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FPD Quality Control

FPD is committed to providing the best service possible and work to guarantee the highest quality products. Over the last few months we have implemented additional quality control tracking systems to most products we supply to the market.

Most products labeled or packaged by FPD will have a quality control number on them. If you need to return an item for service or replacement, knowing the quality control number will be a tremendous value for FPD and the retailer where you purchased the product.

We encourage you to always rotate your supplies to ensure you have the most recent production specifications in stock. Click here for a list of FPD Quality Control examples.

Vector Horseshoe Nails North American Challenge Cup

Travis Koons CJF of Hemet, California won the 2011 Vector North American Challenge Cup at the 40th Annual American Farrier's Association's National Forging and Horseshoeing Competition in Lexington, Kentucky. For the qualifying class, competitors were required to forge two shoes - a roadster and a front shoe. Shoes were judged and placed one to twenty, with the top twenty qualifying to compete the the Vector NACC Live Shoeing class. Placing second through sixth: Jim Quick CJF of Longmont, Colorado; Andy Martin of Wales; Jake Engler CJF of Magnolia, Texas; Jason Bromley CJF of Blue Rock, Ohio; and Mike Augenstein CJF of Stockport, Ohio. Special thanks to Susan Thomas of Montana Farrier Supply in Livingston, Montana for presenting the Vector awards on behalf of FPD. Congratulations to all competitors!

International Hoof-Care Summit - A Winner!

Congratulations to 2011 International Hoof-Care Summit attendee Robert Lanners of Carol Stream, Illinois for winning a "Day with Eddie Williams". FPD is pleased to offer this special educational package. Details of the day will be published in an upcoming issue of the American Farriers Journal. Eddie is from Harrodsburg, Kentucky and is a well-known farrier for the American Saddlebred industry.

FPD Dealer Seminar - A Commitment to Education

FPD has an ongoing commitment to farrier education. On February 3, 2011 we hosted a half day seminar entitled "Getting the Most from Microsoft Excel" in Cincinnati, Ohio. This program was attended by over 25 of our retail dealers from New Hampshire to California and Canada. A presenter from SkillPath shared basic and in-depth knowledge of how to navigate in Excel using the various versions of the software program. Emphasis was placed on how dealers can use Excel to streamline their pricing systems. All attendees left with a deeper understanding of the program. Plans are already being made to hold a similar program in 2012. One highlight of the event was Rudy and Beatrice Kerckhaert being named Kentucky Colonels - a honor bestowed by the Governor of Kentucky. (Pictured above Linda Hill, Beatrice & Rudy Kerckhaert, Dan Burke)

FPD Guía de productos Versión española

Agora disponible para nuestros clientes de lengua Española, nuestro nuevo guía de producto. Clique aqui para versión del guia en pdf.

2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games

Winners Wear Kerckhaert Shoes

LEXINGTON, Kentucky - Congratulations to Tom McCutcheon and Gunners Special Nite for winning the Individual and Team Reining World Championships at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Farrier Trent Wargo of Gainesville, Texas shod the winning horse with Kerckhaert 1" Sliding Plates. Congratulations!

And, the team from the Netherlands did something they’ve never done before in the Dressage World Championships at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games – The Netherlands won the team gold medal for the first time ever in the World Games.

Superstar Moorlands Totilas, with Edward Gal, led the Dutch team to victory. Teammates Imke Schellekens-Bartels and Hans Peter Minderhoud also provided top scores to secure the gold medal.

The winner was wearing Kerckhaert SN and SSP shoes. We congratulate both the Dutch team and their farriers Rob Renirie and Adri de Bruijn.

Kentucky Horse Park Farrier Shop Expansion

LEXINGTON, Kentucky - FPD has announced the completion of the expansion of the Farrier Shop at the Kentucky Horse Park. With the new addition, shoe boards have been updated, museum pieces have been loaned and the building has received a fresh coat. It is anticipated that over 500,000 attendees of the 2010 World Equestrian Games will have the opportunity to view the Farrier Shop. Dan Burke, president of FPD, sees the Farrier Shop as an ongoing project for not only FPD, but also the entire farrier community. The facility provides a place where historical items can be placed "on loan" for the many visitors to view. To learn more about placing items on loan - contact Bryan Quinsey at FPD.

Equitarianism Brings Veterinary and Farrier Care to Dominican Republic Equines

Through literally hundreds of vaccinations and dewormings, 60 surgeries, nutrition training, and a nationwide farrier clinic, all from June 6-13, the Dominican Republic's horses, donkeys, and mules are once again benefiting from a new concept known as "equitarianism."

The equitarian effort, headed by Jay Merriam, DVM, MS, of the Massachusetts Equine Clinic in conjunction with the Massachusetts Veterinary Medical Association, targets the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and is part of the association's "Samana Project." Since 1993 veterinarians, technicians, and other volunteers have been traveling to the Dominican Republic twice a year to provide much-needed health care to the country's working equids, as well as small animals.

The Samana Project summer 2010 team just completed "the most productive year ever," according to equine podiatrist and Samana team member Steve O'Grady, BVSc, MRCVS, of Northern Virginia Equine in Marshall, VA. "“The horses were just coming out of the woodworks, nonstop," he said. Vaccines and dewormers were given until the team’s stock, donated by U.S. manufacturers, was depleted. A team of three veterinarians and and numerous veterinary students performed 52 castrations in addition to other necessary surgeries in four days.

Now in his second year in the project, O'Grady and the team organized a nationwide farrier clinic, attended by at least two local farriers from each province. "Farriery addresses one of the most common and serious concerns of the working equid: problems with the feet," he said. Farrier equipment was donated and shipped to the Dominican Republic by Farrier Product Distribution in Shelbyville, Ky. Donations included Kerckhaert Horse Shoes and Vector Horseshoe Nails.

Like humanitarianism, equitarianism is meant to promote sympathy and benevolence towards individuals, but in this case, the individuals are the equine inhabitants of developing countries. Equitarian interests are on the rise, with more and more opportunities becoming available to equine health care professionals wanting to make a difference, said Merriam during the first official session on equitarianism, held at the American Association of Equine Practitioners Annual Convention last year.

Farriers Keep Alive the Art of Shoeing Horses

COVINGTON, Georgia (CNN) -- From the Civil War to the taming of the West to the Kentucky Derby, horses have played an essential role in the forging of American history, and the farrier has been there for every stride. Doug Workman uses a forge to heat metal to 1,800 degrees so it can be shaped into a horseshoe.

Farriers are specialists in equine hoof care. They shoe horses to aid in the animal's movement and balance.

A lot of hard work and sweat is how farrier Doug Workman describes his job. Workman, a farrier for more than 20 years, is the current president of the Georgia Farriers Association, and he takes his trade seriously.

Workman makes horseshoes by hand in a process that hasn't changed in over a century. It starts with an iron oven called a forge that heats metal to an orange glow of 1,800 degrees. Hammer then crashes onto burning steel repeatedly, smashing and bending it, willing it into shape, all by the strength of man's arm.

Once the shoe is formed so that it fits to the horse's hoof like a glove, it must be attached. It is then that the farrier, with his head bent low, next to a thousand-pound horse, straddles the horse's leg between his own and drives nail into hoof.

Workman grew up around horses. As a teenager in Wyoming he began spending time with farriers and fell in love with the work. Traveling around the country, meeting with different farriers and learning different techniques, was how he honed his craft.

"It's a good deal," he says, "a good life."

The heyday for horseshoeing was at the turn of the 20th century, right before the invention of the car. It was a period in which horses were the main source of transportation and, in many cases, a person's livelihood. Today most horses are used for recreation but still require a farrier's touch.

A horse's hoof grows about a quarter-inch to three-eighths of an inch every month. If a shoe is left on too long, the hoof will grow out of balance and start damaging joints and tendons in the leg, says Workman. So it is necessary to trim hoofs and re-do horseshoes on a regular basis.

Most farriers nowadays care for about 200 horses, which means they're usually on a different farm every day plying their trade.

One day recently Workman and fellow farrier Dave Pervus were at the Star Light Farm in Covington, Georgia.

Pervus, a farrier for more than 12 years, says this is a detail-oriented work. They both stress the need for high-quality craftsmanship in their trade and understand the importance of a single nail out of place. A centuries-old proverb, they believe, illustrates the significance of what they do:

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

Workman says the economy has taken a toll on his industry but not as much as others.

Some of his clients have cut back to just shoeing the front two legs of their horses vs. shoeing all four. But most horse owners have a special relationship with their horses and think of them as children. As a result, Workman believes, their horses are not going to suffer a lot. "They might not take a vacation, but they'll keep their horses up," Workman says.

Farriers may not always have the best reputations, according to Pervus, who says people may think "we're just big oafs that wrestle horses all day." He explains that trying to maintain a horse's balance, soundness and health is a lot more difficult than merely nailing on a shoe.

Workman agrees.

"We are not just a strong back and a weak mind," he says. "We actually put a lot of effort into trying to further our profession."
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The Georgia Farriers Association puts on clinics, contests and discussions; it promotes good work skills and brings farriers together to share information and techniques. The goal is to further the knowledge and skill of the job.

Workman doesn't see farriers going anywhere. As long as people use horses, he says, farriers will be needed.

Kerckhaert Horseshoe Company Announces Exclusive Importer for North American Market

The Netherlands: Kerckhaert Horseshoe Company announced recently that effective January 1, 2009, Farrier Product Distribution, Inc. (FPD) would be the exclusive importer in North America for all Kerckhaert products.

Founded in The Netherlands in 1906, Kerckhaert is the largest independent manufacturer of horseshoes in the world. The company is owned and managed by the fourth generation of the Kerckhaert family.

“We are pleased to announce our choice of FPD to exclusively manage our North American markets,” stated Martin Kerckhaert. “They share our philosophy of service, quality and innovation, and they are well positioned to manage this additional distribution.”

Farrier Product Distribution, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is considered a leader in bringing groundbreaking products and service to the Farrier industry.

For more information regarding Kerckhaert and FPD visit www.kerckhaert.com or www.farrierproducts.com.