We had Paul Givler for 11yrs and while he’s good, he’s always been a bit higher than the area average. A while back he told us he was raising his rates from $55/trim to $60 (for us) while our boarder paid $65/trim and were going up to $70. We told him that if he did that, we would have to find a new farrier so he said he would keep the prices the same. Three months later, I get my invoice and my rate went up to $60 for trims. Checked with my boarders and they all went up as well. We hold for him, if they won’t stand perfect for him on crossties; a fan blows directly on him; we sweep for him; he has a dry easy access for his truck and all pay on time. If someone is late, I chase down the payment for him. He’s good, but he’s been getting increasingly grumpy with the horses and yells at them for the slightest infraction. So, it was time for a change.
I know Julianne Osbeck and have heard good things about her husband, Joe. When Paul was out with hernia surgery, Joe came out within an hour to tack on a shoe for me and asked that we send payment to Paul instead. That just stayed with me and spoke of his integrity. I asked Joe if he was taking on new clients and he now has us for half of what Paul was charging. For us, we pay $40/trim and my boarders pay $45 plus tax. For two shoes he’s $108 with tax where Paul was charging $130 and I don’t know what he was planning on charging but probably at least $135.
