In 2018, Wendy Cyr wasn't quite ready to get another horse but often scanned the available off-track Thoroughbreds on the Thoroughbred Adoption Network. This time was different. She came to a dark gray one-eyed mare named Cosmic Serenity (Cosmonaut- Gracefully Done) aka Serena, listed by ACTT Naturally. Cyr's last horse was a gray mare named [...]

The Retired Racehorse Project (RRP), formed in 2010 under the banner of the “Retired Racehorse Training Project,” is a non-profit organization with a mission to boost the presence of and demand for off-track Thoroughbreds in the show and recreational riding world. Its founder, Stuart Pittman, recognized the need for retraining clinics and ideas to help [...]

Boone McCanna was one of the leading jockey agents in Northern California, and prior to that in Washington, having represented Kevin Krigger, Dennis Carr, and Frank Alvarado among others. A third-generation horseman, McCanna had a vision to combine the tranquility of the his family's horse ranch outside Spokane, where his father would rest his racehorses [...]

The Center for Disease Control reports that in 2020 approximately 1 in 54 children in the U.S. has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). April is Autism Awareness Month, so it is fitting that we visit with Joell Dunlap, founder of The Square Peg Foundation, which pairs off-track Thoroughbreds with children affected by [...]

Foaled in 2009, King's Vision (Gulch–Weekend Storm by Storm Bird) began his career at Aqueduct, racing under IEAH's colors for trainer Rick Dutrow. At Finger Lakes, at age five, he finally broke his maiden. Overall, in 16 starts, King's Vision earned $20,908. King's Vision was born and raised at Lane's End Farm and is a [...]

Florida Thoroughbred Retirement and Adoptive Care (FLTRAC) originated as an effort put forth, beginning in 2009, by the Florida Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (FHBPA), Calder Race Course, Gulfstream Park and professional jockeys, to find second careers and homes for horses that raced in South Florida. The non-profit organization itself was founded in 2010. When [...]

The United Pegasus Foundation (UPF) was founded in 1994 by Helen Meredith. Meredith moved here from England in 1990 to work in the Thoroughbred racing industry as she had in the United Kingdom and France. Currently, UPF has two farms, one in Tehachapi with 46 horses, and the other in San Jacinto that holds the [...]

Turning for Home, Inc. was created by the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) in 2008 as a model program for racehorse retirement at Parx Racing. Parx was the first to implement a mandatory funding plan simultaneously with rules forbidding horse owners and trainers from sending horses to, or allowing horses to end up in slaughterhouse [...]

Since the TDN first interviewed Katie Larsen, who founded Southern Belle Thoroughbreds in 2017, the organization's impact on safe placement of racehorses at Woodbine and Fort Erie has grown exponentially. Southern Belle has placed 257 racehorses in two years and it has become a regular source for Thoroughbred Makeover prospects. The operational model at Southern [...]

Heightened awareness of animal welfare causes and the plight of retired racehorses over the past 30 years has dramatically changed the landscape in Thoroughbred aftercare and it continues to evolve as more racing jurisdictions recognize the need for institutional aftercare funding. Organizations forming now to provide safe and meaningful retirement for Thoroughbreds have the benefit [...]

In 2006, the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA) created Take the Lead to facilitate rehabilitation and retraining placements for retiring NYRA racehorses. The program is open to all horsemen based at New York Racing Association tracks. Recently the program received a new funding source through a percentage of claims made to help with the [...]

None of the four off-track Thoroughbreds at Freedom Ride, Inc. in Orlando, FL, have exciting race records. The richest horse is Mr. Ellie (Colonel John) with lifetime earnings of $49,000. The other three, Billy's Holiday, NLU Brazen Walk, and Brandon Iron, have combined earnings of $14,500. In their second careers however, these four horses are [...]