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March 2018 Profile: Kenneth Hodge – Oklahoma Farm & Ranch
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Country Lifestyle

March 2018 Profile: Kenneth Hodge

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To Understand Horses
By Laci Jones

Kenneth Hodge brushes his 21-year-old brown quarter horse named “Huey” in his barn in Elk City, Okla. With passion and a hint of laughter in his voice, he said, “The only thing I’ve been able to count on is my horse.”

Known by many as “Hodge,” the Oklahoma native has worked in the horse industry for more than 40 years as a horse farrier and trainer. When asked how he’s been able to continue working in a physically demanding position for more than four decades, Hodge said his body was built for shoeing horses.

“My size is a benefit to shoeing because I’m not big,” Hodge explained. “I’m the right size, my body is built to be sound, and I’m just lucky.”

Born in November 1946, Hodge was given a 50 percent chance to live because he was born pre-mature. Despite the challenges he faced early in life, the small boy had an ideal country-boy childhood in the small town of Willow, Okla. One of his first jobs was chopping cotton as a kid.

“We would go out and chop cotton and get 75 cents an hour,” he added. “I started pulling bolls at six-years-old and that’s how I bought my school clothes. I would spend eight hours chopping cotton, earning $6 a day.”

His mother was given a Monarch piano by her father when she was 16 years old in 1929. That piano was used by Hodge’s father, who made a living playing the piano by recording records and giving music lessons.

“He taught so many kids to play,” he explained. “Some of the guys who would lead sing in the church, would get my dad to help them with their music.”

One of four children, Hodge learned to play the piano. He said he enjoyed Elvis Presley’s southern gospel music as well as Dixieland jazz and blues. His father thought the young piano player had enough talent to make a career performing, but his mother did not want him to pursue a career in the music industry because of the amount of traveling.

However, she did not want him to pursue a career in the horse industry either. His interest in horses began as a child when he started riding his neighbor’s horses.

His passion for horses did not extend to his parents or siblings, but Hodge had a knack for working with horses. He said many of the “old-timers” taught the young cowboy about horses. Hodge started getting paid to break a Shetland pony at 12 years old.

“My teachers thought I was an outlaw because I worked with horses,” Hodge said.

A couple years later he was training larger horses. Between working with horses and chopping cotton, the Willow, Okla., native earned $44 a week. Hodge saved his money and purchased his first horse in 1961 at 14 years old with an $85 bank loan.

“I rode him for eight months and sold him for $175,” the horse trainer explained. “That was a lot of money back then.”

The same year, Hodge learned how to trim the horse’s feet that he was riding and training. An older gentleman by the name of George Wootton showed him how to trim and clean feet.

“My neighbors would have me trim their horse’s feet,” he added. “Sometimes they would pay me, and sometimes they would just thank me.”

Hodge graduated from Granite High School in 1965. He didn’t have the money to go to college, but he said he didn’t have the desire to attend college. He decided to enlist in the U.S. Armed Forces, but a physical showed the recent graduate had a heart murmur. However, he was able to join the U.S. National Guard in 1965. Hodge remained stateside during his service, and was discharged in 1972. After he was discharged, a man from California advised Hodge to learn how to shoe horses.

“He said, ‘Boy, you need to learn how to shoe horses. You have got a good eye and you understand this,’” Hodge recalled. “He showed me how to nail a shoe on.”

The farrier started shoeing horses for friends and neighbors. He got 50 cents a head for trimming and $2 for shoeing in 1972. Three months later, he started charging $2 for trimming and $6 for a re-set and $8 for shoeing.

“I could trim four an hour, so that is $8,” he explained. “I could shoe one in an hour, so that is $8. Manual labor then was $2.”

Hodge also ran race horses in Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas and New Mexico from 1974 to 2004. He started training race horses when he was 25 years old at a racetrack in Sayre, Okla. He trained horses in the morning and shod horses all afternoon.

Two years later, he learned the anatomy of a horse’s foot from a local veterinarian. Learning how to balance a foot, Hodge become the farrier he is today.

“One lady called and asked if I was a ‘corrective shoer,’ and I said, ‘No, I’m a correct shoer,’” he recalled.

Hodge said many farriers do tricks where it looks good, but the foot is not balanced. The horse farrier said it is imperative to have the horse hit the ground flat by balancing the shoe around the structure inside the foot.

“To do that the correct way, you have to have an imaginary 3-D X-Ray vision,” he added. “You have to know where the structure is at inside that foot and it has to be balanced on the inside of that foot.”

While he wants a horse’s foot to look good, Hodge’s No. 1 priority is making sure the horse is supported.

“Each foot is taking care of a quarter of that horse,” Hodge explained. “If it’s hitting the ground wrong, it is hurting every joint and all the way up.”

Hodge shoes horses by their conformation, then changes the shoes for the different events such as racing or cutting.

“A baseball player or football player wears cleats, like a racehorse, where they are trying to get the toe grip,” he explained. “A basketball player wears a rubber soled tennis shoe because that rubber will get a hold of that floor. That is what we need to do with that horse. It’s really technical, but it is really simple.”

The horse farrier has worked with Walter Merrick for 30 years, Roy Cooper, Fred Rule, DVM, for more than 40 years among many others. Hodge has shod horses for five generations of Beutlers. Bennie Beutler, owner of Beutler Brothers Rodeo Company in Elk City, Okla., has known Hodge for his entire life.

“He’s probably the best horseshoer I have ever seen,” Bennie Beutler added. “Several years ago, people would fly him to Kentucky to shoe horses that were running those big races at Churchill Downs Racetrack and fly him back. That is how good he is.”

David George of Crowder, Okla., has known Hodge for more than three decades. The horse farrier would travel more than 400 miles to shoe his horses. George said he appreciated all his efforts as a horse farrier and as a friend.

“He is as good [of a farrier] that I know of,” George explained. “It’s amazing because we would have a horse that wasn’t quite right, and he would say, ‘I’m going to do this, and that horse is going to do so-and-so.’ When he would get through shoeing, that horse did what he said he was going to do.”

Hodge said the support of his friends helped him become successful in the industry.

“I have the best friends in the world that I respect. I’ve been lucky to meet all these guys because they believed in me,” he added.

Read the March issue to learn more!

Country Lifestyle

Farm Dogs & Table Scraps

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Growing up on a farm, our dogs were tough. They roamed the pastures, slept under the barn, and ate just about anything they could get their paws on—whether we meant for them to or not. I’ll admit, I never thought twice when one of our old cow dogs snatched a biscuit off the table or licked up a spill from the barn floor. I’ve even seen a dog steal a whole rib bone off a plate and trot off like he’d won the lottery. And somehow, they always seemed fine.

But here’s the thing—just because they survived doesn’t mean it was safe. For every farm dog that lucked out, there’s another that wasn’t so fortunate. Some human foods can be downright toxic to dogs, and a little bit of bad luck (or a smaller, more sensitive dog) can turn a harmless snack into an emergency.

Common toxic foods lying around the farmhouse

Are table scraps good for your dog? (Stock photo)

If you’ve got a farm dog—or any dog, really—you need to be aware of the dangers lurking in everyday foods. Some of the biggest culprits include:

Chocolate – The darker it is, the worse it is. Even a little can cause vomiting, seizures, or worse.

Grapes & Raisins – No one’s exactly sure why, but they can cause kidney failure fast.

Onions & Garlic – In large enough amounts, these can destroy red blood cells, leading to anemia.

Xylitol (Found in Sugar-Free Gum & Candy) – This artificial sweetener can send a dog’s blood sugar crashing and cause liver failure.

Alcohol – Even small amounts can be deadly to dogs, affecting their nervous system much more than it does ours.

Bones from Cooked Meat – While not necessarily toxic, they can splinter and cause serious internal injuries.

Macadamia Nuts – These can lead to weakness, vomiting, and even paralysis in dogs.

What to do if your dog eats something toxic

First, don’t panic—but don’t ignore it either. If you know your dog ate something dangerous, call your vet immediately. They can tell you whether to induce vomiting or if it’s something that requires urgent care. If it’s after hours, contact the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (888-426-4435) or the Pet Poison Helpline (855-764-7661).

Prevention is always the best medicine, so keep toxic foods out of reach. That might mean keeping the trash can secured, making sure kids don’t slip the dog a treat under the table, or just being more mindful of what’s left on the counter.

Our farm dogs might have been lucky, but luck isn’t a great strategy when it comes to their health. A little awareness goes a long way in making sure they stay happy, healthy, and ready for the next day’s work.

For more information
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control

Pet Poison Helpline: www.petpoisonhelpline.com

Visit www.akc.org/expert-advice/nutrition/foods-your-dog-should-never-eat

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Country Lifestyle

Summer Squash and Corn Chowder

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By Lacey Vilhauer

Total time: 40 minutes

Servings: 6-7

Ingredients

  • 6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled and 1 1/2 Tbsp rendered bacon fat reserved
  • 1 1/2 lbs yellow squash, chopped (about 3 medium)
  • 2/3 cup thinly sliced celery
  • 1 cup diced onion
  • 1 Tbsp flour
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 3/4 cup milk (I used 1%)
  • 5 cups canned or fresh cut corn (from about 6 ears corn), divided
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried)
  • 3/4 tsp salt, then more to taste
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper, then more to taste if desired
  • 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, for serving
  • Chopped green onion for garnish (optional)
  •  

Instructions

Heat 4 tsp reserved bacon fat in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add celery and onion and sauté 2 minutes then add the squash. 

Saute until tender, about 6 minutes, adding in garlic and flour during last 2 minutes of sauteing. Reduce heat slightly.

Add 1 1/2 cups milk, 2 cups of the corn, thyme, salt and pepper to the sauteed veggies. 

To a blender add remaining 3 cups of corn, remaining 1 1/4 cups milk and the cream. Process in blender until nearly smooth (about 30 seconds). 

Add pureed mixture to pot and stir to blend. Cook until mixture reaches a light boil. 

Serve warm with shredded cheese, crumbled bacon and sliced green onions if desired.

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Western Housewives – May 2025

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By Summer McMillen

All my married life I have thought that when husbands all got together horseback after a hard days work they were probably rating their wives on a scale from one to ten based on their various capabilities. Did Wife A have a good hat crease? Was Wife B good help in the branding pen? Was Wife C an excellent mother? Was Wife D hospitable to everyone? Could Wife E make a decent gallon of sweet tea? Did Wife F keep a tidy saddle house?

Presumably, when Wife B did not live up to Wife A there was a fist fight followed by wife shaming of Husband B. His status amongst the cowboys immediately fell and he would be behind for the rest of his life in his cowboy career.

He would come home ashamed his wife couldn’t flambé a decent bananas foster and she couldn’t hoolihan either. He would be distraught and said wife would feel his pain.

Of course, this never happened to me like I thought it would. My husband always came home with a smile on his face and I’m pretty sure “flambé” isn’t even in a cowboys vocabulary.

Nonetheless, these imaginary fights and social rankings have plagued my brain for years.    It has caused me to always be in competition with myself to be the very best at everything I did. Which I have eventually realized is a trait of women all around the world.

While we are cooking a four course meal for our families we start to think about how we actually should be practicing heading steers instead.

While we are practicing our horsemanship we start to think about how we should actually be preparing a nutritious and elaborate meal for our families.

It is a constant battle that women have created and proceeded to fight for centuries.

One day the inner battle got to me and I finally broke down as we were riding wheat pasture and confessed to my husband my guilt. I was so sorry that I wasn’t a better cowgirl. I was so sorry that the house was a mess. I was so sorry that I would never be on The Cowboy Channel. I was so sorry that I had lost his good pair of gloves. (Except I didn’t actually mean to confess that last part. Some things are just better left unknown.)  I apologized again and again and told him I was sorry and he probably never wanted to bring his friends over for supper ever again.

Instead of consoling me, he just started looking at me like I was crazy. Which is what all good husbands do.

He stopped his horse and looked at me and said “Do you know how cowboys rate each other’s ranch wives?”

So many thoughts started filling my brain. Was it looks? Gentleness? Laundry speed? Work ethic?

Then he revealed their secret. “Cowboys rate  each other’s wives by how well they can cook eggs for breakfast.”

His point of course, was that men don’t think about each other’s wives. As long as they get their eggs for breakfast. In another twist of irony, my husband taught me how to fry the perfect egg. What can I say? It’s a man’s world.

Since then, I have let go of my irrational fears and doubt and have simply been living life. It’s all anyone can do. I may not team rope the best. I may get my fingers when I’m trying to dally and I may not have the tidiest saddle house. But I try hard at everything I do and I do it all out of love for my family and finally, myself.

So, if you’re a woman this Mother’s Day and you catch yourself feeling down amongst life constant pressures just remember you are not alone. You can almost guarantee there is a woman in every household that needs a little pick me up. Maybe you should just go outside. Maybe you should sit down and count your blessings. Or, maybe you should have your husband fry you some eggs.

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