racehorse retirement

Last week, the 40th Asian Racing Conference took place in Sapporo, Japan. You may ask what relevance that has for anyone with horses in Continental America or Europe? The answer is many owners and trainers today play on the global stage. As an extremely small owner and breeder, even I have horses in the U.S., Ireland, England, France, and fractional ownership in Australia. And what do we all do first thing every morning? Read the Thoroughbred Daily News, and many listen to the Nick Luck Daily Podcast. In doing so,...

The Josephine Abercrombie Pin Oak Foundation will match up to $750,000 in donations for a new, state-of-the-art Old Friends visitor center at its Georgetown, Kentucky location to be called The Ms. Josephine Abercrombie Center at Old Friends. The structure, a renovation of an old tobacco barn, will be named in honor of the horsewoman, philanthropist, and late owner of the renowned Pin Oak Stud in Versailles, Ky. To date, $150,000 for the project has been raised, which includes a $50,000 donation by the Georgetown/Scott County Tourism board. According to Old...

Bruce Lunsford's homebred GI Woodward S. winner Art Collector (Bernardini--Distorted Legacy, by Distorted Humor) will stand at Claiborne Farm near Paris, Ky. upon retirement, the farm announced Wednesday. Winner of the Woodward in 2021 over Maxfield (Street Sense), Art Collector notched a 107 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort. It was one of seven triple-digit Beyer figures he received in a career that has thus far recorded a tally of 20-10-1-0 and earnings of $2,332,490. "We are thrilled to stand another exciting stallion prospect for longtime client Bruce Lunsford," said...

New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program has opened a satellite facility at Trillium Sport Horses near Ocala, Florida. Erin MacDonald, an international three-day eventing rider, will oversee the facility's focus on rehabbing, retraining, and rehoming retiring Thoroughbred racehorses. "On average, 60 horses each year are shipped more than 700 miles from Florida to our Lexington facility," said Anna Ford, the program director for New Vocations. "Horses coming from Florida racetracks and training centers will now have a much shorter travel distance and duration as they start their next chapters." New Vocations,...

Shortly after midnight Wednesday, the New York State Assembly passed an aftercare bill which prohibits the slaughter of racehorses and racehorse breeding stock, requires that racehorses be microchipped, and provides tax incentives for Thoroughbred aftercare donations on tax returns. The bill will now be sent to Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is expected to sign it. The purpose of the legislation is to ensure the prohibition of the inhumane slaughter of retired racehorses and breeding stock. The legislation also increases access to funding for appropriate care of retired racehorses by ensuring...