GOOD NEWS FRIDAY sponsored by Liberation Farm: FREE TO A GOOD HOME
Friday, November 20th, 2009
By Ray Paulick
Antony Beck saw the writing on the wall just before the 2008 Keeneland November breeding stock sale. Overstocked breeders were trying to sell mares they no longer wanted or planned to breed, and an economic calamity was reducing demand for their product. Beck worried what might become of so many of the horses entered in the sale that would not find new homes.
So the president of Gainesway Farm in Lexington brought a proposal to Blood-Horse Publications, where he is a member of the board of trustees, to create a free online adoption service that brings existing Thoroughbred owners and potential new owners together. The idea was embraced by Kimberly Brown, editor of The Horse magazine, a Blood-Horse Publications owned, all-breeds horse health monthly with a popular website. The bulletin board service was launched at www.thehorse.com in November 2008. Cost of development was underwritten by Gainesway Farm as sponsor (click here to see the list of Thoroughbreds available). Earlier this year, a second section sponsored by the United States Trotting Association was added for Standardbred horses (click here to see the list of those horses).
“I started getting very concerned about the RNAs (reserve not attained) that might end up being butchered,” Beck told the Paulick Report. “I can’t persuade myself to believe that slaughter is the best way to reduce the horse population. Emotionally, it’s an offense to me to have a horse slaughtered.”
“I understand completely that many breeders are in a terrible financial situation right now,” he said. “No one wants to abandon a horse, but I’m afraid that’s the plight many of them face.”
The horse adoption listings are not just for retired or pensioned broodmares. Many are geldings that have been used in various disciplines who may have owners that can no longer afford them. The listings include the name, age, sex, color and location of the horse, along with a brief description of its background, characteristics or physical condition. The lists can be sorted by several categories, including location. Interested parties can contact the horse owners directly.
To date, 229 Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds have been adopted out as a result of the service. (Click here for “success stories.”)
Beck said one of the challenges is getting people from outside the Thoroughbred community to learn about the adoption service and the number of horses that are available.
“I’ve been told by many people that other disciplines really like Thoroughbreds, and this service gives those horsemen and women a chance to adopt a Thoroughbred at little or no cost,” he said.
Responsible horse owners need to be vigilant about who may be adopting their horse and whether they have any ulterior motives, such as bringing the new adoptees to a sale where horses are sold for slaughter. The Horse website has several articles that offer guidance on how to avoid that type of situation.
“I haven’t heard of anyone (being scammed),” Beck said, “but people do need to be aware. So far, we’ve had over 200 horses saved and in the hands of new owners. I’m very happy about that, but I hope we can do much more. It really is a matter of making people outside of the Thoroughbred world aware that these horses are available.”
ON A PERSONAL NOTE: Publishing is a very competitive business, and few publications like to acknowledge the existence of their competitors, much less drive traffic to their websites. Though the adoption service is hosted at The Horse magazine’s website, it shouldn’t stop popular all-breeds magazines like Equus, Horse Illustrated, Horse and Rider and Western Horseman from publicizing its existence. Those magazines and websites reach hundreds of thousands of horse owners who should be made aware of these free adoptions.
It is a service to the animal that is responsible for our livelihoods—the horse.
Copyright © 2009, The Paulick Report
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