Georgia Gaudet owns hundreds of shoes
by Victoria Howard
It’s true that many women are obsessed with possessing different shoes, but I’m willing to bet that Georgia Gaudet has them all beat.
Gaudet is a young woman who owns a lot of shoes, but the type of shoes are not designer originals such as Jimmy Choo or Christian Louboutin, these shoes are not for two-legged fillies, but for four-legged ones and colts as well.
Gaudet is not what you would call a bootmaker or footwear artisan, she is one of the few women farriers/ blacksmiths in the sport of harness racing.
Her family was never involved in harness racing, but that didn’t deter Gaudet from doing what she always wanted to do, “get down and dirty” with an amazing animal, the horse.
By no means is her job glamorous or easy. It involves a lot of patience, kindness, and countless hours of bending over while holding a thousand-pound horse’s leg up.
And sometimes her four-legged client will not stand still, so Gaudet has to wrestle the large animal, but in a patient and loving way. She lets the horse know she is the boss, but also their friend.
Being a blacksmith, or farrier is very physically demanding, but also can be rewarding. It may look easy, but it is far from it, as a blacksmith encompasses the art and science of shaping and forging metal with heat and tools. This requires a unique blend of creativity, precision, and physical strength. Because of the extreme physical work, the employment of blacksmiths is expected to decline over the next decade.
So, when and how did Gaudet decide to make a career as a blacksmith?
“I was born and raised in the beach area of Toronto, ON,” Gaudet said. “When I graduated from high school, I was a bit unsure of what path I wanted to take. For some reason, shoeing horses caught my eye. Because I had zero experience, I enrolled in the University of Guelph taking up equine care and management in 2020.
“From there I worked as a groom for trainer Robert Tiller at Woodbine where I met my farrier mentor Stewart Mcaulay who taught me everything and I have worked alongside him ever since.
“I spent 2½ years apprenticing with farriers Felix Marion and Stewart Mcaulay. I still work with Stewart, as one can never stop learning new things in the trade. After working under these farriers and learning as much as I could, I decided to go out on my own.”
This is a difficult trade for a man. Being a woman, how do you handle the physical labor, and do you get treated any different since you are a female?
“I do my best to take gender out of the equation. I am a good farrier, period, not a good female farrier. Though it isn’t easy, I try to rise above any negative or inappropriate stigmatization about being a woman in a male dominated field.”
The average weight of a standardbred is 1,000 pounds. I have known many blacksmiths who end up with severe back problems. Is there anything you can do so that this doesn’t happen to you?
“I’m lucky so far, but my mentor Stewart taught me to stretch before I start in the morning and to take good care of my body. I always do that, and it certainly helps.”
Have you ever been injured due to shoeing a horse?
“Yes, I’ve been stepped on, kicked, bit, thrown to the ground, but fortunately I’ve never been seriously injured by a horse, but I know there’s always that possibility.”
How do you handle the difficult horses who have A.D.D. and can’t or won’t stand still?
“With a lot of patience and empathy. I learned that the horse has to trust me and realize I am not there to hurt, but help them. Some horses come to me with sore hooves and once the horse sees I am helping him, he will relax.
“Horses are not machines and should not be manhandled and beat on for this is not the way to get their trust or attention. But once in a while when I get a horse that is impossible to work with, he may need a little tranquilizer.”
What do you find is the biggest problem with racehorse hooves?
“Thoroughbreds can have brittle, thin-walled hooves. And a standardbred can be very tricky, for making even the slightest change can alter their gait.”
You work mainly in Canada where the winters can be brutal with frigid temperatures and ice. What can you use to make it safe for the horse and driver?
“I put corks on their shoes. Here in Canada, we do have some frigid, icy weather. You must make sure the horse is safe, on and off the track, so corks definitely help them.”
There’s an old saying, “No hoof, no horse.” A good farrier must know the anatomy of the horse hoof and how to determine the problem the horse is having and how to fix it. How do you detect if there is a problem, where it is and how to take care of it?
“To detect issues, I will use hoof testers, watch how the horse walks and jogs and I feel for the pulse and heat in the hooves. I also find it important to work with the veterinarian and watch how the horse races.
“There can be numerous solutions to the numerous problems a horse can have in the foot area, thus some require special shoes, others may require leaving the shoe off, while some simply require time to heal.”
What is your goal for the future?
“I really want to shoe world champions and always do work that my clients are happy with.”
Is there anybody you would like to mention or thank?
“I want to thank my mentors for believing in me, and my clients for trusting in me with their animals. I thoroughly love what I do and enjoy working with both my two- and four-legged clients.”
