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Daniel


Hosted by Daniel Bennett AWCF CertEd, an ex British Army Farrier instructor, Farriery Educator and college lecturer , this podcast is aimed primarily at Farriers across the globe as an educational resource.Some episodes include valuable information and knowledge for horse owners and other equine professionals to.


The Lockdown Farriery  Podcast

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It’s been a while……

Today me and my friend and fellow podcaster Brian Mullins reflect and breakdown his recent experience facing the AWCF exam for the first time, we talk about the journey he took and navigate his personal voyage of discovery. Brian has lots of priceless nuggets of information for anyone considering this journey for this exam or any certification the world over.

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LFP 47 Post AWCF Reflection with Brian Mullins CJF ASF

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This discussion is about a recent article in the Forge magazine. It is not about imposing rules but it is about protecting ourselves and all those involved (including the equine) at farriery competitions and forging best practice for future generations.

What is Social License to Operate (SLO) 

Social license is increasingly important in horse sport and leisure. This is the general public’s interpretation of equine welfare and professionalism. We must be seen to be always putting equine welfare FIRST. When a social license is lost, this is when the general public’s opinion decides that the activity we are doing falls below their expectations of animal welfare and/ or professionalism. This means that the welfare of the horse must be put first, and be seen to be put first, all the time. It is the responsibility of everyone involved with equines to demonstrate this. Sometimes, mistakes will be made. However, if all of those involved in horse sport and leisure can learn from these mistakes and demonstrate that they are always striving to do right by their horses, wider society is more likely to trust that equine welfare is genuinely being put first and it is more likely that equestrianism’s social license will be maintained. We have all seen the potential damage one video can make to a sport. During the build up to the 2024 Olympics, one video of one person connected to a sport, made headline news leading to a large swing in public opinion. This in turn reignited the question - should equestrianism be included as an Olympic sport? Worryingly, one public vote resulted in 49% of the voters being against. This is concerning and is evidence of what damage one viral video can do. The equestrian world needs to maintain and strengthen its social license for it to have a future.

 Horseshoeing Competitions 

As a competition, we must treat this activity as a sport utilizing the equine, and where live equines are used, their welfare MUST be the primary concern. Most horseshoeing competitions held within the UK are organised in conjunction with a bigger event, such as a county show. These are very public facing events and due to the nature of the spectacle provided, they are a huge crowd pulling part of the event. We are exposed to many members of the public that may have little or no knowledge of what they are watching. Some of these spectators may also be members of organisations or have opinions opposed to the use of horses in sport and may be looking to publicly evidence this. To this end, we as organisers and competitors need to utilise this industry spotlight to educate, communicate, and actively promote best practice and professionalism. The competition environment can be stressful for both equines and competitors due to several different factors, but with proper organisation, contingency planning and common sense, this can be kept to a minimum

LFP 48 Social Licence & Farriery Competitions

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I was recently asked to do a webinar on be half of the British Farriers & Blacksmiths Association explaining the concept of social license to operate in the equine sector. This is a term which has been banded around for a few years now and there have been many who have misunderstood what this actually means.

This is about public approval, for us to carry on doing what we do. Although this is mainly aimed at the equestrian world, we do play a part in it, and with out it we have no job.

Thank you to the BFBA for asking me to do this and for allowing me to publish the audio here to share. This recording is of me talking via a online webinar, of which there were a few technical problems of which I have done my best to edit out.

If you are not a BFBA member please check out their web site to see the members benefits available and sign up.

LFP 49 BFBA SLO Webinar with Daniel Bennett AWCF CertEd

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Recently there has been a lot of discussions and social media debate about the apparent crisis within the farriery profession.

This has centred around the economy of farriery as a profession and the lack of training providers and people coming into the profession.

Like all farriery rants on social media, we all shared it on our feed so no doubt your customers can see it and feel sorry for you! Id like to add at this point “they don’t care”. I have personally thought for some time in the UK that we are most of the time subsidising their hobby and their want to own a horse compared to the prices with the rest of the developed world.

To fix this it will take more than farriers sharing a well written post by another farrier on their social media. We need to get in a room together discover how we got in this situation in the first place, work on strategies to improve our value and to raise the price of farriery and go up together.

Up until this point apart from moaning no one has proactively done anything to resolve this situation until now.

Tom Smith FWCF, an experienced farrier who has been in the business since 2006, discusses his career journey, the challenges faced by the farrier industry, and the need for change. 

He highlights the potential lack of farriers in the future, the struggle with proper pricing, and the undervaluation of their work. 

Tom introduces 'Forge Smart,' a 10-month program designed to help farriers improve their business acumen, raise their prices collectively, and enhance the professionalism of the industry. 

 

The discussion covers the importance of community, professional development, and re-evaluating traditional practices to ensure the sustainability and growth of the farrier profession.

www.forgesmart.co.uk

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LFP 50 The state of the Industry & the Solution! ForgeSmart.co.uk Tom Smith FWCF GradDIP ELR

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Last month saw the passing of a dear, farrier, educator, mentor, friend and all round legend. David “Slim” Symons FWCF Hons lead a very interesting Farriery career and put so much back in to the industry and those in it. This is a great loss to the UK Farriery industry, his family and his friends. 

This is an edited re touched for quality, tribute of a conversation I had with Slim the other year.

Rest in peace Sir

LFP 51 David "Slim" Symons FWCF Hons Tribute

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In Episode 1 myself, Daniel Bennett AWCF (Class 1) CertEd, Matt Burrows BSc (Hons) AWCF & Dean Bland Dip WCF Hons BA (Hons) MAFA, discuss the subject of Hoof Capsule Distortion (HCD) in an informal discussion online.

Episode 1 Hoof Capsule Distortion Discussion

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In this episode myself, Mark Watson FWCF & Dean Bland Dip WCF (Hons) discuss the subject of Self Development. Self Development is an important behaviour included in the new UK farriery apprentice standard and essential for farriers developing throughout their careers.

Episode 2 Self Development Discussion with Mark Watson & Dean Bland

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In this episode we look at theory exam revision & exam technique.

Sarah Logie FWCF served a four year apprenticeship in farriery with Mr R.Pape Dip.WCF and qualified in 2006. She gained a Diploma of the Worshipful Company of Farriers with Honours, the first female farrier to ever qualify with Honours in the 650 year history of the Company.

She spent a year, travelling, working and competing abroad, in the U.S.A. and New Zealand. She then returned to Inverness-shire, and set up her farriery business in 2007.

In 2012 she sat her Associate of the Worshipful Company of Farriers and passed with 
 Distinction, becoming the third woman to ever gain the qualification.

She passed the Fellowship exam in May 2017 and became one of two women in the world to hold the highest recognised qualification in farriery

She applys a holistic view to her work, encouraging clients to help their horses with 
 the application of Physiotherapy, Sports massage and Veterinary support where necessary.

Jonathan Nunn FWCF has over 30 years’ experience in horseshoeing, and has always been a keen shoe and tool-making farrier throughout his extensive career. Jonathan attends a weekly Referral Clinic at Pool House Equine every Wednesday dealing with foot lameness's actively involving regular farriers in the referral process and ongoing treatment.
Jonathan is also a Worshipful Company of Farriers Examiner and Competition Judge.

Episode 3 Revision & Exams with Jon Nunn FWCF & Sarah Logie FWCF

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In this episode we are joined by Sarah Brown FWCF and Jon Nunn FWCF where we have a relaxed informal discussion about this condition.

Episode 4 Counter Rotation of the Distal Phalanx with Sarah Brown FWCF & Jon Nunn FWCF

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In this episode we discuss injuries to the Suspensory Ligament.

Another subject the modern farrier will see on a regular basis.

Episode 5 Suspensory Ligament Injuries with Mark Trussler FWCF & Siimon Moore FWCF

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Last week I was invited to attend a meeting in Norway to with Mustad Hoofcare, on behalf of the BFBA Craft Committee to help develop a working version of the Mustad Farrier Portal. This is a scoring system developed to help competition organisers, and is a lot more than just a calculator. This system is the brainchild of Aksel Vibe AWCF. We sat down and and Aksel explained the system and how and why it was developed.
Although this conversation is very competition centric there are plenty many nuggets of information to learn from. 

Massive thankyou to the Sponsors for your continued support

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LFP 39 The Mustad Farrier Portal with Aksel Vibe AWCF

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