Horseshoe School Creates Careers For Students

Horseshoe School Creates Careers For Students 33-4-8 Regardless of the economy, horses need shoeing. In 10 weeks and for $6,250 you can learn how to be a farrier and get most of the tools needed to start your own business. Richard Duggan opened his licensed Minnesota School of Horseshoeing in Ramsey, Minn., in 1977, and annually teaches four sessions with up to 10 students in each group. "It's a forge-based program with an emphasis on balancing horses ù or corrective shoeing and therapeutic shoeing," Duggan says. Farriers can't fix every hoof deformity, he notes, but he focuses on teaching practical skills that really work. His program is 20 percent lecture and 80 percent hands-on skills development. Sessions include Monday and Tuesday morning classroom time, followed by afternoons at the forge learning the art of making horseshoes. Wednesday through Friday are spent at area stables trimming and shoeing horses. "Students get out and do the real thing, and they do it without getting hurt because they aren't working with crazy horses," Duggan says. While his school attracts students primarily from the five-state area, he has students from Australia, Europe, Canada and other countries. Graduates apply their skills to a variety of equine specialties: gaited, show, pleasure, Western, etc. Whatever they do, Duggan emphasizes a professional attitude of continuous learning. Many of his students have gone on to become leaders of professional associations. The $6,250 cost covers tuition and the tools ù everything needed except for a gas forge and anvil. Students can bring campers to live in during their 10-week session, or Duggan has a list of boarding options with people in the area. He also recommends that students volunteer to work with a farrier as an intern before venturing out on their own. Finally, Duggan offers a $2,225, two-week horse owners' course that teaches hoof care maintenance and horseshoe basics. Horse owners attend the first two weeks of classes with farrier students. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Minnesota School of Horseshoeing, Richard T. Duggan, 6250 Riverdale Drive N.W., Ramsey, Minn. 55303 (ph 800 257-5850; www.mnschoolofhorseshoeing.com).

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