Ian Davies, DipWCF is hard at work in his new job.
The British-born and British-educated farrier has joined the University of California School of Veterinary Medicine Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital in Davis, California. The vet school welcomed Ian to his new position yesterday.
The Hoof Blog was able to interview Ian Davies briefly on his first official day of work at the vet school.
Ian Davies was educated in Great Britain, where he earned the Diploma of the Worshipful Company of Farriers. He shared his background as a young farrier in Wales who served his apprenticeship at the old Tyddu Farm forge in Chepstow, South Wales, which had once been a wheelwright shop.
As a student at Hereford Technical College preparing for the Worshipful Company of Farriers' diploma, Ian bonded with his instructor, Alan Bailey AWCF. Later he would work with a second mentor, the accomplished lameness researcher Chris Colles, BVetMed, PhD, MRCVS, author of the Principles of Farriery textbook.
As a student at Hereford Technical College preparing for the Worshipful Company of Farriers' diploma, Ian bonded with his instructor, Alan Bailey AWCF. Later he would work with a second mentor, the accomplished lameness researcher Chris Colles, BVetMed, PhD, MRCVS, author of the Principles of Farriery textbook.
More recently, he said, he benefited from working with US veterinarian Ric Redden, whom he met while working in Japan; he now uses Redden's "rock 'n roll" shoe principles, in conjunction with Morrison-design shoes and from studying barefoot hoof care principles with educator KC La Pierre.
Ian brings experience to Davis from working for two-time Olympic medalist Paul Schockemöhle, Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, Oman’s Royal Cavalry, and Katsumi Yoshida's famed Northern Farm, home to more than 3,000 horses and described as the center of the Japanese racehorse breeding industry.
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| Ian Davies shoeing in the UC Davis veterinary hospital forge. (UC Davis photo) |
For the last few years, Ian has been working in a farrier partnership near Seattle, Washington. He'd never been to California until he applied for the Davis position.
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Earlier this week, U.S. News & World Report once again designated the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine as the No. 1 vet school in the nation in its most recent rankings of professional and graduate programs.
UC Davis has more than 700 students pursuing the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and other professional and graduate degrees, and offers the nation’s largest veterinarian residency program, with more than 35 specialties.
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Fran JurgaFran Jurga launched Hoofcare Publishing in 1985. Most people predicted that no one would read her (or anyone's) articles about hoof diseases and horseshoes. (They were wrong.) Writing about hoofcare has taken Fran around the world and back again and she's never written an article about the same thing twice. Join the Hoof Blog's free email list to be notified about new articles as they are published or visit hoofblog.com again soon.
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