Training

Check day May 2006, Pembrokeshire

One of the aims of the NACFT states :- "We strive to increase credibility and professionalism within the trade and encourage trimmers to take their training further. Standard setting is important, and hopefully more diploma holders will emerge and more will attend follow up assessments (check days) throughout their professional career, so that standards are met and maintained."

To maintain their Category 1 status all trimmers are required to attend a "Check Day" every 2 years. It is also advisable for trimmers who have completed a training course to attend one or two check days before taking the Exam for the Dutch Diploma.

Exams and check days are usually held at the Willows Veterinary Centre but every two years a check day is held in South Wales organised by Andrew Tyler. In this area, that includes Cardiganshire and Pembrokeshire, there is a group of trimmers who are very professional, take pride in their work and their ongoing assessment.

I was invited by Andrew Tyler to attend and take some photos for the website. I thoroughly enjoyed the day with them and the lunch in the Trewern Arms that followed.

Pieter Kloosterman, chief instructor for PTC, Oenkerk, Netherlands, has been teaching trimming for 25 years and taught me to trim nearly 20 years ago. Pieter has been closely involved with the NACFT since it's inception and just about every member has been taught by him. The Dutch Method of trimming which involves the 5 steps is just as valid today as it was over 30 years years ago when it was devised by E. Toussaint Raven. Back then all trimming was done with knives whereas today most trimmers use discs. Using discs, the order of the 5 steps will be different, but Pieter stressed that trimmers should keep the 5 steps in mind and on completion the finished hoof should look the same as if the 5 steps had been followed. A good trimmer should always judge his own work and never let standards slip. It is the small things that make a difference, like making sure the hooves are level, not sloping in or out. Model the cleft so that the hoof is self cleaning. Removing loose horn from the heel. If the hoof has a defect that cannot be corrected by making a height difference then put a block on. The application of a block is also important. It should be level and applied far enough back, towards the heel, to be stable.

Other factors that are equally important, on a check day as an Exam day, are the cleanliness of crushes, clothing and equipment, especially in these days of increased bio-security. Knives should be sharp and electric rasps clean. Electric rasps are difficult to clean but some trimmers have found that they can be kept clean by covering with a sock or stockings/tights. Easily obtainable from wife/girlfriend :-) I used to keep mine clean by scrubbing the outside with hot soapy water and then drying out with compressed air which also removed bits of horn trapped inside. Wife does not wear tights :-(

Hopefully, by the time you have read the above, some of the photos may have loaded. If you have broadband there will be no problem but on 56k they may take a while. I have decreased the size of the photos to make them quicker to load. I may not have managed to get photos of every trimmer, for which I apologise. Also Richard James did not make the group photo as he had to leave early. Alyn Edwards passed his diploma exam last September so he was providing moral support.

Miles Helliwell, Teifi Davies, Lyn Evans, Cerdin Jones, Carl Rogers, Mark Dickson, Dafydd Mills, Pieter Kloosterman,
Huw Phillips, Andrew Tyler, Stan Harden and Derrick Colledge

Trewern Farm was an ideal venue as not only did it have 400 cows but also excellent handling facilities. The passageway was long enough to have 4 crushes in line. There were 2 GDS crushes including a brand new one, a Wopa SA0041 Electric-hydraulic hoof trimming crush and a Peter Sondegard Bulberg type crush. It was good opportunity to compare the different types. All crushes have back bars instead of chains and are very fast and efficient.