Take 50% off adoption fees when you adopt a horse by December 23rd with our Home for the Holidays Adoption Special! 

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2025 RRP Thoroughbred Makeover Eligible

• Leading and Ground Manners - Level 2 - York is often on a mission when walking in hand and can present as being a little pushy. When in a new or exciting environment a chain over his nose has helped keep his attention on his handler.
  
  
• Grooming and Tacking - Level 2 - York is good for brushing and tacking and enjoys his post-ride baths. He is generally quiet on the crossties but can fidget and paw if he feels like the process is taking too long. In these moments, we will take a second to correct him and insist he stands patiently before resuming. 
  
  
• Horse Care - Level 1 - York requires no specialized care. He lives outside with another friendly gelding and is shod in front steel shoes.
  
  
• Riding - Level 3 - York has good days and not-so-good days (don't we all?), and while he has never offered to do anything naughty, he has been a bit of a puzzle under saddle. He will get to work on his good days with minimal pushback and has been outstanding! He is a great mover, has scope in all three gaits, and is incredibly balanced. York can go bitless or in a bridle and is extremely responsive to his rider. On his not-so-good days, he can come in from the field a bit reluctant which carries over to his work under saddle. He can become a little shutdown and we have found the best course of action, for now, is to dismount, do some groundwork, and then get him going on the lunge before calling it a day. York has been hacking out recently and has been well-behaved in various scenarios (passing vehicles, cows, and dogs). He seems to enjoy getting out of the ring!
  
  
• General Demeanor - Level 3 - York has a ton of star quality and is extremely classy and athletic. As it goes, these special, upper-level types aren’t always the most straightforward, and the path to producing them is not linear. York has a neat personality and is very communicative. It will be very important that he goes to an experienced adopter who is not on a schedule and is willing to listen, work to understand him, and stay very present during each session.
  
  
• Physical Capability - Level 3 - The sky is the limit for this handsome gelding! York has some hardware from an old condylar repair but returned to race successfully before retiring. As always, veterinary records are available to interested and approved adopters.

 click for horse level information 

Interested in this horse? Already approved adopters may reach out to this horse's trainer at the "Email About This Horse" button above for further information. Still need to become approved? Learn about the process and start your questionnaire at newvocations.org/adopt. Approved applications are valid for 2 years.

ABOUT OUR ADOPTION FEES

New Vocations intentionally sets our horses’ adoption fees lower than the average cost of buying a Thoroughbred or Standardbred from a private seller (in today’s market, horses coming right off the track are often listed at $5,000 to $10,000!).

Our fees range from $0 (waived) to $3,500.

• Fees typically correspond with a horse’s Anticipated Physical Capability. So, horses that are found to be best suited for non-riding careers (our Pasture Potatoes) have waived fees, while the fees for horses assessed to be suitable for high-impact careers will be up to $3,500.

While our adoption fees are low, it’s important to remember that costs associated with ongoing care and additional training for a horse can be high. We hope that by helping adopters save money upfront, you’ll have more funds available to cover the costs of properly caring for and training a retired racehorse.

When you adopt a horse through New Vocations, you’re helping two horses; your new family member and the one who takes their place in our program. Our facilities are nearly always at max capacity, which means we can’t take in a new horse until one is adopted. Keeping our adoption fees low helps us find appropriate homes for horses quickly, enabling us to help even more horses transition off the track as stalls open up in our barns!

Another perk of adopting from us: we do all we can to give you the most value for your adoption fee. Most adoptable horses have been in the program for a minimum of 60 days, during which they've rehabilitated (if needed), socialized with other horses, been evaluated by trainers and veterinarians, and have been in regular training with a professional. On average, the monetary value of these services exceeds $5,000. Any medical records (often including X-rays and ultrasounds) and pertinent history we have on each horse are also available to interested and approved adopters.