Beyond the Track. Anna Morgan Ford

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Beyond the Track - Anna Morgan Ford

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not suitable for first-time horse owners.

      Assistance

      If an adopter is unable to work through a certain problem with a horse, he or she must be willing to search for someone with experience who can help. In addition, early work with ex-racehorses often requires a second set of hands or a ground person to ensure safety and a positive experience for all involved.

      Environment

      A safe and welcoming environment where the horse is able to focus on learning his new job is essential.

      Partnership

      It takes time to get to know a horse, but by developing a good, working partnership, you will have a better understanding of what the horse likes and dislikes. Successful adopters understand the value of working with rather than against the horse when they encounter a problem, never forcing the horse to mold to a set program. And, sometimes it is necessary to work around a problem—with time and patience—instead of working through it as you might do with other horses.

      Overall, I find that success with an OTTB has a great deal to do with the adopter’s mindset. I have seen people who lacked experience, but who were infinitely patient and always willing to ask for help, have more success than others who had plenty of experience but didn’t possess the frame of mind to handle an OTTB.

      If you decide you would like to work with an OTTB, you need to realize you will be in it for the long haul. You must understand that transitioning a Thoroughbred from racetrack to regular life is a challenging experience. You need to roll with the punches and patiently take the good with the bad.

      The purpose of this book is to help you along the way, providing basic information and training tips that will enable the average horseman to prepare the OTTB for a new career. In addition, my recommendations for feeding, farrier work, and socialization are also helpful for transitioning the retiree to simply become a companion or pasture pal.

      I will help you deal with everything from your horse’s first day at his new home to his first outing away from home. I’ll discuss many of the “peculiarities” of the ex-racehorse, and knowing about these habits and behaviors before you begin retraining will help the process go much more smoothly. This book will not tell you how to train the ex-racehorse to be a hunter, jumper, eventer, or dressage horse, but it will help you build a solid foundation that is invaluable in the pursuit of any specific discipline.

       Bred to Run:

      What Racehorses Know

      1.1 A Thoroughbred’s breeding and training is planned and carried out with one goal in mind: winning races.

      So you want to bring home a racehorse? You may have seen Thoroughbreds at the track—a blur of color—and felt your heart skip as the horse you picked to win led the field across the finish line. Perhaps you have also seen “transitioned” off-track Thoroughbreds (I’ll refer to them as “OTTBs” throughout this book) assume their new careers with grace and athleticism, and you would like to achieve the same success with one yourself. Or, maybe you have heard heartrending stories about the less fortunate “unwanted” racehorses and you feel the need to give one of these a chance at “life.”

      Every year, literally thousands of racehorses reach the end of their racing career and are available for a new purpose. At New Vocations, we get horses from tracks all over the country. Some Thoroughbred owners donate their horses to our organization when they no longer have a use for them (due to injury, behavior, lack of running ability, or any number of other reasons) and are unable to find an individual buyer. New horses arrive on a weekly basis, and it isn’t unusual to have multiple horses arriving or leaving every week.

      Upon arrival at New Vocations, each horse is evaluated by experienced staff. Both mental and physical condition is assessed, and a plan to suit the horse’s particular needs is devised. The idea is to strategically begin the OTTBs’ retraining and enable them to start new careers by evaluating their potential, getting them healthy, handling them safely and patiently, and ultimately placing them in new homes. There are many steps, and each horse moves through them at a different rate. Some immediately relax and grow accustomed to their new life rather quickly, while others take months to fit in.

      It isn’t until an OTTB is favorably responding to his transitional training that we start looking to place him with a new owner. While we carefully interview prospective adopters and do our best to find suitable matches, people with an interest in adopting a horse often have limited experience with OTTBs specifically. This leads to numerous questions as they work through the transitioning process with their new horse. I will try to provide the answers to these questions, and others, in the pages that follow.

      To better imagine what a horse is going through when he leaves the track and starts a new career as a riding horse, try to imagine yourself in a similar situation. Simply put, think about what it would be like to lose the only job that you have ever known and leave all your friends and everything familiar to you. Then, you move to a new town, where you start a job for which you have no training or prior experience. In this new place, no one speaks your language, the food is nothing you have ever eaten before, and the schedule is entirely different from your usual routine. This is what it is like for a Thoroughbred to leave life at the track and go on to a new career—he is completely out of his comfort zone.

      

      1.2 A–C These three ex-racehorses were adopted through New Vocations and have gone on to excel in new careers. Discreet Dancer competing as a show jumper with Armand Leone (A). “Tooey” and Kari Briggs are exploring lower level dressage—here they are pictured at Tooey’s first show (B). Velvet Cat, shown here in early schooling, is now used for Pony Club (C).

      It helps if the person adopting an ex-racehorse—in this case, you—knows something about the horse’s previous experiences as you assist him in the transition to his new lifestyle. Getting to know your new horse is like getting to know a new friend—you want to find out about his personality, background, and what makes him tick. It will take a little time together before you understand his personality, his likes and dislikes, but he will never be able to sit down with you over coffee and share the story of his past. Luckily, many Thoroughbred breeding facilities and racing stables are managed somewhat similarly, so you can better understand your OTTB’s background by learning a little about racing as a whole. While by no means a thorough lesson in what is a complex industry with many layers and traditions, I will provide a glimpse of what happens on and off the track, explaining what most Thoroughbreds likely experience at each stage of their race training.

      

      1.3 Many young Thoroughbreds are turned out with their mothers, along with other mares and foals their age. This allows them to gain social skills, strength, and a taste for being competitive.

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