills
Tool Skills Learned: Hoof Testers, Rasp, Hoof Knife, Nippers, Crease Nail Pullers
Farrier Concepts Topics: Hoof Trim Concepts, Farrier Tool Names and Function
- 03.07.2025 - The Basic Trim
- 03.14.2025 - The Hoof Knife
- 03.21.2025 - The Rasp
- 03.28.2025 - Pulling and Tacking On Shoes
∞. Forging your Future: Farrier Apprenticeship
Target Audience: Experienced Horse People looking to become a farrier or shoe their own horsesWork alongside Jen in a 1:1 setting to gain experience and knowledge of shoeing horses. Over time develop the skills to be able to trim, forge, cold shoe and hot shoe under Jen's watchful eye.
The perfect prerequisite for enrolling in the Cornell Farrier School.
Apprenticeships are no charge, but require a specific commitment to longterm investment in skills.
Goals of the Farrier Series:
Farrier Class Series are designed for horse people of various levels to learn more about care, management and function of hooves - essential knowledge for all owners and riders.“No Hoof, No Horse.”
Despite their size and strength, horses are notoriously fragile animals. Four slender legs and small hooves bear the horse’s full weight of hundreds of pounds. As a result, it is incredibly attention that anyone involved with horses pay particular attention to the care of their horses’ feet and hooves.
Whether you own a horse, ride a horse, or even just spend time caring for them, understanding the factors in hoof health (genetics, anatomy, environment, nutrition, care) can greatly change the health and potential of a horse.
The more you understand the function and motion of the hoof, the more you will be able to asses a horse:
anatomy and functions of the hoof and lower limb
how various shapes, sizes and ratios affect the movement of the horse
quality of the hoof
nutritional value
thin or thick walls
low heels
thrush & diseases
and more!
The series will teach you how to safely get under the horse while holding and managing the hoof and leg, remove shoes, and understand the functions of the tools used to care for horse's feet and basic rasp skills.
Each horse used will be assessed as an individual with demonstrations and explanations for the choices made and why. With over 40 horses in the barn there is a LOT that can be learned over the weeks of this class. All of our horses have different needs from barefoot to all-around shoes, arthritis and conformation concerns to athletic and able, young and old, gaited horses, drafts, quarter horses, thoroughbreds, ponies and even a mule!
A Riding Farrier’s Perspective
We are blessed at the Painted Bar Stables to have as our head instructor Jennifer VanDusen, Certified Farrier, as our in-house farrier.
Jennifer Marosek VanDusen, certified farrier, will be teaching the course. Jennifer has a Master's degree in education and also completed the certified farrier program at Cornell University. She is an expert in her trade and looks forward to sharing our horses hoof needs and biomechanics.
Many farriers only get to see the foot in the cross-ties at the beginning and end of a trimming cycle, never getting to see the balance of the hoof or the horse’s movement mid-cycle.
Over the past years Jen has had the rare opportunity to use our herd as case studies spending time at all points in their trimming cycle under them as a farrier, on them as a rider, and witnessing them from a distance as she teaches lessons both on arena footing and trails.
This unique perspective being able to see the effects of both her work and the progression of time on the hooves have given her a deep knowledge well beyond her farrier education and certifications.