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Last week was American Farriers' Association's 43rd annual convention - and thousands of my farrier customers were in attendance at Reno, Nevada. Many horse owners don't realize it - but most farriers continue to study their craft and advance their skills throughout their entire career. These conventions are a fascinating mixture of tried and true methods and products, combined with cutting edge, new technology. There's a lot of stuff that was "known" back in the days that horses were used for transportation and work that was sort of "forgotten" in the gap between that era and now. Back then a lame horse was the equivalent to a broken down car - and it was very necessary to solve the problem and get the animal back to work. These days the urgency of solving the problem is a little different in that most horses are used for pleasure and their owners want them to be comfortable and sound. Interestingly, the sport of horse racing has been around throughout both of these eras - and the stakes are high in that venue. I find it intriguing that not a lot has changed as far as the speed of these horses. In 100+ years the options that race track farriers have for keeping Thoroughbreds sound and in training have grown exponentially - one would think that horses themselves would be a LOT faster. But they are not. At any rate, the AFA Convention is all about learning, sharing ideas, discovering new products and the like. Farriers come from all over the world to do so.
It happened to me last week. A farrier attending the AFA convention asked a question on Facebook about an alternative therapy device they'd encountered in a booth there. This person was curious - asking if anyone else had experience with this therapy and if they found it to be effective (or not). The discussion started off great. Some people contributed that they'd not found it to be effective. Others said they had seen promising results. One person cited an example of a prominent equine athletic program that was using this protocol with great success. Ironically, I had personally seen the effects of this mode of treatment just a few days prior on one of my own animals. It really was somewhat miraculous and I was excited to share my experience. Somewhere along the way a handful of folks with not one thing (other than negativity and snide comments) to add had joined the conversation. Other people tried to stay on track with actual adult contributions (both pro and con) but in the end it just became too tedious with all the nasty remarks. After a couple jabs aimed directly at what I'd posted, I deleted my comments, picked up my toys, got out of the sandbox and went home. I felt bad for everybody who was trying to share and learn. I sent a private message to the farrier who'd started the thread - elaborating on my personal experience with the therapy so they could have more details if they found them worthy of consideration. I explained my reasons for deleting my original comments, and this person issued to me a blanket apology for their farrier brethren's rude behavior, which I thought was an incredibly classy thing to do.

I don't know the answer to solving this problem. I suspect the folks who are so free with the snotty comments are NOT reading this newsletter anyway. However, I've come to know a lot of you somewhat personally over the internet, and cherish the collective wisdom that's held in this group of people I call my friends... Please don't stop sharing your thoughts and ideas. We don't all have to agree. But we can be nice.

Comes with snap closure binder, made of sturdy, leather-look vinyl. Added features include a clear vinyl sleeve for your small items, plus some additional pockets in the back to contain the rest of your papers. Measures 8" x 10" x 2"

and includes these items, all designed specifically for farriers:

(Once you have the binder, each year after you only need to buy the refill)

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