Levi Lowry always loved horses, but until he was diagnosed with Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy and was declared legally blind, he never knew how important they would be in his life.

Lowry was diagnosed with Leber's, which atrophies the optic nerve, when he was 17. From age 18 to 20, he was completely blind and spent time at the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind in Talladega. At 21, he regained sight — enough to pass a CDL exam. But his driver's license was pulled at 28 when he lost vision in his left eye, leaving him with only tunnel vision in his right.

Since then, he has relied on his horse, Litefoot, for transportation, and two years ago, he studied to become a farrier at the renowned Casey and Son Horseshoeing School in north Georgia. Now, he runs Lowry Horseshoeing on South White Avenue in Bay Minette.

Lowry said counselors at the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind helped him choose his career.

“I had a choice of picking a rehab career, and working with the horses comes natural to me,” he says. “You've got to handle each horse in a different way. You can't shoe every horse the same and you can't trim every horse the same. You have to constantly use your mind.”

Even though Lowry receives a disability stipend, he says he never considered not having a job.

“I got my work ethic from my daddy,” he says. “I was raised that you don't just sit around and do nothing. If I could not get a disability check and survive, I would. I would trade my disability check for a license any day of the week.”

Because he doesn't have a driver's license, Lowry often rides into town to run errands on his quarter horse.

“It's not a bad way to travel, unless it's raining,” he says. “It's a lot more positive attention now than it used to be because people realize my horse isn't crazy. People don't mind me tying up at Walmart, the drugstore or restaurants.”

Lowry recently relocated and is closer to downtown Bay Minette, but when he lived farther away, going to town was an all-day affair.

“I would go to the bank, pay my bills and eat at a restaurant,” he said. “And I had a black lab that followed that horse everywhere.”

But Lowry doesn't go to town as much as he used to — he's busy working.

“I have two and a half weeks worth of steady business, and I probably see 15 to 20 people a week,” Lowry says. “I graduated second in my class (from Casey and Son) — that makes me pretty decent, I think. I have some of my customers that won't let nobody else touch their horses. As far as the business goes, the only challenge I have is I can't go out to my customers.”

In addition to farrier work, Lowry volunteers in the community by riding horses during events. He is also raising his 16-year-old daughter Madison, who loves riding horses as well.