New Vocations Matrons of Honor Program

Check out her video! Updated photos coming soon!

This gorgeous Matron of Honor is as sweet as they come!

"Jet" loves getting attention, be it on the ground or in the saddle, and makes friends with her pasture and stall mates. She finds a comfort in wearing a chain when being led, and is always aware of things going on around her without being flighty. With an amazing demeanor, Jet likes to watch, analyze, and work out questions being asked of her so that she can assess how to best please whoever is handling her.

While she may have a couple of well deserved pounds covering her glorious frame, she is still athletic and ready to work! Jet is bred and raced as a pacer, and her natural ability to pace is still offered under saddle. However, she relaxes into her ground covering trot when given light contact from her rider and picks up her back. On the trail, she trots when asked or glides along in a gentle and slow pace.

Jet is sweet, athletic, and ready for adventures. This lady is smart and kind enough to take on multiple jobs if desired! She's game for trail rides and ground poles or showing an upper-beginner kid the ropes! This young mother is a truly special, well-built gem!

• Leading and Ground Manners - Level 1 - 2 - Jet walks everywhere very quietly most of the time. However, she does best in new or stressful situations with a chain over her nose (though it rarely needs to be utilized).
• Grooming and Tacking - Level 1 - Jet LOVES to be groomed and coddled! The more attention she gets, the happier she is! She has had multiple adults and up to 3 kids grooming her at one time, and she is attentive and relaxed through it all. This momma enjoys her pampering!
• Horse Care - Level 1 - Jet is barefoot and handles it very well.
• Riding - Level 2 - While Jet is generally calm and thoughtful with her riders, she can get excited when doing faster work. However, as she continues learning her new job we are fully confident that she will continue becoming even more relaxed and responsive!
• General Demeanor - Level 2 - Jet is a sensible, thoughtful, mothering type. She is always aware of things going on around her. Jet prefers to "study" new things and situations. She can get a bit quick or spooked with stressful situations and becomes temporarily stronger to handle. We believe with more experience and trust in her handler, this will improve over time. Jet is eager to work, eager to please and likes to have a partnership with her handler in every situation.
• Physical Capability - Level 3 - Jet has no physical limitations, and has shown us both trotting and pacing abilities. On the ground, she has offered a little bit of canter each way, but needs more time to be built up for and to understand cantering under saddle.

 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.