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HoofPrints Newsletter
November 20, 2011 Issue - Christmas is closer than you think...
MERRY CHRISTMAS! We are not afraid to say it on our cards...
And you can too - order NOW for best selection!
Merry Christmas card collage
We frequently get callers who request specifically cards that say MERRY CHRISTMAS. Shown above are 4 of our favorites that say just that. The one on the far left was actually painted BY A HORSE, and there's a story on the back that tells about the horse artist, along with a photo of him painting. #2 is a design that often doesn't get considered because folks don't realize how it works. It's got little slots cut through the paper so you can stick your own business card in there - looks just like they're holding it in their mouths! The white square and "YOUR BUSINESS CARD GOES HERE" is NOT printed on the card; you see the rest of the horses - the palomino wears a wreath around his shoulders. The back of this card shows the horses (and the dog's) backsides. It's really cute.

Almost all of our cards are available with an optional "Thank you for your business" phrase - these are great for equine professionals to send to their clients. Many choose to include one of our magnetic business card calendars with the holiday card as a small gift.  To get started click here.

PLEASE-PLEASE-PLEASE read the wording options available for the insides of the cards. The website defaults to withOUT "thank you for your business" - but some cards are ONLY available WITH this option, so if you click those, that's what you're going to get. Dreaming of a White Christmas, I Heard the Bells on Christmas... and He Knows... are 3 examples of cards that are only available WITH thank you.
Exotic gemstone necklace features 100+ year old Balinese coin
embossed with a horse logo and said to activate luck and wealth.
Spirit Coin Necklace This Spirit Coin Necklace is made of natural gemstones. The authentic Balinese horse coin is 100+ years old. Stones used include Agate, a powerful healing stone that emits strength, power and courage; it encourages concentration, focus and balance. Tiger's Eye is considered a good luck stone. It is good for protection and strengthening personal will power. Turquoise is a master healing stone. It is widely believed in the Middle East that tying a turquoise bead on the tail or mane of a horse will protect both the horse and rider from harm. Many people wear turquoise on the body or a belt buckle for the same purpose of protection. Carnelian is worn for joy, creativity and motivation. It helps to increase self worth and personal passion. The Balinese horse coin is considered to carry magical energy.

Here's what the maker (Energy Muse) has to say about the coins: 

"The Chinese coins used in the practice of feng shui (pronounced "fung shway") are considered to be the most powerful manifesting tools for attracting wealth, prosperity, and endless fortune, especially those from the extremely auspicious Qing (pronunciation similar to the English word "chin") or Ch'ing Dynasty.

 

Round in external shape, the coins have a square hole in the center. The round shape symbolizes heaven, and the internal square represents earth. When used by humans, the coins represent the engagement luck of "Heaven-Earth-Mankind."

 

Feng shui tenets call for the coins to be made of fine metal, such as brass or bronze (like the coins used in all Energy Muse coin pieces) rather than resin, which is brittle in nature and lacks the proper "metal energy." These fine metals, with their strength and elegance, have the powerful metal energy needed to even further activate the luck and wealth "chi" (energy flow; defined literally as "air" or "breath")

 

Well, even if you think this feng shui stuff is a bunch of hooey - this is still a lovely necklace with it's chunky natural stones and weighty antique pendant. More about it here.
Barefoot Hoofprint Necklace
Lead-free pewter pendant hangs on braided leather cord.
Barefoot Hoofprint necklaceFew things get horse folks as fired up these days as the shoes vs barefoot debate. Almost every day I get someone requesting more barefoot products. What I can't really figure out, is why the ones we do have don't sell that well. Maybe it's hard to notice them in with all the other shoeing-oriented products?
In business cards we have #BC34, #BC25, #BC23, #BC5 on the second page of business cards are #BC39 - which can be ANY photo desired, #BC7 (horses are barefoot), & #BC12. Then we have a page of business cards exclusively for American Hoof Association members here. Invoice logo #5 here shows the hoof well enough that a farrier could use it to make notes for explanation/reference. Custom invoice logos have 3 barefoot choices shown here. Sleeveless t-shirt here is embroidered with our 3 (bare) feet logo, as is the cap here, along with the trimming tools logo on #TCTT. #NPFOOT also has the detailed diagrams of 3 views of the hoof/pastern here. There are all manner of barefoot hoof depictions on our educational pages here. All our hoof models are unshod, as well as the foundered and normal anatomy charts here. Horses Leave HoofPrints on Your Heart products here  all depict a barefoot hoofprint that I went to considerable effort to attain (story about that with photos here) So, if you are of the shoeless conviction, please take a moment to give these a look!

Can you say "SNUGGLY"? That's what this jacket is...
It's outer shell is sturdy thermal fabric, and it's lined with sherpa fleece.
Turquoise Jacket closeupwe are so excited about these details that I didn't picture here the embroidered horse logo that's on the left chest, but instead a closeup of the wonderful textures that this jacket has.

This heavy hooded sweatshirt could double for a coat on all but the coldest days. The outer shell is constructed of thermal fabric, and it's lined with plush sherpa throughout. The seams are fashioned so that a bit of sherpa peeks through, for a casual, two-tone effect. It's cotton/poly blend so no shrinking, and it washes and dries beautifully with no special attention (yes, we tested it). The neck is taped to hold it's shape and minimize scratchiness against your neck. Zipper and eyelets are metal, and the drawstring on the hood is beefy enough to stay tied. We've embroidered it with our wind horse logo. Sizing on this one is very generous - so those of you who were needing larger sizes than we normally offer may want to give this one a second look.
You also get our wonderful fleece headband/earwarmer with this one for just A PENNY!
For more info, click here.
Recap - From the last newsletter...
Here's what we talked about last time:
Leather Treat Pouch New positive training products, revisiting old + using treats to solve REAL problems here
More about our research & development department here
Horsey Creeper on sale here
IT'S BACK! Sleeping with a Farrier Night Shirt here
Free excerpt - Sometimes a Woman Needs a Horse here
GOOD STUFF:
Things aren't always what they appear here
NEW BOOKS
- Good Ol' Cowgirl stories here
A Look at Life From the Saddle here

Blacksmith Calendars help Hollywood set designer here

Lavender chosen for Clean Up T-shirt
here

Revisiting favorites: CAVALIA here 

Stickers - NOT just for kids! see them here

GOOD STUFF: Pond Memories here 

Prints of Women and Horses here 
Paw Print Gift Bag
+ Puppy's Breath Candle here
Beautiful Jim Key Book here
PAST NEWSLETTERS - see what you missed! - Click HERE to catch up on the news 
More about HoofPrints - and miscellaneous ramblings from Gina 
Check out our NEW "GOOD STUFF" links at the bottom of this section! 
Rob shoeing RockyABOUT THE COMPANY AND THIS NEWSLETTER
Farriers Greeting Cards was started by Gina Keesling in 1986 (in a very small way) to provide helpful promotional materials for farrier husband Rob. This newsletter is emailed to subscribers a few times a month, depending on how often I have something to share. Watch for special sales, interesting stories, uplifting quotes and more.


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This weeks quote is from Teaching a Bad Dog New Tricks by David Beutow:

I believe in the way he lives his life, and I try to emulate him. I strive to gain his level of happiness in the simplest of things. Like the way he approaches each meal with endless appreciation and even joy. While I struggle to decide what to eat from full cupboards and lament what I don't have, he circles the floor, excitedly anticipating the very same meal, in the very same portion, at the very same time every day.


Read (or listen to) the rest here.

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Thanks everyone, for reading!
Gina Keesling, owner 

 Contact Information

 GOOD STUFF:  Revisiting folks watching (and talking about) Farriers 

Like the barefoot vs shoes debate fires up horse owners 

Dakota & AbbyFew things get farriers more engaged than telling stories about bad horses and their owners. I shared in a previous newsletter here, a warning to farriers to be aware that folks were watching, talking about, and even photographing them every single day on the job. Sounds creepy, huh? With the internet and various social networks being what they are - unsavory stories can get out in a very big way. And once they do, there's not much a person can do to stop them. That's why it makes me so very happy to read success stories like this one.

Shown here is Abby riding Dakota. Abby's mom belongs to an online Yahoo! group that I subscribe to, and she had posted asking for advice for getting this horse's ears clipped. She described his violent outbursts that occurred whenever they even thought about approaching his head with the clippers. A lively discussion ensued with a great deal of thoughtful advice. But the rest of Dakota's story is what touched me:
First about the clipping problem:

"I have clipped my fair share of problems horses and this guy is beyond anything I have ever seen. I must tell you he was abused when we purchased him; had also been caught in hi-tensile fence and tore his legs up like mincemeat! It took almost 6 months before we were able to shoe him without a heavy tranquilizer, but for the last 6 months he has been an angel. (Grant a lot of the credit to our Farrier that had so much patience with him) He is to the point he will let us clip his legs, you do not even have to hold or cross tie him, but make one step toward his head and he flips. And I do mean flip! Up on his hind legs, strikes out with both front legs and has his eyes rolled back in his head so all white is showing. - Last year he was like this with getting his legs touched, and because my daughter has more patience than I do she was able to overcome this with him."

Then on the problem with having feet handled:

"I do not know if I would have never considered using a tranquilizer had it not been for the fact his feet had to be done when we got him. When I called the farrier and told him about this gelding, he asked me to have a tranquilizer on hand in case it was needed. It was more than needed. After giving him a standard dose he still was impossible to handle, so he was given enough Rompun to lay out an elephant, (we spoke with the vet before giving him more) yet this horse did not appear effected at all! He would be wobbly, almost falling down drunken acting and when they went to touch a leg he would flat out come unglued! The first time we trimmed him last May (2010) it took almost 3 hours for a trim job. My daughter continued to work with him daily, the second and third time we trimmed him it required less Rompun, the 4th time we had the partial injection but never had to administer it! Two weeks ago I ground tied him while the same farrier put a full set of shoes on him. Not one problem!"


Kudos to the owner and her daughter for rescuing this abused horse and rehabbing him. The farrier knew beforehand the horse had issues, everyone was prepared and they got the job done - taking the time it took - which apparently was quite a while. Subsequent farrier visits saw the horse improving, and as you can read by her note he now stands like a champ. And kudos to the farrier, who worked with these owners through a difficult and dangerous problem. The end result is a horse that is much safer for him to work on. I love a happy ending.
Share our emails
Viral marketing... it sounds bad, doesn't it?
You can ask my husband - a frequent topic around here is that of forwarded emails - and the psychology behind them - just WHAT prompts people to decide; "I am going to send this to everyone I know!".

We receive a lot of them. Some are pretty good, and others are dumb. Dumb in a myriad of ways...  Alarmist email rumors that have been around forever - that folks keep sending "just in case it's true" Pictures of someone's butt (or worse) - don't even get me started about the firecracker butt - but at least that one was timely when it showed up around July 4. Christian messages that are uplifting - until you get to the end and you're threatened "if you're not ashamed that you love Jesus, forward this - if you are, then delete." Pictures of cute puppies and kittens (awww)

I enjoy writing these newsletters - and sharing all this stuff with you all. But the fact is, it's also a way to help us stay connected with customers and sell products during the time between catalog mailings (which is only once a year) So I really, really like it when someone new stumbles upon the newsletter and is excited to "discover" our company and the products we offer.

In all my efforts to make the newsletter interesting and forward-worthy - it never occurred to me to JUST ASK you all to send it! Duh. Sometimes the obvious is elusive, I guess. So here goes - my request to ask you to forward our email newsletter to your horsey friends.  All we ask is that you please be judicious and only send to folks who might be interested. Otherwise we are no better than the "firecracker butt". Click to get started. (please note - using this form does NOT subscribe anyone to our list - it is a one-time only forward)