Two farriers from Gudow are now going their separate ways

Stefan Tum (54) and Matthias Schur (29) also shod a lot of horses in the Vier- und Marschlanden. They were a team for ten years.

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Gudow. Stefan Tum (54) and Matthias Schur (29) are as Farriers the past ten years together in all over northern Germany on the way been – also in the Vier- und Marschlanden, where they currently have more than 20 customers and look after their horses at least once a week. From the beginning of the year, the state-certified farriers go their separate ways. Your customers have divided them among themselves fifty-fifty.

Stefan Tum’s son Timo (26) wants to join his father after a preparatory course in order to learn the profession of farrier in practice. However, a team of three farriers would be too big.

Farriers from Gudow have divided their customers fairly

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Matthias Schur, the new family network suits Matthias Schur: “I was planning to work alone at some point anyway.” The 29-year-old now wants to “leave his own signature stronger”. If everything goes well and he can drive enough customers, a higher income can be expected. “But the risk is also higher,” says Schur about self-employment. “When I’m sick, I don’t earn anything. So far the other person has always helped out. ”

The two ex-partners who live in Gudow near Büchen want to continue to support each other, “so that the deadlines can be met,” says Schur. Because the satisfaction of their customers has top priority, emphasize the blacksmiths. Almost all horse owners they visit are regular customers.

Family tradition: Even the great-grandfather was a blacksmith

Nowadays, horses are more relaxed and better educated and are no longer regarded as pure workhorses, emphasizes Stefan Tum. That is why a farrier usually gets along with the horse to be shod. Working with horses is in the blood of the 54-year-old: his grandfather and great-grandfather already earned their money as blacksmiths.

Matthias Schur trained Tum ten years ago. “We met through a former neighbor of mine,” says Tum, who in turn finished his own training 25 years ago. In addition to the practice of accompanying an experienced, state-certified farrier, attending a farrier school for several months is part of the two-and-a-half year basic training.

Farriers are on the move in rolling workshops

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“You have to pay for the school out of your own pocket,” explains Schur, who completed the theory lessons at the Berlin Veterinary Clinic. Farrier is not an apprenticeship but a recognized qualification. Experts emphasize that anyone who wants to acquire it must have completed training beforehand. Stefan Tum is a machinist, Matthias Schur is a bodybuilder and vehicle painter.

Both come – like their colleagues – in rolling workshops: Tum keeps the VW bus of the former duo. “It has 200,000 kilometers on the clock.” Matthias Schur has converted a Ford van into a blacksmith’s workshop. “He now has the luxury version,” jokes Stefan Tum.

Anvils and forging furnaces are also on board the vehicles

On site at their customers’ premises, the specialists carry out all work related to the hooves of the four-legged friends – from cutting out and removing the old hoof horn to complicated work such as making and attaching special orthopedic fittings and other custom-made products. These are not only forged, but also welded. “A plastic plate is nailed between the hoof and the horseshoe. The nail is then turned over to form a rivet, ”explains Matthias Schur.

There are also anvils and forging furnaces on board their vehicles, Schur’s anvil is mounted on a roll-out rail. “A craftsman friend of mine helped me equip the car and he equips truck trailers professionally,” says the 29-year-old, who lend a helping hand and invested a lot of money and time in his rolling workshop. “A neighbor is an electrician. He built in the power supply for all electrical devices, such as belt grinders and drill presses. “The drill is needed to drill stud holes for the special horseshoes of jumping horses.

The two farriers do not have their own horses

The horseshoes are heated in the oven to around 1200 degrees. Only when they glow are they malleable. The “shock absorbers of the horses” are then straightened with a heavy hammer. Schur: “We adapt them to the hoof – comparable to a made-to-measure shoe in humans.” The hot iron is briefly burned onto the horse’s hoof. “That doesn’t hurt the animal,” says Schur. In principle, work is done in such a way that it does not hurt the horses in any way.

The two farriers do not have their own horses. “It’s a time-consuming and costly hobby. We don’t want to keep horses just to be able to adorn ourselves as farriers ”, says father of four Stefan Tum. He can be reached by calling 0151/56072409. Schur has the number 0151/17680741.

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