Farriers will inspect, trim and shape horses’ hooves. They create, fit and nail horseshoes and racing plates or ‘tips’.

Farriers may be responsible for the following tasks:

•Observing a horse in motion and checking for peculiarities and abnormalities relating to the use of hooves.

•Talking to the horse owner and deciding on the types of shoes and nails required

•Removing worn or faulty shoes

•Examining, cleaning, trimming and shaping hooves using various equipment

•Selecting and cutting metal according to the specifications needed for the individual horse

•Heating shoes in a forge, shaping them on anvils and hammering them to size