RICHMOND, Ky. – Just outside of Richmond, one can hear the daily clanging of hammers against anvils and horses neighing. Get close enough and you’ll see no less than a dozen students learning the farrier trade.

Resting on 40 acres of rolling pasture, the Kentucky Horseshoeing School (KHS) includes 23,000 square feet of classrooms, shops and instructional areas along with dormitories. It is among the most modern farrier educational facilities operating in the United States today. It’s been in central Kentucky since 1978. Overseeing the school is executive director and owner Mitch Taylor.

“Our curriculum, our staff and our facilities continually evolve to reflect current shoeing methods and materials as well as the latest insights into balanced shoeing,” Taylor said. “Both working professional farriers and KHS students benefit from our educational programs, designed to provide the farrier community with a thorough understanding of the current techniques and the latest skills required for providing hoof and leg health.”

Taylor received his Bachelor of Science degree in biology and chemistry from Western State College in Colorado. He did his post-graduate work in equine physiology at the University of Kentucky.

“I’m originally from Colorado and attended graduate school at the University of Kentucky in 1989,” he said. “I’ve been shoeing horses since I was 17. I put a lot of time in academia and a lot of time in shoeing horses. These are two different worlds, but I was able to bring these worlds together.”

In 2015, Taylor was inducted into the International Horseshoeing Hall of Fame. He is an active judge at national and international farrier competitions and currently works worldwide as a noted clinician in the field of equine limb anatomy and biomechanics.

“Like many farriers I was frustrated with the farrier process and I wanted to make a program that was viable, repeatable, consistent and I wanted to put together a correct curriculum that will properly train farriers so they’re ready to hit the ground working.”

A 12-week farrier course at KHS costs $11,000, six-month tuition is $19,000 and a nine-month course is $28,000. Housing is available for students who desire to live on campus.

Attendees of KHS attend one- to two-hour lectures each day and twice weekly they trim the hooves of shoeless horses in an adjacent pasture.

“Students stand under the horses and put their tools to use,” Taylor said.

Three to four days each week the students shoe horses in the shop.

“The horses we shoe are those for people living in Richmond, Lexington and surrounding counties. Students in this school shoe one horse per day, whereas a normal farrier will shoe eight to 10 horses per day,” he said.

“We have a lot of horses to work on and a lot of breeds to work on here in central Kentucky. We see a lot of therapeutic cases that come in, too. Me and my instructors will work on these so our students can participate. We’re proud of our curriculum and this curriculum is developed over time. It’s based on a sound, safe standard for maintaining a horse’s feet.”

Former students of KHS have earned positions with various U.S. equine teams, leading veterinary hospitals, university veterinary schools and have even shod Kentucky Derby winners.

According to Taylor, instruction focuses upon understanding balanced shoeing through a combination of intense anatomy, physiology and biomechanical training as well as practical work.

“Through a deep and thorough understanding of the equine’s biomechanical processes, our students understand ‘why’ alongside of ‘how’ when formulation a hoof care plan,” Taylor said.

“One cannot expect this to be a walk in the park,” Taylor said, referring to the art and occupation as a farrier. “It is anything but that. It has a tendency to be dangerous work. You can’t learn this trade in a short time. The longer you go to school for this, the greater chance you have of being a successful farrier.”

Surrounding Taylor is a team of highly experienced farriers. Instructors offer a comprehensive and structured curriculum designed to cover all aspects of the farrier business. Hands-on practice is a highlight of the school.

The students are provided with cutting-edge equipment with a learning environment that mirrors real-world scenarios. They have access to fully equipped forging labs, shoeing stations and plenty of live horses for practice.

“What’s important is if you want to learn this trade and be successful at it you have to learn to do it and that’s by going to an organized school that has a curriculum that works, then you need an apprenticeship with a mentor,” Taylor said.

According to Taylor, just 10 percent of farriers in the U.S. are certified through the American Farrier Association. KHS is nationally accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Career Schools and Colleges.