Rigaud blacksmith frantically searching for lost anvil

A blacksmithin Rigaud, Que.,is taking to social media in search of the prized anvil he lost last Friday.

The anvil fell out of MichaelAppugliese's trailer when he was in nearby Hudson, leading to a frantic search and an appeal onFacebook.

"Losing the anvil was terrible because itis very personal for me," Appugliese said.

"It was my first anvil, and I grinded it and grinded it. And it was exactly the way I wanted it."

A homemade anvil, of sorts

Appugliesebought the anvil in San Francisco for $1,000 and has been beating it into shape for the last 15 years.

The anvil was an essential part of the GreystoneEquinehorse-riding school he runs with his wife in Rigaud,west of Montreal.

Appugliese shoes the horses himself,a service he also provides tothe dozens of clients who rent stable space at his farm and to area farmersat their farms.

He was at a horse show in Hudson when he got word that someone had seen an anvil at the side of a road nearby.He quickly deduced it was his.

"I retraced my steps and it wasn't there, which is probably a good thing because if someone had hit it they would have done some damage to their car," he said.

Making do without a favourite tool

Appugliese ishoping whoever found it will get in touch.

"Hudson is a small, honest community and I'm relatively confident that someone's going to hear about it through the grapevine and get a hold of me," he said.

In the meantime, with his beloved anvil missing, he's usingan old piece of rail that he found on his farm.

"Any good blacksmith can work with any solid surface," he said.

But no surface can fully replace his perfectly ground anvil.

"No two anvils are the same," he said.