“Summer” is lovely girl who's full of potential. She'll need a special, specific person to help bring out the best in her, and we're excited to help her find her perfect partner.

An affectionate girl who appreciates attention, Summer can also be reactive and tricky to handle in those scenarios. While these instances have become fewer during her time with us and we've learned how to bring her down and help her cope, she will need an experienced handler to help her through her issues. Her perfect partner is a confident and kind handler who's invested in her and not overly concerned about a timeline or outcome.

She's a very different horse when she's reactive, so we've given her two sets of levels, where appropriate, to best reflect what her adopter should be prepared for!

• Leading and Ground Manners
  • Good Day - Level 1 - Summer follows her handler on a cotton lead and is very respectful.
  • Bad Day - Level 4 - She can get a bit stuck and put on the brakes when approaching a potentially stressful situation (in her eyes, things like a trailer, a busy barn or crossties). We have been doing lots of ground work and, as we've gained her trust, she's become more likely to follow us. Patience is key with this girl!
    
    
• Grooming and Tacking
  • Good Day - Level 1 - She'll stand quietly in crossties, enjoys a good grooming session and is good to tack.
  • Bad Day - Level 4 -  Summer has panicked in the crossties, so we never leave her unattended. At the moment, we take extra care to make the grooming and tack-up process as slow and relaxed as possible. This might mean avoiding a very busy time of day at the barn until she is more comfortable.
    
    
• Horse Care - Level 2 - Summer is a very easy keeper and she currently lives out! She took a couple weeks to adjust to small group turnout, but now she loves hanging with her girlfriends! We just added front steel shoes to get ahead of a couple cracks that were beginning, but otherwise she's been happily barefoot.
  
  
• Riding - Level 2 - Summer has an excellent work ethic and really does strive to please. We know she will likely be a “one-person horse’ and, in the proper program with the right partner, she will grow to be an incredible athlete! We've been taking things slowly under saddle due to her reactivity, and Summer has done very well so far. She is not particularly spooky at objects, and she stands quietly to mount and listens to her riders cues and voice commands. Her adopter should be prepared to continue this slow process and give her plenty of time to gain confidence in her new handler. While we haven't observed it yet, potential adopters should be prepared to handle reactivity under saddle in case Summer has a bad day.
  
  
• General Demeanor
  • Good Day - Level 1 - 2 
  • Bad Day - Level 4 - 5 
    
    
• Physical Capability - Level 5 - Summer is a lovely mover and very athletic. With plenty of time and trust, she could be a flashy partner in a number of pursuits! 

 click for horse level information 

ABOUT OUR ADOPTION FEES

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

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, thereby enabling us to assist even more horses transition off the track as stalls open up in our barns! In that way, when you adopt a horse through New Vocations, you’re actually helping two horses: your new family member and the one who takes his place in our program!

While our adoption fees are low, it’s important to remember that costs associated with the ongoing care and additional training for a horse (adopted or otherwise!) 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.

In general, our fees are set at $3,500, $2,500, $1,000, and Under $1,000:

• $3,500: This range is for horses considered unlimited in their physical ability or those with exceptional qualities that would make them an upper- or high-level equine athlete.
  
  
• $2,500: This range is for horses we consider physically capable of a mid- to high-level second career. They have few or relatively minor limitations.
  
  
• $1,000: This range is for horses best-suited for a low- to mid-level career. They may have sustained an injury but have been fully treated and rehabbed. These horses have been examined by and cleared by our veterinarians for most disciplines, possibly up to a certain level (for example, suitable for a career jumping 2’0” but not suitable for a 3’6” career).
  
  
• Under $1,000: This range is for horses that could be harder to place in a perfect situation or those with more limited athletic potential (for example, possibly suitable for flat-work only) but are still capable of a successful second career. They have been evaluated by our veterinarians and are otherwise healthy.

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're rehabilitated (if needed), socialized with other horses, evaluated by trainers and veterinarians, and in regular training with a professional; on average, the monetary value of these services exceeds $5,000. Any medical records (often including X-ray and ultrasounds) and pertinent history we have on each horse is also available to interested and approved adopters.