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Biography
My name is Joely Higgins and 𝗜'𝗺 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘀𝘁, 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 / 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗹𝘆 𝗮 𝗳𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗿. Now that's a mouthful right! I started out as an equine massage therapist in early 2023 and from there I was hooked. 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙞𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙨. From there I attended my first saddle fitting courses in Maryland. Which would eventually lead me to entering the Society of Master Saddlers, in hopes of eventually heading to the UK to become a "Qualified Saddle Fitter & Bridle Fitter". I currently hold the title "SMS Trainee Member" as I further my education and work with other highly distinguished fitters!
But the education doesn't stop there! I attended a 12 week farrier course hosted by MSU in the fall of 2024 - which allowed my knowledge to expand 10x greater than I had ever imagined. I'm sure you've heard the saying "no hoof, no horse", but being able to assess the body and tack in conjunction with hoof care has truly taken that saying to the next level. 𝗘𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝗽, 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆, 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 '𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲'.
I'm constantly furthering my education and love being able to work alongside other professionals in the equine industry. "Helping each horse by providing 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙛, one 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 at a time"!
Education
Bodywork
In 2023, Joely began her massage therapy education and hasn’t stopped since. Following her initial course, she studied multiple modalities and techniques, allowing her to develop her own integrated methods. Expanding into physiotherapy, saddle fitting, and farriery has further enabled her to offer a truly comprehensive, whole-horse approach to every client.
Saddle Fitting
Joely began her saddle-fitting journey in 2024 with the North American Saddlery School, prompted by what she observed through her bodywork—just how much damage ill-fitting tack can cause. She is actively continuing her education across multiple brands and is also a Trainee Fitter with the UK’s Society of Master Saddlers, working toward full qualification through the SMS.
Hoofcare Knowledge
Joely graduated from the Michigan State Farrier School in the fall of 2024. The rigorous program included in-depth anatomy study and dissections, daily trimming and forging practice, and comprehensive training in pathologies & specialty cases. Although she no longer accepts farriery clients, Joely uses her farriery knowledge to recommend adjustments when needed and to provide a holistic, well-informed approach to every horse she evaluates.
