Though April 2020 was a month of social distancing and working from home, New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program withstood the trend of solitude and sent 60 retired Thoroughbred and Standardbred racehorses into new and loving homes. This is the largest number of April adoptions the program has ever accomplished since its inception in 1992. The program also received 225 applications from potential adopters, which is a 100% increase from months prior.
“I'm very proud of our entire team for pulling together to ensure our mission is moving forward during the lockdown,” said Thoroughbred Program Director Anna Ford. “This has been a very stressful time for all of us, as there are concerns that funding will decrease due to the long-term effects of COVID-19. However, seeing the uptick in adoptions has given us great hope and we continue to have faith that the funding needed to keep our doors open will come.”
The reason for the increase in adoptions is still being reviewed, but the program has seen a major increase in viewership on all their social media platforms as a result of many people staying home across the country. New Vocations noticed the trend early on and turned their attend to finding creative ways to showcase adoptable horses, like offering daily Facebook Live meet-and-greets with available horses.
“The increase in adoptions puts us in a good position to take in more horses,” Ford said. “For the first time in years, we have open stalls, so we're well prepared for our intake to increase. We are here to serve the racing industry and the true stars of the show, the horses. We plan to do as much as we can with the resources we have.”
For information on adopting a horse, donating a retired racehorse or supporting this important mission, visit newvocations.org.
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